Day of Action!

	United Way of Fresno County
	GIVE, ADVOCATE, VOLUNTEER.	ENEWS FROM YOUR LOCAL UNITED WAY

	*OUR 1st ISSUE!*
	*OUR 1st ISSUE!*

Greetings!

The United Way of Fresno County is giving back-- $45,000 to local nonprofits!

On April 23, 2009 the United Way of Fresno County granted $25,000 to Reading and Beyond for their child literacy development program and $20,000 to the Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission Sanctuary for their efforts to address the root causes of poverty.

These awards are part of the volunteer driven Community Impact Agenda of United Way of Fresno County. For more than a year, volunteers have gathered together to study the issues of greatest concern to the residents of Fresno County. Each recipient submitted a proposal in response to the volunteer committee's request to address the underlying root causes of child literacy and poverty. An independent review team scored and made recommendations based on desired outcomes.

The United Way of Fresno County has been advancing the common good for more than 85 years.Visit www.unitedwayfresno.org to learn how you can help make a difference.

Day of Action 2009

The 2009 Day of Action is just a few weeks away!

The Day of Action is an opportunity for individuals, families, businesses, service, civic and religious organizations to get involved. The United Way of Fresno County asks that you join with others in our community to make a difference in the life of a child by collecting age-appropriate books for Kindergarten through 8th grade students.



Did you know 59% of children in Fresno County live in low-income neighborhoods? 61% of those families do not have a single book in their home for a child to read.

THREE SIMPLE STEPS TO GET INVOLVED:

Simply collect new and gently used books for children K-8 between May 1st and June 18th.

TIP: If you are going to collect books at your office or organization, be creative and decorate a collection box! Notify your co-workers to bring their new and gently used books to the office and see the difference one office can make by bringing the joy of reading to a child.

Keep in touch! Contact Linda Dippel to notify the United Way of Fresno County that you are hosting a book drive at your location, (559) 243-3665.

On June 19th, bring the collected books to the United Way of Fresno County office between 8am and 6pm. Click here for directions .

The books you collect are available without charge to programs, schools and organizations, such as:

Title 1 Schools- For placement in classroom libraries
Early Childhood Education Programs- Head Start, Even Start and Early Head Start
After-School Reading Programs- Smile Center and Stone Soup
Family Services Programs- Mother's Voice, Reach Out & Read and Life Steps
Parenting Programs- Foster Parent Training Program and Fresno Barrios Unidos
Youth Services Programs: Focus Forward and Every Neighborhood Partnership

Since inception, the Central Valley Book Bank, a project of the United Way of Fresno County, has given away more than 72,000 books to teachers, schools, libraries and community-based organizations. Our mission is to ensure every child in Fresno County has one or more books to read.

The Central Valley Book Bank is a collaborative effort of the United Way of Fresno County and the Richter Center For Community Engagement and Service Learning at Fresno State.

2-1-1 Policy Update

United Way of Fresno County is now plugged into
2-1-1 Central Valley. This multilingual service links callers either looking to get help or give help, to hundreds of health and human services throughout Fresno County.

Recently, new legislation (SB 712 Padilla/Benoit) has been introduced which would allow the United Way to expand the 2-1-1 system statewide. The legislation was introduced in anticipation of the passage of the Calling for 211 Act (S. 211 and H.R. 211, respectively), a core national policy goal of the United Way system.

In brief, SB 712 would:

Designate the California Health and Human Services department to serve as "lead entity" for purposes of drawing down federal funds under S. 211/H.R. 211. This is a requirement of the federal bills.
Allow HHS to delegate the lead entity role and responsibilities for directing the disbursement and use of those federal funds to an organization meeting criteria spelled out in the bill. The United Ways of California hopes to be selected as 2-1-1 lead entity.

United Way of Fresno County will continue to provide updates as SB 712 moves through the legislature.

United Way of Fresno County Volunteer Receives Adult Volunteer of the Year Award!

This year, one of our very own United Way of Fresno County VITA/EITC Volunteers, Mary Ronell, received the prestigious Adult Volunteers of the Year Award. Mary also received the Outstanding Volunteer Top
Ten Finalist of the 2009 Hands Across the Valley Award and 2009 Hands Across the Valley Volunteer of the Year Award.

Mary Ronell was honored for the tireless work and countless hours she has dedicated to the VITA/EITC Volunteer Program.As Senior Tax Consultant of the IRS SPEC office with more than 33 years of devoted service, Mary illuminates what it means to provide "service beyond called for."

The United Way of Fresno County is proud to call her one of our own. Congratulations Mary!



IN THIS ISSUE: United Way of Fresno County Gives Back-- $45,000 to local nonprofits! Day of Action 2009: Central Valley Book Bank Book Drive 2-1-1 Policy Update United Way of Fresno County Receives Adult Volunteer of the Year Award!