Generous Donors Lift Disaster Relief Fund, Spur Matching Challenge

Editor’s note: Article was updated on March 30, 2020, to include additional dollars raised. United Way’s Disaster Relief Fund has received strong corporate, foundation, and individual donor support that will be applied to local, broad-based needs related to COVID-19. Donations over the past several weeks have reached more than $1,100,000. Local donors can help further…

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Disaster Relief Fund Tackles COVID-19 Effects on Community

United Way’s Disaster Relief Fund is being applied to local, broad-based actions to address COVID-19. Local donors can help drive that impact by supporting the fund and leveraging a matching gift challenge. According to Alyssa Stewart, Vice President of Strategy & Impact, United Way is working with area nonprofit agencies and municipalities to determine what…

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Disaster Relief

Individuals seeking help in times of emergency should dial 2-1-1 for access to direct services. Disaster Relief It is in times of need that we discover the full impact of a community united. United Way is committed to investing in critical basic needs services. This includes raising and deploying funds effectively during times of emergency.…

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UW, FamilyWize Partnership Helps Region Save Big on Rx Costs

A powerful partnership involving United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region has saved local residents more than $1.8 million on prescription medications since 2007. FamilyWize, a community service organization, works with United Ways across the country to lower the cost of prescription medications for local individuals and families. The program provides discount cards…

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Year in Review: Advocacy Efforts

EITC coalition Brian Asquith Nakia Baylis Alyssa Stewart Eric Stewart

Give. Advocate. Volunteer. These are the core elements of what we do at United Way. We’ve put an especially strong focus on advocacy in 2019, as public policy continues to be an area in which we can work to eliminate barriers and improve systems that impact many in our community. Looking outward, we are turning…

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Meet the 2019 STAR Award Winners

2019 STAR Award winners

This year’s STAR Awards ceremony showed that the power of volunteerism is stronger than ever, and not limited to a single community. United Way BCKR and Gryphon Place partnered to host the first regional STAR Awards on Aug. 20 at Sherman Lake YMCA Outdoor Center, bringing together volunteers from both the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo…

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Call to Advocate: SNAP Rule Change Will Mean More Hungry Families

More than 3 million Americans, including hundreds locally, could lose food assistance under a proposed federal rule change. That means more hungry families in our region. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) wants to change a rule that lets some people who earn slightly over the income limit for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program—SNAP, or…

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Investing for Impact: $6.24 Million in UWBCKR Grants Drives Change

Childhood trauma, infant health, stable housing and food insecurity are among 110 area programs receiving a total of $6,247,821 in grants from United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region. Sixty programs will receive a total of $3,718,401 in strategic grants annually for three years, according to Alyssa Stewart, Vice President of Impact &…

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See the Nominees for the 2019 STAR Awards

This year’s STAR Awards event is fast approaching, and we can’t wait to celebrate the amazing volunteers who make Battle Creek and Kalamazoo better communities every day. The public is invited to join us at 5 p.m. Aug. 20 at Sherman Lake YMCA to honor our winners, and the 40 volunteers who were nominated for…

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