Working Together: Updates from MCUM

Dear Katie,

I hope this month’s e-newsletter finds you in a moment of calm before the end of the year whirlwind! Each year, we experience that same whirlwind here at Monroe County United Ministries.

Last Friday, our Compass families enjoyed a home-cooked Thanksgiving lunch together. This is always a very popular day time event and this year we served more than 150 lunches. It is so nice to see families take a mid-day pause to share their gratitude with one another – and it is nice for me to connect with fellow Compass parents and their children, too!

Our other holiday activities are also in full swing! We have matched nearly 50 Compass Early Learning Center families with Merry Makers – donors who support the joy of the season with the purchase of 3-5 gifts from a family’s wish list. Our Self-Sufficiency Center is also bustling with food drive activities. Thank you to First Presbyterian Church, Kirby Risk, St Charles School, Lighthouse Christian Academy, & Scouts BSA for their successful food drives this month! If you are looking for a special holiday activity, our biggest remaining need is to support art and messy play by purchasing items from our Compass Amazon Arts & Crafts Registry. You can access the list here - https://www.amazon.com/registries/gl/guest-view/2UV36E2ITV4QY - and items will be delivered straight to us at MCUM!

We are also about 3 weeks into our annual End-of-Year campaign. This year, we hope to add $130,000 in funds between November 1 and the end of the year. This will help us meet our most pressing priorities, like ensuring we can sustain basic needs services to Monroe County residents and our sliding fee scale early learning center, as well as set us up for some of our biggest 2024 goals, which include increasing staff wages and helping our clients make emergency savings funds and obtain assets. Each path out of poverty is paved with your generosity! If you are ready to help a family pursue prosperity, you can donate here: www.mcum.org/donate.

Wishing you the very best!

Katie Broadfoot, MPA

Executive Director

Monroe County United Ministries

kbroadfoot@mcum.org

812-339-3429 ext.11

MCUM Receives Early Years Initiative Grant

Supporting Language Development in Infants & Toddlers

We’re thrilled to share that we were recently selected as a recipient of an Early Years Initiative grant from Early Learning Indiana. This $198,900 grant will enable us to provide access to a speech-language pathologist at no additional cost to our families. It will also fund our participation in the LENA Grow program, which uses data and technology to assist our teachers in supporting the cognitive and language development of our children. This initiative aligns with our mission to provide lasting solutions to economic, educational, and social inequalities in our community through high-quality, affordable early learning at the Compass Early Learning Center.

Donate to MCUM's End of Year Campaign

Every path out of poverty is paved with your generosity.

As a friend of MCUM, you understand that the gifts we receive at the end of the year are critical to our mission of breaking the cycle of poverty for the people that we serve.

Every donation we receive until December 31st will go towards our goal of $130,000 and help pave a path of prosperity for Monroe County families.

Donate today by visiting our website www.mcum.org/donate or sending a check or cash to 827 W 14th Ct. Bloomington, IN

Toddler Toothbrush Partnership

Monroe County Family Dental is partnering with MCUM to provide toothbrushes for our toddlers for the upcoming year! Every six weeks Monroe County Family Dental will donate 94 toothbrushes to all children at Compass Early Learning Center. Having these toothbrushes in our classrooms promotes healthy habits of self-care in the classroom and at home.

At Monroe County Family Dental, their philosophy is to treat every patient like a family member and offer the best quality care that they can provide.

St. Charles School Food Drive

Thank you to St. Charles School located in Bloomington, Indiana for donating 3,832 of nonperishable food items, cleaning & hygiene products to our End of Year campaign. Each classroom brought in items to help us restock our pantry for their most important All School Service project. We are so grateful for all of our community partners helping us provide basic needs assistance to Monroe County families this holiday season!

MCUM's Grocery Deliveries

When the pandemic struck in 2020, Monroe County United Ministries had to shut our doors in response to the public health crisis. In order to continue providing our basic needs services, the Self-Sufficiency Center offered food bag deliveries so disadvantaged community members would not go without assistance. After the most intense period of quarantine ended, we realized that our deliveries also served those who are homebound due to age or medical condition, as well as those without reliable transportation. To ensure no one was left behind, we continued offering delivery to make our services accessible to anyone in need.

Our newest Self-Sufficiency Coach, Alysha Bell, is responsible for coordinating our delivery services. When asked about the interaction that stood out to her the most, this is what she said: “I received a call from an elderly woman who struggled to navigate our online order form. She had just had surgery and was not very mobile, much less able to get groceries. She also had a wide range of food sensitivities that significantly impacted her health. Despite these barriers, I was sure we could help. I worked with her to identify foods in our pantry that she could eat, and made sure we sent her food and supplies every month to cover her needs as she recovered from her surgery. She was so appreciative of the deliveries, and she told me she is glad there were people out there who truly cared about her quality of life.”

Thank you for your support.

Leave a legacy. Ask us about our planned giving or donate today!

Monroe County United Ministries

827 West 14th Court,

Bloomington, IN 47404

812-339-3429