United Way of Greater Williamsburg Presents the Faces of United Way
Your investment in our Partner Agencies
Housing Partnerships - Home 
Repair Program - Housing Partnership's job can sometimes be a very dirty job - but the end results are more than amazing. To know that there are individuals still living in the Williamsburg area without indoor plumbing and electricity is shocking to some, but not to the hundreds of volunteers who work with Housing Partnerships.
One client, Mabel, was living in a dilapidated family home with no indoor plumbing, faulty electrical wiring, and the only source of heat was from kerosene heaters. Both Mabel and her husband Jack, are elderly and disabled and were having difficulties with the accessibility of their home. Housing Partnerships went into the project intending to rehabilitate the home and add a bathroom but as they began to remove the sheathing and dry wall they discovered that the home was not structurally sound enough to be rehabilitated. They regrouped and utilized volunteers and additional donations to demolish the couple's home and construct a new, two bedroom dwelling with indoor plumbing, central heat and 100% handicapped accessible. This improvement to Mabel and Jack's living conditions vastly increased their quality of life.
Another client, Francine, applied for assistance with her heat - it had not worked for over three years. Being in her 90's with no heat was bad enough, but when Housing Partnerships went to inspect the trailer, they found that the flooring needed to replaced throughout. They were able to utilize volunteers to overlay the floor with 3/4 plywood and install new carpeting. In addition to the floor repair, they were able to replace her inoperable furnace making her home safe, warm and dry.
During the past 22 years, Housing Partnerships, Inc. has:
* Recruited over 24,000 volunteers
* Who have worked over 161,000 hours
* Rehabilitated 1451 homes
* Built 24 new homes from scratch
* Offered 28 home ownership opportunities to low-income families.
But to completely measure their success, Housing Partnerships need only to look at Mabel, Jack and Francine, and the hundreds of other clients who have been helped as a direct result of their organization and the staff and volunteers who place faith, love of humanity, hope and optimism above all else.
Please note that names were changed to protect the privacy of the clients.
A Rehabilitated Home Before and After |
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Hospice House & Support Care of Williamsburg - their mission is to enhance the quality of life for individuals facing the last phases of life and to support the people they love. Without a doubt, Hospice House lives up to their mission.
One family member shares her story "Although we were not able to accommodate my mother's wish to spend her last days and hours in her own home, I know she was at peace at Hospice House. She was at peace, not because of where she was, but because of the people she was with. She trusted and loved each person even though she hardly knew them. This speaks volumes about the care, love, and professionalism exhibited by all the people at Hospice House. I once thought of Hospice House as being a place, but no more, now, I look at Hospice House as an environment of love, peace and tranquility."
Another family member shares her story "We were all concerned upon hearing that our sister was being transferred to a Hopsice, as we are sure most families are. Our sister's immediate positive response and continued physical and emotional improvement while at the residence calmed our fears and comforted our hearts. Her continued marked emotional improvement and even her physical wellness amazed us all. We have the staff and volunteers to thank for these blessings and for the quality time that we still have with our sister. We all believe that had she not been placed in the care of Hospice House, we would not be talking to her today; visiting her today; have her with us today. We know not what tomorrow holds, but we have today and we thank Hospice House House with all our hearts for that. We all understand that a hospice is where people go to die, in our case, it is where our sister went . . . to LIVE!"
Hospice House and Support Care is a community-based, community-sponsored agency that provides an array of non-medical services that are needed by individuals and their loved ones when there is a terminal illness. Patients and their families have very individual needs and wishes that may not fit into "categories" nor does everyone need the same number of hours or days of care. By operating as a voluntary, volunteer-intensive organization, Hospice House and Support Care is able to approach each family on an individual basis, and families are able to select or decline services based on their particular circumstances.
Volunteers are the heart of Hospice! There are over 60 patient/family volunteers who work directly with Hospice patients and caregivers. These dedicated individuals were honored with the United Way of Greater Williamsburg, Cruikshank Spirit of the Community Award in March, 2006.
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Please note that names were changed to protect the privacy of the clients.
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2007 Campaign Update -
As you can see from the signs around town, we have reached 80% of our $1,999,999 goal. We would like to thank all the employees, the companies and the individual donors who have supported the campaign so far.
If you stop by the Williamsburg Outlet Mall, visit the tree decorated by our staff and volunteers, the tree is in the hallway near Vitamin World and Black & Decker, but in the meantime, here is a picture of the tree for you to enjoy.
If you would like to help a family for the holidays please call our information and referral office at 229-2222 or stop by and drop off a gift card or a new, unwrapped toy for a child ages 5 years to 16 years (yes, older kids go without too!) You will never know the joy your genorosity will bring to the childs face, but you be assured, it will bring joy. We will match the gifts with the children and then wrap them and make sure they get that gift by Christmas. Please bring any donations to our office by 4pm on Thursday.
Thanks to a very generous donation from Busch Gardens, we are able to put together gift bags for the younger children. The donation included items such as stuffed animals, plush baby rattles, blankets, piggy banks, bottles, sippy cups, cuttlery sets, plates, picture frames, photo albums and more. United Way staff and volunteers were able to pick up the merchandise and the United Way offices have become the temporary warehouse for these items. They will be bagged up for the children for the holidays and the remainder will be divided between our partner agencies and other non-profits in our community. We thank Busch Gardens for their generosity.
"This donation shows that it's not just about money, but helping those in need with other basic life sustaining needs. This is the true spirit of giving." Sharron Cornelius
We hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!
Giving while living can be very satisfying, but the advantages of planned and legacy gifts can allow a donor to make a much larger contribution through their estate plan than he or she can during their lifetime. Other options for legacy gifts include 401(K) plans, insurance policies and charitable trusts. A financial advisor or attorney can review the tax benefits of these types of gifts for you and your heirs.
Leave A Legacy® Greater Williamsburg is a community-wide initiative to increase giving through wills. Leave A Legacy is conducting a media campaign that encourages donors to Make a Difference in the Lives that Follow by making a charitable gift part of your estate plan. We hope that as you consider your annual gifts this year that you also think about your Legacy to our community. Leave A Legacy has also published the Charitable Gifting Guide, which lists charities and professional advisors who can assist with estate and financial planning. Copies of the guide are available at the offices of these advisors, the Williamsburg Community Trust, or the United Way of Greater Williamsburg. Visit www.LALWMBG.org for more information on Leave A Legacy Greater Williamsburg
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United Way of Greater Williamsburg
312 Waller Mill Road Suite 100
Williamsburg, VA 23185
admin: 757-253-2264
Helpline: 757-229-2222
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Don't forget - if your new year's resolution includes spending more time helping your community, remember to visit our website to check out the volunteer opportunties available in our community. Visit
www.UWGW.org and click on the "Volunteer Now" link. Agencies can register and list their opportunities and volunteers can register and view the opportunities and contact the agencies directly. If you have any questions, please call Zena at 253-2264 or email zena.myall@uwgw.org. |
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Please feel free to remove yourself from our mailing list at any time. If we add you again, please email Zena at zena.myall@uwgw.org to have your email address removed from our database system. Thank you. |
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