AmeriCorps MLK Day Events Support Community |
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AmeriCorps member Caryn Corliss preparing quesadillas for lunch at the Glory Hall in honor of MLK day. |
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AmeriCorps member Aliyah Pelley-Livingston and community volunteer Shannon McCain preparing lunch at the Glory Hall in honor of MLK day. |
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AmeriCorps is a national service program network that improves lives and fosters civic engagement. More than 75,000 Americans across the country participate in AmeriCorps each year. All members tackle different community needs in different ways. Members commit their time to address critical community needs like increasing academic achievement, mentoring youth, fighting poverty, sustaining national parks, preparing for
disasters, and more.
AmeriCorps celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. Day with a National Day of Service. This year, the five Juneau AmeriCorps members chose to conduct two service projects. First, the generosity of the Southeast Alaska Food Bank, staff and patrons of the Glory Hall, volunteers Shannon McCain, (Community Member), and Shelby Martin, (49th Fathom Charters), and AmeriCorps members prepared and served lunch helping to address hunger amongst the homeless population in Juneau. Chicken chili, cheese quesadillas, and a variety of homemade cookies were served to the patrons of the Glory Hall.
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L to R, AmeriCorps members Isabel Mitolo, Aliyah Pelley Livingston, Sarah Reed, Craig Fox, Caryn Corlis, and Senator Jesse Kiehl working at the MLK collection event for non-food-related supplies in collaboration with the Black Awareness Association to benefit Spruce Root House and the Glory Hall. |
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The second project was in collaboration with the Black Awareness Association, aiding their collection event for non-food-related supplies to benefit the Glory Hall Shelter and the Shéiyi X̱aat Hit (Spruce Root House) Youth Homeless Shelter. The generous citizens of Juneau rose to the occasion with donations of these much-needed items.
The United Way of Southeast Alaska would like to take this opportunity to thank all the volunteers and community-based organizations involved in these activities on this special day, and for your ongoing support. Through the dedication of these organizations and volunteers, we can make a difference.
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Juneau Community Foundation Supports UW Mission with Grants |
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Giving instruction on sight words. |
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Leading participatory story time. |
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The Juneau Community Foundation promotes philanthropy and effectively responds to the needs of our community to create a healthy, safe, and culturally rich environment. Through the AmeriCorps program, the Juneau Community Foundation has been a long-standing supporter of the United Way of Southeast Alaska and its initiatives regarding Early Literacy Program Support Assistants positioned within the Juneau School District.
This year, through two 2021 grant awards from the Juneau Community Foundation totaling $27,910, the AmeriCorps program placed Early Literacy Specialists in both Harborview and Sayéik: Gastineau Community Schools both of which are Title I schools. The federally funded Title I educational school programs aim to assist schools with large populations of impoverished students.
AmeriCorps Early Literacy Program Support Assistants, work with pre-K through 3rd-grade struggling readers, as well as working with families to help connect school-to-home learning pathways. The AmeriCorps Program Support Assistants are responsible for working with their assigned students on a weekly basis using individualized lesson plans, following the set program designed by the teacher. They will also help to make the United Way Reading Tutor program successful by implementing family literacy events and after-school literacy programs.
One AmeriCorps member stated, “It has been incredible to observe the students gradually grow in their literacy. When students go from sounding out each letter in a word, to one day blending the words, it’s really amazing. I hope that they will be reading in one breath soon.” Another member stated “The kindergartner I am working with has made
tremendous progress since the start of the year: He can now write his first name and can recognize multiple letters, along with the sound each letter makes. It is heartening to see how hard he works.”
Our partnership with the Juneau Community Foundation is beneficial to the community of Juneau and we thank them for their continued support. Through these partnerships and collaborative efforts between the Juneau School District and the AmeriCorps program, the youth of Juneau are getting the help they need.
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UW Board of Directors Go All-Out for Giving Tuesday!
Giving Tuesday fundraising effort by the United Way of Southeast
Alaska Board of Directors raised $2,080 from 19 donors.
United Way has long been a supporter of Feeding Juneau’s Future
through the Universal Breakfast Program.
United Way staff and AmeriCorps members participated in food packing efforts on December 17 to prepare and pack 1,000 bags for 500 students who participate in the Weekend Back Pack Program
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UWSEAK Board Members present a check to the Juneau Community Foundation. Picture L-R Erin Walker-Tolles (Catholic Community Services), Board Chair Emil Mackey (Country Financial), Amy Skilbred (Executive Director, Juneau Community Foundation), Loren Jones, and Peggy Cowan |
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Help UWSEAK Earn an Extra $50 by Signing Up for iGive Today! |
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You can now support United Way Southeast Alaska while shopping online with iGive. As you may have heard, Amazon Smile is being discontinued, so now would be a great time to take a few moments to make the switch to iGive.
Need some extra motivation to get signed up now? When at least 3 people help your cause by shopping, UWSEAK will receive an additional $50. Each new iGive member who joins between February 10 and March 1 AND makes their first purchase within 30 days of joining earns a $5 Bonus for UWSEAK! So please take a moment to sign up below.
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Erin Walker-Tolles
Director, Catholic
Community Services
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"I believe strongly in the rights of all to education, health and opportunity for economic self-sufficiency. I've seen first hand the positive change and lives that can be saved when we work towards equity and opportunities for all." |
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