The Glass Half Full: United Way of Weld County gets $230K grant to tackle homelessness. Here’s where the money will go.
By Kelly Ragan
Thanks to a $230K grant, the United Way of Weld County will be able to hire several community health worker positions in its effort to help end homelessness, according to a news release.
The one-year grant, awarded to United Way by The Weld Trust, will be used to address the short-and long-term challenges people experiencing homelessness face.
For one, the money will help bring on three community health workers employed by North Colorado Health Alliance. They’ll work with some of the most vulnerable folks experiencing homelessness and unstably housed people in Weld. Their goal, according to the news release, will be to help people put together and keep up with care plans to get housing and health care as quickly as possible.
The funds will also help provide for two part-time registered nurse positions that will offer immediate, flexible care beyond what community health workers can give. One of those nurses will be based at the United Way of Weld County’s Housing Navigation Center’s cold weather shelter. The other will do outreach in the community at various service locations.
The grant will also be used to bring on a United Way of Weld County Housing Navigation Center resource navigator who will work to quickly connect folks experiencing homelessness to community health workers and other available resources.
In the release, Melanie Woolman, the director of community impact for United Way, said the grant would have a major impact.
The grant funding will help United Way in its mission to help people experiencing homelessness address their immediate, short-term needs, such as housing, applying for jobs, and critical hygiene, Woolman said.
The additional positions will also help with longer-term needs by creating a low case load to allow for one-on-one case management, she said.
By tackling those needs, folks will be able to get housed more quickly, which will help them to focus on maintaining their jobs and their health, she said.
“Funding these vital positions will help those most vulnerable in our community get connected with resources that are the root cause of housing insecurity,” said Tom Grant, chairman of The Weld Trust board of directors in a news release.