Safe Ride Home
888 people were given SAFE RIDES HOME. United Way of Crow Wing & Southern Cass Counties kicked off its “Safe Ride Home” initiative last year by providing FREE taxi rides to homes only, during two key weekends: Thanksgiving (November 21-24) and New Year’s Eve (December 28-31). The goal of Safe Ride Home is to engage our community to think about the consequences of driving under the influence of alcohol by preventing problems from occurring and creating lasting changes in people’s lifestyle.
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Imagination Library
Over 2,000 children in Crow Wing and Cass Counties are receiving books from Imagination Library. Through Imagination Library, your local United Way supports helping children early on to achieve their potential. Each month, a child who is enrolled in Imagination Library is mailed an age and developmentally appropriate hard cover book from birth to his or her fifth birthday, at no cost to the family.
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Biggest Loser
The Biggest Loser Lakes Area Team Challenge encourages the entire community to get involved, have fun, and set in motion a healthier lifestyle through education, nutrition and fitness. The 2008 challenge resulted in 1,598 total pounds lost! Money raised from the Biggest Loser challenge is directly applied to Crow Wing and Cass County school districts for programs that promote healthy lifestyles for our children and instill healthy habits they will carry forward into adulthood.
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Women's Health Initiative
Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of American women. The Women’s Health Initiative focuses on heart health through the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women movement. Go Red for Women encourages women to take action to reduce their personal risk of heart disease and provides them with the tools they need to lead a heart healthy life.
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Give Kids a Smile
Give Kids a Smile is an annual two-day program launched by the Minnesota Dental Association that provides free dental care to thousands of low-income children. Your local United Way works to recruit local dentist who donate their time and talents for this program. United Way’s 2-1-1 information line directs people to participating Give Kids a Smile clinics in their area.
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Financial Assets for Independence in MN (FAIM)
United Way is partnering with the FAIM program to help families and individuals increase and make the most of their income with matched federal dollars. Participants in the FAIM program will open up opportunities for future success including homeownership, education and small business development.
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Free Tax Sites
United Way is working to increase income through expanding Earned Income Tax Credit outreach by improving the availability of free, educational tax preparation sites. Nationally, it is estimated that 25% of all eligible low income families do not claim their EITC.
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Emerging Leaders
This program inspires leaders to become involved with the non-profit sector of their community in order to broaden their public service horizons. Community members (ages 21-40) representing area businesses connect with an area non-profit organization, learn about their business operations/structure and provide them assistance in improving their organization through a major project.
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