UNITED WAY OF SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN

fights for the health, education, and financial stability

of every person

in every community.

Join the fight.

GIVE | ADVOCATE | VOLUNTEER

WHAT’S TRENDING

2022 Cass County School Supply Spectacular

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 17at Marcellus High School, 303 W Arbor St., Marcellus

SATURDAY, AUGUST 20 at Brookside Learning Center, 61662 Dailey Rd., Cassopolis

United Way of Southwest Michigan is proud to partner with area businesses and organizations to present School Supply Spectacular in Cass County in August. This annual event provides free backpacks with grade-appropriate school supplies to Cass County students in pre-kindergarten to 12th grade.

This event is for students residing in or attending schools in Cass County only. This event is intended to serve those families in Cass County who are experiencing financial hardship and are not able to afford school supplies and backpacks for their children.

Pre-registration is required and you may only arrive during your assigned time slot. REGISTRATION FOR THIS YEAR IS NOW CLOSED.

ALICE in Focus: People with Disabilities

Today, we celebrate the 32nd anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disability Act (1990) with the official launch of ALICE in Focus: People with Disabilities! Together, we can make a difference for ALICE people with disabilities.

Longstanding discriminatory policies and practices that impact access to education, employment, health care, housing and other resources create barriers to financial stability for people with disabilities. This fact hits home for the more than 40 million people in the U.S. who have a cognitive, hearing, vision, or ambulatory disability, or one that makes self-care or independent living difficult.

United For ALICE data shows that 34% of Americans with disabilities are struggling in households that earned above the Federal Poverty Level but less than what it costs to afford the basics. These households fall into a larger group called ALICE: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed.

United Way is United for ALICE! Join us in understanding financial hardship among people with disabilities so we can work to overcome those challenges.

PAY IT FORWARD 5X!

The power of United Way of Southwest Michigan lies in our ability to leverage, multiply, maximize, and compound your gifts to create a level of change that no one person could create on their own.

In gratitude for your investment in our community, we are providing a chance to PAY IT FORWARD 5X! An individual who donates or pledges at least $156 (the equivalent of $3 a week) to United Way of Southwest Michigan is automatically entered into the PAY IT FORWARD sweepstakes for a chance to win $500 AND give $2,500 to a nonprofit* of their choice in Southwest Michigan. 5 winners will be randomly selected!

*UWSM reserves the right to final approval of 501c organizations selected.

Your vote is your voice: Be heard.

Through UWSM’s “Turning Outward” conversations with the community, you’ve told us that you want to be more connected and engaged with the decisions being made for our community. Here’s a chance for you to do that: VOTE. Exercise your right, participate in our democracy, and use your voice to select the elected officials who make the decisions that affect our lives and direct our future.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:

Aug. 2, is the Primary Election in Michigan!

Absentee voting for the general election begins at the clerk's office on Sept. 29.

The last day to register to vote online or by mail in the general election is Oct. 24.

The last day to mail in your ballot for the general election is Oct. 25.

Nov. 8 is the General Election!

United We Win.

WHY ME? It’s natural for people to ask when their lives and livelihoods hang in the balance. There’s no single answer to that question. But United Way does everything humanly possible to provide responses and solutions that protect, improve, and empower lives around Southwest Michigan. Whether it's through volunteerism, our strong nonprofit sector, or community-wide initiatives, change is happening in a big way.

Without the support from our community, we couldn't do the work that we do. But, there is still so much work to be done.Please join the fight. Because change doesn’t happen alone.Hope isn’t a one-man band.And there’s no such thing as self-taught or self-made.

We have one life.To live better, we must LIVE UNITED.

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