United Way has been a part of our community for 56 years.  When the people of Montgomery County think of United Way they of course think of our workplace campaigns but increasingly they are thinking of our work in disaster response like the recent wildfires.  A recent online survey revealed that some people are also aware of our work in gathering data to identify prioritized community needs like poverty and access to healthcare.

MCUW is about to take the next steps in our mission to improve lives.  The first step will be to hold conversations with small groups of people around the county and listen carefully to their dreams and hopes for themselves, their family and their community.  This information will then be considered along with the data about our county to draw together and focus the efforts of the entire community.  

We don't have all the answers at United Way but we do know that the people of Montgomery County do have the collective wisdom to improve lives.  Together we can address our community's biggest challenges and that starts with United Way carefully listening to what our residents are saying.

After we listen, then, as a community, we can collectively develop ideas, strategies and find best practices that will deliver the best results.  Please watch for more news about these community conversations in your neighborhood.

Obesity Rates in Montgomery County 

This past June, Montgomery County United Way and its local health partners released the 2011 Montgomery County Health Assessment.

One of the recommendations was to convene an Obesity Task Force.  Nearly seven in ten persons in Montgomery County are overweight or obese; and among low-income individuals about eight in ten persons are overweight.

With the Health Assessment, seven recommendations were made apparent because of the alarming statistics identified in the report.

What are the implications for the present and future health of these individuals and what is the ripple effect? Read more.

Be part of the solution!  If you are interested in learning more about the Health Assessment or the task force, contact MCUW Healthcare Coordinator, Kim Borneman at 936-760-4179, ext. 304 or email kim@mcuw.org.

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Creating Independence Council

Learning from Others for Best Practices

 Henrietta Munoz, from United Way of San Antonio scypes in to the October meeting of the Creating Independence Impact Council.

Did you know that 37% of school aged children living in Montgomery County live at or close to poverty. Many volunteers are shocked by this statistic, including Valerie Vogt of Vogt Engineering and former educator/principal, who chairs the Creating Independence Impact Council. "A third of our children are starting school with significant disadvantages in language and learning. The good news is that sustainable communities can be developed to support families in poverty."

At the October meeting of the Creating Independence Impact Council, members teleconferenced with Henrietta Munoz, Ph.D,Director of Special Projects for the United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County and Director of the Making Connections initiative in San Antonio.

The council also began a pilot program working through the Mission Northeast that trains community bridge builders to assist participants in their journey to move out of poverty. MCUW has invested in training materials from the "Aha!" process, which helps in understanding the impact of poverty in people's lives. "Aha!" was created by Ruby Payne, Ph.D., who is an author, speaker and educator who created a framework for understanding poverty. A number of individuals have received training in order to provide assistance to several local citizens in discovering their bridges out of poverty.  Read More. 

For more information regarding MCUW's "Creating Independence Impact Council", please contact MCUW's Director of Initiatives Debra Dyason at 936-760-4179, ext. 267 or email debra@mcuw.org.

The Williams Companies

Donates $5000.00 to

Wildfire Victims

Employees with The Williams Companies in Houston, with headquarters in Tulsa, Oklahoma, feel a local connection to area Montgomery County families who have suffered losses from the recent wildfires.

Larry Hoelscher, Vice President of Engineering and Technical Services and Toi Anderson, Manager of Market Services for The Williams Companies are both Montgomery County residents. When they were discussing how they could help wildfire victims, Toi said "Montgomery County United Way was one of the area non-profits that can help with this disaster and Williams company employees wanted to help locally." Toi is also this year's campaign coordinator for the United Way employee giving campaign at The Williams Companies.

Mr. Hoelsher and Ms. Anderson presented a $5,000.00 check to MCUW to assist with needs of the fire victims.

Montgomery County United Way has received over $44,700.00 in donations for fire victims to date. MCUW will be working with other non-profits, FEMA and local government to identify needs of Montgomery County residents and assist in the long term recovery process.

Employees of Montgomery County kicked off their Montgomery County United Way campaign.  Their goal  to raise $70,000 will help "Move People Out of Poverty...one family at a time."

This year, their previous incentive contests to vote for Montgomery County leaders to "Kiss the Donkey" and "Kiss the Pig" have been replaced with an online silent auction consisting of items for every taste and budget.

Thanks employees of Montgomery County for your support.

Want to get your company in on the fun and make a difference here in Montgomery County? 

Contact Dale Gray at 281-292-4155, ext. 267 or email:  dale@mcuw.org

If you are like Luis Navarette , you are just waiting for a way to help.  Luis heard about the Montgomery County wildfires on the radio and found out about Montgomery County United Way's efforts to connect volunteer opportunities through www.HelpOurCounty.org.  After contacting MCUW and finding that all immeditate wildfire volunteer opportunities were no longer available, he talked to Summer Darnell, MCUW's Days of Caring Coordinator.

Luis was connected with Conroe resident, Bernice Gipson, who needed help with her bathroom.  The floor was rotted through and needed an update.  Luis not only found donations for all of the material, he spent several days completing the job.  He even raised money by selling barbeque plates to raise funds for future Days of Caring projects.

"I would have been here 3 - 4 years ago if I had known people needed my help here." Luis said.  Luis is a painter by trade and drives from Houston to volunteer.

"How  can I not volunteer?  I can't let someone else suffer, if I can, I will find a way to help."

Connect with your own volunteer opportunity by signing on to:  www.HelpOurCounty.org  or volunteer directly for a MCUW Days of Caring project by contacting Summer Darnell at 936-760-4179, ext. 245 or email: summer@mcuw.org.