United Way Logo
Search
Search
Menu
Newsletter
Keep Me Informed! Sign up for updates from United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley.
Join Our Mailing List
Events
News
Donate
Search for:
See The Impact
Education
Food Access
Healthy Aging
Emergency Services
Results
United Way Partners
Take Action
Give
Advocate
Volunteer
Racial Justice and Equity
COVID-19
Find Resources
Resource Center
For Individuals
For Corporations
For Campaign Coordinators
For Nonprofits
For Community Schools
Media Center
Learn About United Way
100th Anniversary
What We Do
Why We Do It
How We Do It
Who We Are
Financial Reports and Policies
Investments
Search for:
News
Home
|
News
|
October 2020
|
Carbon County Families and Nonprofit Agencies Receive Support for COVID-19 Relief for Basic Needs, P
Carbon County Families and Nonprofit Agencies Receive Support for COVID-19 Relief for Basic Needs, PPE and Pre-K Access
Published: October 06, 2020
Allentown, PA –
United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley received a $52,500 grant from the COVID-19 Block Grant to support kindergarten readiness and provide basic needs support and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to families, schools and nonprofit partner agencies in Carbon County.
The COVID-19 Block Grant is funded through the CARES Act and is used strictly on COVID-19 related activities to offset the cost of direct county COVID-19 response, assist businesses and municipalities, provide behavioral health and substance-use disorder treatment services and fund nonprofit assistance programs.
“We are excited to receive this grant for Carbon County community members,” said Jill Pereira, Vice President, Education and Impact, UWGLV. “With the addition of these new funds, United Way is investing more than $250,000 into families and organizations affected by COVID-19 in our county this year.”
Prior to the pandemic, research showed that 43% of Carbon County households faced financial hardship every day. Since COVID-19, Carbon schools have reported significant numbers of people in need of emergency food supplies and meals as families are struggling with obtaining basic supplies such as food, paper products and disinfectant spray. As Carbon County’s local nonprofit partners see a growing need for their services, they also have reported that there will not be adequate resources to support families.
United Way will use the new grant funding to expand services to students and families through the CarbonCorps in-school mentoring program and the Waterford Upstart Early Learning program.
One of the main responsibilities that CarbonCorps members will now have during their service year is connecting at-risk families to community-based organizations to provide PPE such as cleaning supplies and face masks - two items important for stopping the spread of COVID-19. The grant funds will be used to purchase gift cards to local grocery stores where families will be able to use them to purchase essentials such as food and cleaning supplies.
“Our students can’t learn if their basic needs aren’t met. Our CarbonCorps mentors are building relationships with families in the school, and we want to ensure they have access to supportive resources for families, like gift cards, that allow for a quick response,” said Gina Nichols, Assistant Director, Education and Rural Communities, UWGLV.
According to Pre-K for PA, 61%, or 600, of the 1,000 children eligible for publicly funded Pre-K in Carbon County did not have access. The benefits of high-quality Pre- K include: increased graduation rates, reduced grade repetition, reduced special education placements, preservation of taxpayer dollars, reduced crime and incarceration and stronger economies overall.
The digital Waterford Upstart Early Learning program helps prepare 4-year-olds, who don’t have access to PreK, to enter Kindergarten confident and ready to learn - at no cost to participants.
“With these funds, we will be able to enroll 20 Carbon County 4-year-olds into the program, with all materials and parent coaching activities included, and ensure our children are ready for Kindergarten in fall 2021,” said Angela Zanelli, Campaign Director, Lehigh Valley Reads.
This Kindergarten-readiness, early-learning program runs 15 minutes a day, five days per week and includes: in-home coaching and support give parents early education resources and the tools they need to guide their children to academic success, reliable, high speed internet access, a laptop and Early Learning Software.
More details on the distribution process and the entities that applied are available at
www.carboncounty.com
Comments
Blog post currently doesn't have any comments.
Post archive
February 2023(
1
)
January 2023(
4
)
December 2022(
7
)
November 2022(
4
)
October 2022(
7
)
September 2022(
6
)
August 2022(
5
)
July 2022(
6
)
June 2022(
9
)
May 2022(
3
)
April 2022(
3
)
March 2022(
9
)
February 2022(
2
)
January 2022(
5
)
December 2021(
9
)
November 2021(
7
)
October 2021(
4
)
September 2021(
6
)
August 2021(
5
)
July 2021(
9
)
June 2021(
7
)
May 2021(
2
)
April 2021(
9
)
March 2021(
7
)
February 2021(
3
)
January 2021(
4
)
December 2020(
5
)
November 2020(
6
)
October 2020(
6
)
September 2020(
5
)
August 2020(
7
)
July 2020(
6
)
June 2020(
5
)
May 2020(
3
)
April 2020(
2
)
March 2020(
3
)
February 2020(
3
)
January 2020(
3
)
December 2019(
6
)
November 2019(
11
)
October 2019(
3
)
September 2019(
7
)
August 2019(
9
)
July 2019(
1
)
June 2019(
2
)
May 2019(
8
)
April 2019(
5
)
March 2019(
4
)
February 2019(
7
)
January 2019(
4
)
December 2018(
2
)
November 2018(
3
)
October 2018(
3
)
September 2018(
10
)
August 2018(
5
)
July 2018(
3
)
June 2018(
10
)
May 2018(
4
)
April 2018(
5
)
March 2018(
10
)
February 2018(
3
)
January 2018(
4
)
December 2017(
5
)
November 2017(
3
)
October 2017(
3
)
September 2017(
2
)
August 2017(
5
)
July 2017 (
4
)
June 2017(
3
)
May 2017(
9
)
April 2017(
4
)
March 2017(
8
)
February 2017(
12
)
January 2017(
8
)
December 2016(
11
)
November 2016 (
19
)
October 2016(
15
)
September 2016 (
5
)
August 2016(
5
)
July 2016(
6
)
June 2016(
9
)
May 2016 (
6
)
April 2016(
7
)
March 2016(
9
)
February 2016(
12
)
January 2016(
3
)
December 2015(
9
)
November 2015(
11
)
October 2015(
3
)
September 2015(
4
)
August 2015 (
1
)
July 2015 (
1
)
June 2015(
4
)
May 2015(
5
)
April 2015 (
2
)
March 2015(
5
)
February 2015(
6
)
January 2015(
2
)
December 2014(
5
)
November 2014(
4
)
October 2014(
4
)
September 2014(
8
)
August 2014(
9
)
July 2014(
3
)
June 2014(
4
)
May 2014(
5
)
April 2014(
4
)
March 2014(
7
)
February 2014(
5
)
January 2014(
4
)
Share this Article
Tweet
Show me how my $$ Makes A Difference
Please insert a dollar amount below
$
could help United Way provide:
Make a donation today