United Way of Missoula Country COVID Report

412 W. Alder Street

Missoula, MT 59802

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United Way During COVID-19: A Focal Point of Community Response March 2020- March 2021

412 W. Alder St. | Missoula | MissoulaUnitedWay.org |    

OUR COVID-19 EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE FUND

United Way staff chair or serve on several ongoing Missoula County STRENGTHENED PEOPLE and statewide task forces as part of theAND publicORGANIZATIONS sector's official COVID-19 response: • • •

UNITED WAY DURING COVID-19: A FOCAL POINT OF COMMUNITY RESPONSE

Emergency Child Care Mental Health

to and 825 Fundraising service and gig-economy • distributed Volunteers workers (food service workers, bartenders, hair • Missoula County COVID-19 Reopening Working Group stylists, housekeepers and others) who faced • challenges Montana accessing Nonprofit Association’s Rapid Response Task Force unemployment benefits who were ineligible for those benefits.

• or Safer Missoula

United Way accepted donated face

Beginning in 2020, United Way of Missoula County played a critical role in Our volunteermissoula.org website linked nonprofits experiencing COVID-related volunteer needs peopleWe available to fill to those needs. our community’s recovery fromwith COVID-19. are grateful the hundreds

WHAT WE HEARD FROM COVID-19 masks andEMERGENCY distributed more than ASSISTANCE FUND RECIPIENTS

of individuals and organizations who made possible our prompt, effective,

(names used with permission)

and multi-faceted response to the pandemic.

Our Missoula Nonprofit Center collected and publicized the online events and activities of our 100 member organizations, including creative educational and arts programs to help with home-schooling.

Project Tomorrow Montana has consistently communicated the best available information to help community members struggling with isolation and mental health issues, and continues to train Missoulians in how to reach out a hand of help and hope to those in crisis.

2 6

$330,000+ Economic Development

COVID-19 REPORT | UNITED WAY OF MISSOULA COUNTY

10,000

torent essential andsome frontline “ Thank you for helping me pay my and take of theworkers. stress away.” “ Your support helped me and made me feel connected to the larger community.”

$64,000

A note from Dave & Troy Erickson, older Missoulians who missed out on five weeks of selling their hand-made items at the winter farmer’s market, and were able togranted use their moneychild to buy gasfacilities, and groceries: “Thank you for this to relief emergency care amazing blessing!” child care providers and parents experiencing financial hardships related to COVID-19.

A note from Chris McAdams, a photographer and river guide, "I was able to put gas in my truck and buy groceries."

Thanks to Headwaters Foundation, Providence St. Patrick Hospital, Local farmer Lori Parr (known “Lavender Lori” toassistance. her customers), said, and Missoula County foras generous child-care “Thank you from the bottom of my heart. It was truly such a great kindness to start off this very weird time. I feel like knowing United Way cared about me kept it all in a positive light.”

UNITED WAY OF MISSOULA COUNTY | COVID-19 REPORT

3 7

OUR COVID-19 EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE FUND

United Way staff chair or serve on several ongoing Missoula County STRENGTHENED PEOPLE and statewide task forces as part of theAND publicORGANIZATIONS sector's official COVID-19 response: • • •

UNITED WAY DURING COVID-19: A FOCAL POINT OF COMMUNITY RESPONSE

Emergency Child Care Mental Health

to and 825 Fundraising service and gig-economy • distributed Volunteers workers (food service workers, bartenders, hair • Missoula County COVID-19 Reopening Working Group stylists, housekeepers and others) who faced • challenges Montana accessing Nonprofit Association’s Rapid Response Task Force unemployment benefits who were ineligible for those benefits.

• or Safer Missoula

United Way accepted donated face

Beginning in 2020, United Way of Missoula County played a critical role in Our volunteermissoula.org website linked nonprofits experiencing COVID-related volunteer needs peopleWe available to fill to those needs. our community’s recovery fromwith COVID-19. are grateful the hundreds

WHAT WE HEARD FROM COVID-19 masks andEMERGENCY distributed more than ASSISTANCE FUND RECIPIENTS

of individuals and organizations who made possible our prompt, effective,

(names used with permission)

and multi-faceted response to the pandemic.

Our Missoula Nonprofit Center collected and publicized the online events and activities of our 100 member organizations, including creative educational and arts programs to help with home-schooling.

Project Tomorrow Montana has consistently communicated the best available information to help community members struggling with isolation and mental health issues, and continues to train Missoulians in how to reach out a hand of help and hope to those in crisis.

2 6

$330,000+ Economic Development

COVID-19 REPORT | UNITED WAY OF MISSOULA COUNTY

10,000

torent essential andsome frontline “ Thank you for helping me pay my and take of theworkers. stress away.” “ Your support helped me and made me feel connected to the larger community.”

$64,000

A note from Dave & Troy Erickson, older Missoulians who missed out on five weeks of selling their hand-made items at the winter farmer’s market, and were able togranted use their moneychild to buy gasfacilities, and groceries: “Thank you for this to relief emergency care amazing blessing!” child care providers and parents experiencing financial hardships related to COVID-19.

A note from Chris McAdams, a photographer and river guide, "I was able to put gas in my truck and buy groceries."

Thanks to Headwaters Foundation, Providence St. Patrick Hospital, Local farmer Lori Parr (known “Lavender Lori” toassistance. her customers), said, and Missoula County foras generous child-care “Thank you from the bottom of my heart. It was truly such a great kindness to start off this very weird time. I feel like knowing United Way cared about me kept it all in a positive light.”

UNITED WAY OF MISSOULA COUNTY | COVID-19 REPORT

3 7

$35,000 granted to longtime, trusted nonprofit partners on the front lines of Missoula’s COVID response: Child Care Resources, Human Resource Council, Missoula Aging Services, YWCA of Missoula, Soft Landing Missoula, the Poverello Center, and the Zootown Arts Community Center.

A TEMPORARY, SAFE SPACE FOR UNHOUSED MISSOULIANS Missoula’s Temporary Safe Outdoor Space is a safe, healthy, secure, staffed environment, on private land, with the ability to serve ― with dignity—up to 40 people experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic who are not accessing existing services or resources. Opened in late December 2020, the TSOS is a partnership between United Way, Hope Rescue Mission and other nonprofits, the faith community, law enforcement and other first responders, private businesses, county emergency management, and Reaching Home:

$40,000 in housing assistance deployed to connect people in immediate need of safety and shelter to safe, long-term housing.

Thanks to Wells Fargo and Missoula County for generous housing assistance.

Missoula’s 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness. The goal of the TSOS is to offer people safe space during the pandemic and link them to appropriate, sustainable housing. As of March 2021, approximately one-quarter of TSOS residents had moved into permanent housing.

Over four months, sheltering a total of

As of March 2021, approximately

experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic.

of TSOS residents had moved into permanent housing.

53 people

25%

$10,000+ invested in meeting the technology needs of remote learning centers, emergency child care facilities and group homes.

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COVID-19 REPORT | UNITED WAY OF MISSOULA COUNTY

UNITED WAY OF MISSOULA COUNTY | COVID-19 REPORT

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