9
Wright County Community Action
ANNUALREPORT
2019Wright County
Community Action
EXECUTIVE LETTERThank you for a wonderful year! As always, this report gives usa chance to think about where we’ve been and where we wantto go next. As I reflect on the countless opportunities andaccomplishments 2019 offered, I find I’m most grateful for theways we were able to connect with all of you.
Our big ‘pie-in-the-sky’ vision is to create a community whereall Wright County residents feel happy, healthy, secure, andconnected. If we really want to achieve this vision,partnership is imperative. Fortunately, we have the bestpartners around.
This year, the community came together like never before tosupport and meet the needs of our most vulnerable citizens.We continued to meet and exceed our goals of rallying thecommunity around our anti-poverty efforts. This includesexpanding our Aging Alliance programming to offer a morecomprehensive range of support, building on our food securityefforts to continue growing our Food Shelf and EmergencyFood Box (EFBox) efforts, bringing on new talent to our Boardof Directors, and expanding our office capabilities throughinfrastructure and modernizing improvements. In addition,this year we also hosted the 2019 Community Summit forWright County, which saw over 70 community stakeholdersjoin together for a day of presentations, networking andcollaboration on defining how we serve the low-incomeresidents of Wright County.
Community engagement is the best path to eradicatingpoverty in Wright County, and WCCA is committed tofostering partnership wherever we can. We want to work withyou, we want to hear your ideas, and we want to support youas you put them into action. While each of us may be limitedby things like funding, staff, lack of support, or even just toofew hours in the day, when we work together, there is almostno limit to what we can accomplish.
Thank you for everything you helped to accomplish in 2019.Let’s do it again next year.
Jay Weatherford
Federal79.3%
State15.8%
Local4.9%
Education70.1%
Housing13.3%
Nutrition8.6%
General Agency5%
Community Donations........... $114,855Local Foundations...................$67,484Program Support.....................$28,827County Collaboration.............$25,014
WHAT IS LOCAL FUNDING?
WCCA is a private non-profit who administers grants to provide services needed inour community. The graph to the right outlines where the grant funding originated.
The graph below outlines the funding received by each program pillar.
FINANCIAL OVERVIEWREVENUE
EXPENSES
General Agency Funding7.1%
WIC4.4%
Energy Assistance8.9%
Head Start & Early Head Start
70.6%
Head Start & Early Head Start...........$3,501,879.00 (70.66%)
Energy Assistance............................. $413,177.00 (8.91%)
WIC......................................................$321,541.00 (6.48%)
General Agency Funding......................$243,471.00 (7.17%)
Weatherization ......................................$168,372.00 (1.76%)
Food Security...........................................$91,827.00 (1.85%)
Transitional Housing................................$68,866.00 (1.39%)
Aging Alliance .......................................$104,920.00 (2.12%)
Mnsure......................................................$10,756.00 (0.22%)
Home-Buyer Training ...............................$22,172.00 (0.45%)
Community Literacy Project ...................... $8,199.00 (0.17%)
Tax Prep.....................................................$8,199.00 (0.17%)
Foreclosure ..............................................$15,260.00 (0.31%)
Thrift Shop...................................................$6,721.00 (0.14%)
Home Repair Loans.......................................$857.00 (0.14%)
BOARD OF DIRECTORSAs a Community Action Agency, our Board of Directors consists of at least 1/3 local public officials, 1/3 private representatives,and the remainder are democratically selected representatives of low-income people. The following individuals volunteer theirtime to WCCA to provide governance and oversight of our programs and services.
284HOURS BUILDING
AGENCY CAPACITY
Bruce AndersonCharles BorrellMark DaleidenMarlene Stumpf-JohnsonLynn Kissock
Terri HarrisJane HelgestadBrian MatzkeStacie ZachmanDwayne Diers
Luke McClainStacy AndersonW. Paul ArnoldJose FloresCathy Elfstrand
0% 10% 20% 30%
0-5
6-13
14-17
18-24
25-44
45-64
65+
Female55.7%
Male44.3%
Not Hispanic79.8%
Not Reported12.4%
White80.8%
Black/ African6%
Other5%
Not Reported4.2%
PARTICIPANT DEMOGRAPHICS
AGE
10,233INDIVIDUALS
I N 2 0 1 9 , W E S E R V E D
GENDER
ETHNICITYRACE
12.4%Of our participants have a
disabling condition
C O M M U N I T Y E N G A G E M E N T
LOOKING FORWARD: OUR 5 YEAR GOAL TO INCREASE
DONATED RESOURCESYEAR 2 - 2019 RESULTS
$107,221.81 43% of goal
Donations from the community help support the entire agency. These donations can come as cash or as donated goods andmaterials. Goods and materials may be considered food shelfdonations, thrift shop donations, bus tokens, gift cards, andmore. When we receive items from the community, we areable to leverage these donations to expand services and impactindividuals and families across Wright County.
PEOPLE PARTICIPATINGYEAR 2 - 2019 RESULTS
188 25.0% of goal
WCCA’s mission is to work in partnership with thecommunity. We measure success in this area bytracking the number of people participating inconversations related to our services and strategiesthat address conditions of poverty. Theseconversations may take place in advisory committees,focus groups, and more.
people
2 0 1 9 O V E R V I E W
Program Impact
93.5%Participants who reported improved
financial well-being
89%Participants who improved energy
effiecency or reduced the energyburden in their homes
We envision a Wright Countywhere residents feel happy,healthy, secure, andconnected.
