2001-2002 Annual Report Building a stronger Rhode Island. One life at a time. It was a year we won’t soon forget. Message to the Community Our Board of Directors responded by establishing a broad, strategic direc- tion for our future: to mobilize the caring power of our community to help people most in need. We’re committed to being a community-builder now and in the future. Mission Statement We’re enthusiastic about this new direction and will be working with you in Mobilize the caring the months ahead to determine how best to implement our goal. power of our community to improve the lives of Generations of Rhode Islanders have joined forces with United Way to meet the people in need. challenges of the past. We will do so again to meet the needs of the future. Dennis M. Murphy President & CEO United Way of Southeastern New England United Way President & CEO Dennis Murphy with Campaign Ambassadors Karen Sheahan and Gary McShane at a 2001 Dare to Care event. 2 “Sometimes it’s about providing direct service. Sometimes it’s about standing up for people when they can’t stand up for themselves. At the end of the day, it’s about creating community.” - Dennis Murphy United Way of Southeastern New England marked its 76th anniversary by reaching yet another record-breaking campaign goal of $21.5 million. The economy and the impact of the events of September 11th did not shake the faith of Rhode Islanders in their United Way. But the measure of our success is more than dollars raised. The true test is our effectiveness, the impact we have on the lives of those who look to us for a helping hand. By that standard, we’ve had a remarkable year. Rhode Island’s unique approach to welfare reform – the Family Independence Act (FIP) — is having a positive influence on the lives of thousands of Rhode Islanders by improving the economic status and capacity for long-term employment for adults and the well-being of children and families. United Way played an active role in developing this program and partnered with the Rhode Island Department of Human Services and the Welfare Reform Research Project at the School of Social Work at Rhode Island College to validate its effectiveness. A report was submitted to the General Assembly in February. United Way will continue to be involved in the evolution of public policy that impacts our human service needs and tax dollars. We also reached an important milestone in our Making It Work initiative when our 1,000th client joined the ranks of the employed. Making It Work is a collaborative effort with the Rhode Island Human Resource Investment Council to provide job training and assistance to those who struggle with significant barriers to employment. Our CommunitySchools-Rhode Island effort is expanding the ground breaking success of The SCOPE (Schools and Communities Organized to Promote Excellence) Initiative in Central Falls to middle schools in Newport, Pawtucket, Providence, Woonsocket, and West Warwick. We’re building coalitions of parents, teachers, administrators, students, and leaders from the business and nonprofit community to meet the challenges of poverty, student mobility, and high truancy rates that hinder education. We’ve partnered with The Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund, The Nellie Mae Education Foundation, the Governor’s Children’s Cabinet, the state Departments of Education and Human Services, and the local school districts to leverage United Way funds with their generous support to increase our abil- ity to make a difference in the lives of young people. In addition to these and other successes — some of which you will read about in the following pages — we’ve also been doing some soul-searching. The world is a different place than in 1926 when this United Way was established; it’s certainly a different place than it was on September 10th, 2001. During the most extensive outreach effort I’ve been involved in during my career, we asked some hard questions and listened to candid answers about how we can best meet the needs of our community in the years ahead. More than 1,000 public and private business leaders, representatives from the nonprofit community and govern- ment, donors and non-donors told us that the most effective role this organization can play is in bringing people together to impact key community priorities, such as children and families, crisis intervention, and basic needs and self-sufficiency. 3 Olabisi working in the dining center at the Community College of Rhode Island’s Providence campus. Below: “I just wanted an opportunity,” says Buanerges Morales, who emigrated from Guatamala in 1989. PHOTOS BY SCOTT LAPHAM OLABISI OLUGBEMI WON THE LOTTERY About 2,400 immigrants Her prize wasn’t a million dollars, but something more valu- arrive in the state yearly, able…a chance to leave her native Nigeria and come to the many with limited English- United States for a better life for her family. speaking capability and job skills. “The opportunity for education is limited in my country,” says Olabisi. “After a few years, if you don’t have money, you can’t continue.” 