A passion for the mission of the United Way and for helping others is required.

The United Way of West Central Minnesota is proud of the work our partner organizations are doing in the community, and we do all we can to support those efforts as much as we can. Recently, the Aging Wisely program held at the Willmar Community Center needed wireless microphones to conduct their meetings more effectively. Community Center Manager, Britta Diem, sought to gather the resources needed to make the microphones a reality and the United Way was able to help provide those resources. She shares that the microphones allow for better hearing, understanding, and discussion within the group, and that everyone has thoroughly enjoyed using them. We are so glad to hear that the microphones are a such a benefit and that the funds our donors provide are being used for a worthwhile cause. Thank you to the Willmar Community Center for sponsoring the Healthy Aging group. We can do great things when we LIVE UNITED!

The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals in the United States.

Join in the community fun this summer as we participate in many local parades. Feel free to download the schedule and add it to your refrigerator door!

Margaret Boerema: Volunteering is one of the most important things people can do because it is a way to give back. As kids, we don’t realize how many people volunteer to make activities great for us. As students, we don’t realize how volunteer groups make many of our favorite activities possible. Communities need volunteers to be able to offer both exciting and necessary services.

The GrowMobile is a program of United Way of West Central Minnesota that provides a mobile preschool experience to at-risk children. The GrowMobile hosts a preschool experience at multiple stops a day during the week throughout the summer. The GrowMobile is a community initiative and allows interns to work with volunteers, businesses, agencies, schools, and other regional entities. This program is unique to our region and is working to prepare our community’s children for school.

West Central Minnesota is fortunate to have a broad system of non-profit and service organizations that work to change lives for area families and individuals. However, community needs change over time, and in order to be most effective, we believe that by creating a forum for those organizations to share, discuss, plan, and support one another all of our efforts will benefit. Bridgebuilders is a group run by the United Way that invites stakeholders in these organizations to benefit from these discussions.

Have you missed previous newsletters? We have you covered! Find our newsletter archive available on our website and get caught up on all we are doing to enhance our communities locally.

United Way of West Central Minnesota is vested in helping prepare kids in our region for success in Kindergarten and beyond. One way United Way is able to do this is through the Imagination Library program. Imagination Library provides a new book each month to children aged birth to 5 years of age at no charge to families who are enrolled. Books are delivered to the child's home by US mail.

To qualify for Imagination Library, the child must reside in the United Way of West Central Minnesota's territory area. Learn more about this program on our website, or use the link to sign a child up.