Dear Katie,

Happy New Year to you! I hope you have stayed cozy in this cold snap. I, personally, am happy to look out my window and see the snow this time of the year – soon enough we will be back to complaining about the heat.

We have kicked things off in full force here at MCUM to welcome 2024. We celebrated the official January 2 opening of our 6^th Compass classroom, the Sea Turtles, with a ribbon cutting ceremony with families, board members, and the Chamber of Commerce on the 19^th. High quality early learning is in crisis right now, so to be able to offer 10 more spots for youngsters to grow and learn while their parents work makes me feel a bit lighter.

Over in the Self-Sufficiency Center, I am so proud to say that our Your Path program is seeing an unprecedented number of applicants in the new year. Head Your Path Coach, Alysha Bell, has been doing thoughtful outreach in the community as well as, in particular, among our Compass Early Learning Center families. We are looking forward to exploring applicants’ goals with them and will be eager to report back in the coming months with how the new enrollees are faring.

Our development team and fundraising committee have also been incredibly busy planning their February 29 Paths to Prosperity Fundraiser presented by Edward Jones. I can think of no better way to spend our “bonus day” than raising awareness, funds, and camaraderie for an organization we all hold so dear (MCUM… obviously!). For information about the event, click here: mcum.org/events. Purchase your ticket or sponsorship HERE Be sure to register soon because capacity is limited!

Finally, our Board of Directors have also not been off the hook of a busy start. We welcomed the new year with a Strategic Planning retreat on January 13 in the afternoon at MCUM. A committee has been formed that will compile the goals and ideas into what we hope will become a 3-year plan. We will look forward to sharing that with our loyal supporters once it is assembled!

All the best to you in 2024!

Katie Broadfoot, MPA

Executive Director

Monroe County United Ministries

[email protected]

812-339-3429 ext.11

“Compass has been so great for my son. Everyone has been so caring, and patient, and treated him with kindness and respect. Those might sound like things that are found in every preschool, but I know they are hard to come by consistently. He has really thrived at Compass.”- Compass ELC Parent

MCUM's Paths to Prosperity Fundraiser

Presented by Edward Jones

Event Date: February 29, 2024

Event Time: 6-9pm

Event Address: FAR 505 West 4th Street Bloomington, IN 47404

Ticket Price: $50.00 include appetizers, beer & wine, and beverages

Please join Monroe County United Ministries at Paths to Prosperity presented by Edward Jones at FAR on February 29th, 2024 from 6-9pm. Guests can expect to enjoy a short program, silent auction, wine pull, and mingling with new and old friends of MCUM!

This fundraiser will kick off our spring campaign. Every dollar raised during this event and throughout the campaign will be invested back into our community to support a family’s journey to self-sufficiency.

Bell Trace Bazaar

raises funds for MCUM

Thank you, CarDon Senior Living for selecting MCUM to receive the funds raised during your holiday Bazaar. Bell Trace residents handmade items to sell and all of the proceeds are being invested into ending generational poverty for the people that we serve!

Special thanks to Anna Martin for inviting our Development Director, Darcie Casey, to the Bell Trace Happy Hour to receive the check in person!

We are so honored to have community partners like CarDon Senior Living!

Bunger & Robertson Support Compass ELC

Our friends at Bunger & Robertson Attorneys at Law have donated $2,000 to support our Compass Early Learning Center diaper program. Bunger and Robertson is proud of their hometown roots and civic and community responsibilities to take care of Bloomington people. They have been supporting MCUM for more than 20 years with donations, board and committee member participants, legal advice, and sponsorships just like this. Our diaper program is crucial to our early learning program. Each year MCUM spends approximately $22,000 in diapers and wipes so that our families can save that money in order to obtain other needs such as groceries.

If you would like to support our diaper program donate here and put in the notes section "diaper program".

Ribbon Cutting for Compass Early Learning

Compass newest classroom the Sea Turtles

MCUM recently opened it's sixth classroom at our Compass Early Learning Center to serve ten additional families in Monroe County. Our Level 4 NAEYC accredited early learning center now cares for 94 children, prioritizing low-income working families from our community. The Sea Turtle classroom has been in the making since 2020 and officially opened January 2nd, 2024. The classroom was originally our cafeteria, due to COVID restrictions all children were required to eat in their classroom instead of communally which opened up a beautiful space. This room wouldn't be possible without the grant funding from Early Learning Indiana and the hard work from our Compass teachers and directors in getting this classroom opened.

On January 19th at 3:30pm the Bloomington Chamber of Commerce came to Compass for a ribbon cutting, crafts, and tour our new Sea Turtle classroom.

We Have a Seat at Our Table

Join MCUM's Board of Directors

Want to make an impact in generational poverty and give back to your community? Join our incredible group of thought leaders, helpers, and civic heroes by joining MCUM's Board of Directors. We have three slots available with 3 and 1 year terms. Commitments are April-March. Board members are expected to attend one, 1-hr board meeting each month as well as one, 1-hr committee meeting as scheduled, special events, and volunteer opportunities. Board Interest Forms are now being accepted for an April 1 term start. Apply HERE

Please reach out to our Board Development Chair Bryan Hane if you have any questions.

MCUM Staff Updates

Congratulations to our Development Director, Darcie Casey, for receiving her Certificate in Fund Raising Management from Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Darcie is grateful for MCUM for helping her pursue this certificate and is eager to put her knowledge to work in connecting with MCUM constituents and raising the funds crucial to helping end generational poverty for the people we serve!

Katie Emery, our Self-Sufficiency Coach, is celebrating her one year anniversary with us on January 31st. Katie has been an integral part of the Self-Sufficiency team over the past year supporting over 120 community members with $22,000 in financial assistance. Katie is proud of the work she does at MCUM and how we support people on their journey to self-sufficiency. Congratulations on this milestone Katie, we are lucky to have you!