48% of employed Rhode A hairdresser in her homeland, she first found work at a local manufacturer Islanders have skills equiva- after arriving in the Ocean State in the fall of 2000. lent to less than those of a high school graduate. A year later, Olabisi came to the Genesis Center in Providence, which provides refugees and immigrants with free ESL instruction, survival skills, and job More than 1,000 people training (in areas such as food services) as part of United Way’s Making It facing serious barriers Work initiative, a joint collaboration with The Rhode Island Human Resource have been employed Investment Council. More than 1,000 people facing serious barriers have been successfully employed since the program began. successfully through Making It Work. It wasn’t long before Olabisi was working in the dining center at the Community College of Rhode Island’s Providence campus. She joined an ear- lier Making It Work graduate, Buanerges Morales, who emigrated from his native Guatamala in 1989. He says that “some people come to this country to become rich. I just wanted an opportunity.” Food Services Manager Stan Moss says, “Olabisi and Buanerges are model employees who I count on. Bisi’s native dishes are a hit with students and if we’re short-staffed, Buanerges manages the cafeteria on his own.” A veteran of the food service industry, Moss says he would hire other Making It Work graduates. “They’re some of the best employees I’ve worked with.” 4 TAKING CHARGE After eleven years with an emotionally abusive partner, Carol* has learned how to spot the warning signs of a potentially dangerous relationship. “At first, I wanted to get help to keep the relationship together,” she said. “He 18,000 calls are wasn’t physically abusive, so it was very difficult to explain what was happen- received per year at ing to me. But, after receiving counseling at Women’s Resource Center of just one domestic South County, I concluded that I had to get out.” The emotional and verbal violence hotline. abuse Carol sustained was leaving her drained and depressed. She found herself becoming increasingly dependent on her partner for all of her needs. Because he wanted her at home she didn’t work, though she wanted to. In the 1990s, 59 Rhode Islanders died as a result “Nothing I did was right, nothing was good enough. We did what he wanted of domestic violence. to do – I had very little say,” explained Carol. “I finally realized that to him, I was valueless.” In 2001, there were 2,261 cases of child The Women’s Resource Center of South County, a United Way Fund agency, provides emergency shelter and comprehensive services to battered women abuse and neglect and children. Services include a 24-hour hotline, legal advocacy, children’s involving 3,079 children. therapy, support groups, counseling, referrals, and community education. The counseling Carol received from the staff there helped her acknowledge the cycle of abuse, and begin to understand that it had nothing to do with her. Now a year removed from the relationship, Carol is working full-time and in control of her life for the first time in years. “I finally realized that to him, I was valueless.” - Carol United works: We’re creating impact. One life at a time. *Name changed to protect the client’s identity. 5 Cadette Troop 794 is a member of Girl Scouts of RI, Inc. a United Way Fund agency. The Woonsocket Family Shelter is part of Family Resource Community Action, also a United Way Fund agency PHOTO BY SCOTT LAPHAM The Cadettes of Troop 794 in Cumberland wanted to help the homeless. They knew the impact Girl Scouting had on them, so they decided MAKING to share their experience by starting a troop at the Woonsocket Family LASTING Shelter. MEMORIES Once a month, the Cadettes arrive at the Shelter with snacks – baked the night before at their troop leader’s home — along with games, songs and activities that earn their young counterparts junior badges to be worn on sashes made especially for them. In Rhode Island last year, chil- dren spent an all-time-high The Woonsocket Family Shelter troop has nine members. Some girls have average of moved to permanent housing, but return for meetings. It’s not unusual for a 41 nights in a shelter. friend to come along. In addition to earning badges in Dancercize, Safety First, and Healthy The fair-market rent for Relationships, the girls of the Family Shelter Troop have taken field trips, such a two-bedroom as a visit to the zoo.