Naperville Initiatives
Naperville United Way funds a diverse mix of programs to address the pressing issues of its community. This broad range of United Way funded services improves the life of an individual or a family. Added together, each personal victory culminates to positive outcomes for the entire community.But, the Naperville United Way does much more than fund the best programs. Today’s community issues are increasingly complex and cannot be solved by any one program alone. In addition to funding a network of effective agency programs, we also play a leadership role in convening key players to work together on the toughest problems.
United Way invested $220,000 in a portfolio of programs focused on providing Naperville youth healthy and productive ways to cope with the stresses of everyday life:
- Collaborative Youth Team: A community-wide collaborative effort of 19 organizations and a Youth Advisory Team are developing a web-based Youth Portal where all opportunities, activities and services for Naperville youth will be centralized.
- Creating Healthy Attitudes Together: An eight-week program designed to incorporate interactive health and wellness activities into the lives of 4th graders in eight schools of District 203 and 204.
- Experiencing Life to the Fullest: Life enhancing and empowering workshops geared to female high school students that teach new and adaptive ways of dealing with life?s challenges.
- Life Enhancement Alliance Project: An after-school and weekend program that offer students from ages 11 to 16 career development opportunities, including college visits, cultural tours and career shadowing visits.
- Mental Health Education, A School/Community Partnership: Mental health awareness training developed by the DuPage Partnership for Behavioral Health and delivered to all District 203 students, teachers and parents.
- When Children Are Afraid to go to School: A two-part therapeutic program provided by the Edward Foundation for high school students who exhibit a child?s anxiety and emotional distress about going to school.
United Way funds a mix of homeless prevention and emergency services for individuals and families struggling to obtain or maintain housing:
- Emergency shelter services
- Crisis hotline to link working poor to an array of supportive services to help them achieve stability
- Budgeting counseling and life skills coaching
- Clothing assistance
- Food banks
- Child care assistance so parents struggling with homelessness have the time and the ability to search for housing and employment
- Job training and vocational education
Gaining access to healthcare is a perennial issue regardless of your needs. From the youngest child identified with a developmental disorder to adult children caring for their ailing, elderly parent, access to affordable options is paramount:
- Therapeutic care for both special needs children and adults and seniors
- Adult daycare centers for the elderly
- Sliding scale counseling and therapy for those suffering from mental health issues
- Family and individual counseling services for troubled youth
- In-home respite care for the elderly being cared for by adult family members
- Individualized education plans for children with disabilities
- In-school presentations to teach children stress coping strategies
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