Farmers Feeding Families RFP
We seek to identify community programs and services that increase access to food and combat food insecurity in Shelby County. Our goal is to ensure that individuals are able to live healthy lives free from hunger and its associated health issues and move more freely toward self-sufficiency with this barrier removed.
We’re changing our corner of the world. This isn’t temporary change. We’re creating positive, lasting change that will pay dividends for generations to come. We have people like you to thank for this. People who make the smartest investment in the community possible. People who recognize that we’re seeking the most effective and equitable outcomes by studying data and solving big problems – both in the immediate and the future.
We’re Metro United Way and we’ve been fighting for you, your family, your friends, and your neighbors for over 100 years. Over the years, we’ve found that if we can reach people at an early age and help them succeed, promote and facilitate healthy lifestyles, and empower people to achieve financial independence, then we can break the cycle of poverty and give everyone their fair shot at making their dreams their realities.
If you have one cause or many causes you’d like to support, then we would ask you to STAND WITH US. Because, we have the unique ability to lead our community to overcome the challenges of today and to create a brighter future for all.
EARLY CHILDHOOD SUCCESS
Half our children in our region start kindergarten behind from day one, which significantly decreases their chances of graduating high school.
We invest in creating high-quality early childhood education centers (Excellence Academies) so that children can start kindergarten ready to learn and succeed. We provide resources, training, and funding to the Excellence Academies in the areas we serve, which helps us prepare nearly 600 kids for success. But there are many more children who need us.
There are 7% more graduates of Excellence Academy Learning Center who are ready for kindergarten when compared to their peers. In fact, Excellence Academy graduates consistently have higher scores on the socialemotional section on kindergarten readiness measures. And when they move to elementary school, they have better attendance, fewer suspensions, and fewer referrals.
YOUTH SUCCESS
Almost 30% of our region’s high school graduates are not ready for either college or a career.
We provide quality guidance and support to 103 out-ofschool-time (OST) program sites, helping them promote positive youth development and offer a variety of learning opportunities. This includes tutoring and homework help, mentoring, cultural and arts exposure, social-emotional development, and recreation.
Quality OST programs work and we have the numbers to prove it. For example, students in quality OST programs have 30% higher social-emotional Learning scores. They’re also 67% less likely to be suspended and 12% less likely to drop out of school. Plus, we’re seeing improved attendance from students who participate in these programs.
FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE
There are over 200,000 people in our region living below 200% of poverty.
We’re meeting people where they are to seamlessly connect them to resources and support to meet their immediate needs, while helping them build their financial capabilities for sustained success. Then we help them determine a career path to increase their income that will enable them to provide for themselves and their families, which ultimately helps grow our economy.
We’ve provided job skills training to 2,200 people, 62% of whom found employment and 80% of whom increased their wages. Meanwhile, we’ve helped return over $15 million in tax refunds with free tax assistance.
HEALTHY LIVES
An astonishing 1-in-7 people are food insecure in our region.
There isn’t one way to solve food insecurity, but with a combination of investing in programs that involve food rescue, fighting for nourishing food for all, and meeting the immediate need of a meal, we can work toward ending hunger in our region.
Last year, Metro United Way provided support for over 43,000 meals. We are also working to connect those who are food insecure or need other resources through our 2-1-1 help line and new United Community effort.
We understand the community’s needs and have the strategies in place that manage and maximize our community’s resources to deliver proven results. And when more people stand with us, it will mean more financial resources we can leverage to create positive, lasting change for more people in our community. Bottom line, this is a community worth investing in.