COMMUNITY IMPACT

 

Below are four programs United Way manages serving Darke County, also see the Partner Agency page to learn about the truly amazing work of our 23 non-profit agencies making a huge community impact for our county!

BRIDGE THE GAP

The Bridge the Gap Fund is in its sixth year in existence in Darke County to help address the basic needs of our residents by helping them "bridge the gap" with shelter, utility, and medical assistance in times of short-term struggle including loss of jobs, disabilities, illness, and other issues that may arise, which make it hard for our residents to make ends meet.  The Bridge the Gap Fund provides $2,500-$30,000 in any given year based on funding in direct financial assistance, and with your help, we hope to do more. We utiltize the Emergency Food and Shelter Program funds from the Federal Government as well as community donations, and, in the past, part of our reserve. In 2010 we received $12,500 from EFSP grant monies and $2500 from our Runway & Rhythm fundraiser to help Darke County citizens in need.  With this aid, we helped 33 households, and 88 individuals with rent and morgage assistance.  In 2011, EFSP funds were drastically cut at the Federal level.  We have received $2,300 for the program as well as $1000 from AEP, and the local community allocation of $5,000 was used as well serving over 10 households.

            

DOLLY PARTON IMAGINATION LIBRARY

Dolly Parton Imagination Library started in the Darke County area in January 2010.  We have a couple grants that started this project to serve youth in Darke County from birth-age 5, by mailing an age appropriate book selected by Dolly's educational specialists to kids every month until they turn 5.  We hope this project will help children learn to read and decrease the amount of literacy issues by the time children are ready for school.  Dolly Parton's Foundation provides the books free of charge and the Darke County United Way helps get these books from the Foundation to the children of Darke County by paying for postage which is about $30/child.  This postage cost is what Darke County United Way is currently working hard to find grants to fund.  We were very fortunate to have a grant in 2009 from the Amie McClurkin Hope Foundation Fund that started this program.   We currently have 250 children in the program, 129 have graduated for a total served of 379, and we are searching for more grant money to expand the program.  If you would like to donate to this cause please call the United Way office at 937-547-1272. To sign up your child call 547-1272.  Head Start, Anthony Wayne, EUM, Greenville, Tri Village & Ansonia Preschools are served through this program currently.  We would like to include all Darke County preschools in this program for the future. Click here to learn more about the Dolly Parton Foundation.

 

STUFF A BUS  Stuff a Bus collected 7,000 school supplies this August for Children in need.  Thank you to those who donated to this worthy cause!   We collected from 9am-4pm at the JCPenney parking lot in Greenville as well as Versailles Savings & Loan from 9am-2pm in Versailles with the help of HandsOn West Central Ohio volunteers and Modern Mothers.  The Blue Angels 4-H group helped us sort all supplies.  They were a wonderful help!!  There were also wonderful places that held drop off sites to donate school supplies to during the month of July.  If you still have supplies to donate, please feel free to bring them to the United Way office at anytime.  We have collected well over 47,000 items for children thanks to donations given from our counties' residents. Supplies help children in the following school districts: Ansonia, Arcanum, Bradford, Franklin Monroe, Greenville, Mississinawa Valley, Tri Village, Versailles, and Board of Developmental Disabilities.

 

FAMILYWIZE DISCOUNT DRUG PROGRAM 

The Darke County United Way is proud to team up with Familywize to provide drug discount cards to our Darke County residents.  We introduced the new cards February 2008 and within the first month of use saved $365 out of $614 in claims, a 59% savings in just one month!  Cards are available at our office, the Department of Health, Job & Family Services, Community Action Partnership, Comprehensive Health, Community Unity, and most of the local pharmacies. You may also go to www.familywize.com to download a prescription discount card and check area pharmacies for participation.  We have saved Darke County $167,081.92 since February 2008 to date with this program an average savings of close to $35,000/year. 2,024 Darke County residents have benefited from this program.

 

 

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