Donations made to United Way of Northeastern Minnesota (UWNEMN) over the past year will now support 28 nonprofit agencies, 14 libraries with summer reading programs, 11 local food shelves, and UWNEMN’s eight direct service programs.
UWNEMN’s Board of Directors last month approved the following local agencies to receive 2023 funding:
- Advocates for Family Peace
- Angel Fund
- Arrowhead Center Inc
- Boys & Girls Club of Hibbing
- Camp Chicagami
- Care Partners
- Check & Connect
- Citizens for Backus
- Ely Community Health Center
- Ely Community Resource
- Friends Against Abuse
- Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin Lakes and Pines
- Koochiching Aging Options
- Koochiching County Food Access
- North St. Louis County Habitat for Humanity
- Northwoods Partners
- Project Care Free Clinic
- Range Transitional Housing Inc
- Second Harvest Northern Lakes Food Bank
- ServeMinnesota
- Sexual Assault Program of NSLC
- Star of the North Maternity Home Iron Range
- Support Within Reach
- The Salvation Army – Hibbing
- The Salvation Army – International Falls
- The Salvation Army – Virginia
- Voices for Ethnic and Multicultural Awareness (VEMA)
- Volunteers in Education (VinE)
- Voyageurs Area Council – Boy Scouts of America
These partners were determined by UWNEMN’s annual Fund Distribution process.
“Fund Distribution is an integral part of how our United Way operates,” said UWNEMN Executive Director Erin Shay. “Each year the process gives donors the chance to have a direct say in how their donor dollars are invested and learn about our local nonprofits’ impact on the community, what needs they see, and who they serve.”
Funded partners submitted applications detailing how their work addresses one of UWNEMN’s target issues (helping children succeed, empowering health lives, or stabilizing individuals and families) in UWNEMN’s service area (Iron Range, Koochiching County, and Lake of the Woods County).
Applications were reviewed by UWNEMN’s Board of Directors and approximately 75 community member volunteers.
In addition to reviewing applications, volunteers completed site visits and came together for a day of in-person interviews hosted by UWNEMN. After the interviews, the volunteers made funding recommendations to the board of directors.
“Now I see these agencies differently,” one volunteer said in a survey response following Fund Distribution Day. “…it’s good to see a bit of what our monthly payroll deductions go towards.”
Nearly 70 percent of the funds UWNEMN raises each year comes from workplace campaigns and individual donations according to Resource Development & Events Director Elizabeth Kelly.
“It is incredibly moving each campaign season to see local people unite to give back to their communities,” Kelly said. “Fund Distribution Day is the pinnacle – you see the results of each campaign meeting and each donation made.”
To learn more about UWNEMN’s 2023 partner agencies and Fund Distribution process, visit www.unitedwaynemn.org/partners.