We at United Way of Imperial County welcome this chance to provide you with details of our activities over the last several years.  In 2020, when the entire country was deeply affected by COVID 19, the needs in Imperial County increased greatly.  We used as many resources as possible to provide assistance to those who needed it.  We have participated in the federal Emergency Food and Shelter Program for many years as Local Board Chair.  We took on the added responsibility of becoming the Fiscal Conduit for funding when Phase 38 was implemented.

As Fiscal Conduit, we were responsible for the administration of $210,814 in Phase 38.  Phase 39 represented an additional $170,581, Phase 40 brought in $260,910, Phase 41 brought another $266,535 and Phase ARPA-R added $527,226 for a total for these phases of $1,436,066.  These funds started to be available in mid April of 2021 and the spending end date was March 31, 2025.  As part of our fiducial responsibility when we received these funds they were deposited in a separate bank account so there was no co-mingling of these monies in our regular accounts.  The EFSP funds were divided up over 6 categories, Supplemental Food, Rent/Mortgage Assistance, Utility Assistance, Mass Shelter, Other Shelter and Served Meals.  UWIC was responsible for advertising the availability of funds, and calling for meetings of the Local Board.  The LB then reviewed the agency applications, approved the category amounts and allocated the funds in each category to the agencies.  UWIC kept all records for disbursement of approved requests and handled transfers from one category to another as funds in each phase approached exhaustion.  We have now completed all the paperwork and have our Final Reports ready to submit to the EFSP National Board as soon as they are ready to receive them.  In addition, we have been allocated just under $250,000 for Phase 42 and are waiting for the date when those funds are to be made available.

UWIC also participated in the Food and Farmworker Relief Program.  We were chosen as one of the 19 United Ways in California to administer this funding.  We provided one-time payments of $600 to 814 farmworkers here in Imperial County.  This amounted to over $488,000 to local residents who enrolled in the program.  This aid was for front-line food and agricultural workers who were actively employed during the Pandemic.  Supervisors/foremen were not eligible, it was for the guys and gals out there in the fields that kept our food supply intact under the most severe circumstances.  The program used virtual gift cards, physical gift cards and automatic deposits in worker’s bank accounts to provide the payments.  Early in the program, we identified a weakness in the system that was provided by a 3^rd party provider, and brought suspected fraud attempts to their attention.  As a result of our due diligence, the entire program was shut down for about 2 weeks while the software was revamped to prevent fraud.  The virtual gift card option was removed and, I am happy to report, no fraudulent applications were approved.  We conducted 700+ interviews here in our office, assisted applicants in filling out the forms, verified county residence and reviewed the applications twice as required before sending them on for processing/payment.

During the Pandemic, UWIC worked closely with IVEDC to provide PPE goods.  Literally thousands of masks, gloves, face shields and disinfectant supplies were provided to our member agencies, local businesses, other organizations and churches at no cost.  2 pallets of personally sized hand disinfectant were donated by corporate entities and also distributed.  UWIC, over the years, has taken an active role in the Annual Point-In-Time count of the homeless.  We provided PPE for backpack give-aways during this census of the homeless.  As members of the PIT committee, we also did volunteer trainings to prepare people for the count.  We also served as the “bank” for the PIT Committee.  Since the IV Continuum of Care is not a separate 501 c 3, we volunteered to handle any donations that came in for the PIT event.  We used the funds to purchase blankets, socks and toiletries that were put in the backpacks, and a complete accounting was made to the committee.

In addition, UWIC applied for a CESH Grant, the application was approved in the amount of $75,000.  This provided funding for our Homeless Prevention Program.  We collaborated with 2 of our member agencies, Neighborhood House and The Sr. Evelyn Mourey Center in this funding.  The agencies vetted the clients, and provided financial documentation for assistance that kept individuals and families in their homes when they were experiencing hardship.  This grant was originally applied for through the IV Continuum of Care, of which we are an active member, back in 2018.  However, due to administrative delays in state and county processes, we did not receive any funding until late 2020.  This program was an emergency backup to keep clients from falling through the cracks and the funding lasted until early 2024 before we had used it all.  The final reporting was done  through Imperial County and the program passed with flying colors.

In addition, UWIC used our special emergency fund to assist needy individuals and families with rent and utility bills.  We collaborated with our member agencies, who identified and vetted those in need, to provide $47,156 in assistance from 2020 through 2024.

Also, in the Spring of 2024 we allocated $80,000 to our member agencies.  This was divided up in equal $8,000 payments to each of the 10 agencies.  This was in addition to the $20,000 that was provided to our member agencies in the previous fiscal year.

In addition, funding that we solicited in a grant proposal resulted in $15,000 that provided food items to Salvation Army to assist their seniors and homeless lunch program.  They also provided food goods to families in need with this funding.

We have continued to fund our Homework Help Program in Calexico.  We collaborate with the Camarena Library to provide a safe, secure environment for children from several nearby elementary schools to  complete their homework assignments.  We provide a certified instructor at the facility to assist students with their work.  We budget $7000 per year for this, funds come from our education fund and grants.

Through special funding in the amount of $9,730, we provided assistance to families in emergency situations.  As an example, if we receive a call at 4:00 pm on a Friday, from a family who are in danger of losing their power or home, we can react quickly to keep them safe and secure.  (Thankfully, we have a great relationship with Karina Loya at IID.  She has been instrumental in helping us with cases such as this.  She accepts our pledges and the power stays on!)

We continue to be supported by many local businesses and school districts as well as many national corporations.  Federal employees have the opportunity for payroll deductions as well as California State Employees.  We even received $4,432 from the inmates at Calipatria State Prison.  They had raised the money to assist those affected from the wildfires in the Los Angeles area.  We passed that money on to United Way of Greater Los Angeles.  Almost all of funds received stay right here in our community, this is the only example of funds that were sent out of our county in recent memory.

In September of this year we were awarded a $20,000 grant from the Union Pacific Foundation to be  used in our Emergency Assistance Fund.  Thank you UP!

And, we were recently notified that our grant application to IV Wellness Foundation was approved in the amount of $5,000.

The continued support from our local friends and donors has been instrumental in allowing us to continue these and other programs in our community.  We will soon be releasing a new program that will make it even easier for you to donate to these programs!  Stay tuned!