- WCCA Vision Statement
80%Participants age 0-5 who improvedtheir literacy and school-readiness
skills
96%Seniors (65+) who maintained an
independent living situation
3%Participants are volunteering to
improve their community
OUR PROGRAMS
EARLY HEAD START
Early Head Start provides weekly 90-minute homevisits to support and strengthen parent-childrelationships and develop school readiness skills. Homevisitors also target health, dental, social-emotional andnutrition services; prenatal support for expectantmothers: and referrals to other community resources asneeded. This program is available to Wright County andwestern Hennepin County residents. For ages birth - 3.
Our Home Stretch Workshop and One-on-OneCounseling educate clients on the responsibilities andavailable tools to become a successful homeowner. TheHome Stretch Workshop is a popular eight-hour groupworkshop designed for participants interested inlearning more about the path to homeownership.
HOMEBUYER SERVICES
Foreclosure Prevention Counseling is a free programdesigned to prevent clients from losing their home whenfacing or undergoing foreclosure. Our counselor workswith each homeowner to determine which availableoptions meet the needs of each individual situation.
FORECLOSURE PREVENTION COUNSELING
The Energy Assistance Program helps eligible householdsmaintain affordable, continuous, and safe home energy.Our services include bill payment assistance, homeenergy crisis intervention, outreach, energy advocacy,information about utility consumer rights, and referrals.
ENERGY ASSISTANCE (EAP)
Our Weatherization program helps income-eligibleresidents of Wright County conserve energy; lower fuelcosts; and provide safer, more sustainable dwellings fortheir families.
WEATHERIZATION
The Transitional Housing Program provides scattered-site supportive housing to homeless individuals andfamilies. Our staff members work with clients to developa mutually agreed-upon housing independence plan thatinvolves creating and carrying out short and long-termgoals for financial stability and self-sufficiency.
TRANSITIONAL HOUSING
HEAD START
The Head Start program helps develop educational andhealthy living skills to income-eligible children three tofive years of age in a classroom environment. Inaddition, this program hosts opportunities for parentsto learn and grow with their children throughout theschool year. This program serves western Hennepinand all of Wright County.
RAISING A READER
Currently offered at WCCA Head Start Centers andsome public school classrooms, Raising A Readerencourages family engagement and literacy byproviding children with a rotating library of books totake home each week of the school year. The programalso provides training to empower parents to modeleffective reading techniques.
HOUSING EDUCATION
The WCCA Food Shelf is the only location in WrightCounty that serves all residents, regardless of whattownship or city they reside in. We operate with aclient-choice model and offer a variety of nutritiousfoods.
FOOD SHELF MNSURE
Our MNsure navigator works as a neutral third-party toassist clients as they navigate the MNsure website andapplication process. This service helps clientsunderstand their available health insurance options.
We partner with local businesses and organizations todistribute 30-pound emergency food boxes. Thisprogram expands the reach of all food shelves andshortens the distance between emergency food andpeople in need.
EMERGENCY FOOD BOX NETWORK
By partnering with rental community properties, ourvolunteers prepare and deliver Food Shelf servicesright to our clients’ doors.
MOBILE FOOD SHELF
The Backpack Program works with WCCA Head StartCenters -- and in some cases, area schools -- to fighthunger among children in Wright County by providingparcels full of nutritious, easy-to-open food for kids totake home over the weekend.
BACKPACK PROGRAM
A supplemental food, nutrition, and breastfeedingprogram that serves pregnant women, new mothers,infants, and children up to the age of five.
WOMEN, INFANTS & CHILDREN (WIC)
TAX PREPARATION (VITA)
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance is a free taxpreparation program provided by Internal RevenueService-certified volunteers. Volunteers prepareindividual returns for households grossing less than$35,000 or multiple-person returns for householdsgrossing less than $55,000.
THRIFT SHOP
WCCA's thrift shop, adjacent to our Food Shelf inWaverly, serves thousands of people each year. Ourshop is not restricted to income-eligible individuals norto anyone living outside of Wright County.
AGING ALLIANCE - TRANSPORTATION
The Assisted Transportation program provides rides forseniors who need assistance getting to medical andpersonal care appointments, pharmacy pick-ups,nutrition services, and faith-based social outings. Thisdoor-to-door service is provided by trained volunteerdrivers with their own personal vehicles.
AGING ALLIANCE - HOUSEKEEPING & CHORE
We provide housekeeping and chore services for seniorswho need assistance maintaining their homes. Theseservices are provided by an employee who offerscleaning, organization, meal preparation, and someoutdoor upkeep for those that may need spontaneous orregular assistance.
NUTRITION SELF-SUFFICIENCY
The 2019 Community Summit was an innovativeapproach to cross-sector recognition of WrightCounty stakeholders.
Following a year of workshopping, over 70 agentsrepresenting public, private, religious, andgovernmental agencies came together for the firsttime to dialogue.
The discourse of the day focused mainly on theexperiences of the stakeholders and listening tolow-income residents share their stories andstruggles with the collective.
The feature presentation was a panel of experts onlocal quality life for residents including SheriffShawn Deringer, County Commissioner DerekVetsch, Director of Wright County Human ServicesSarah Grossish, and Monticello CommunityEducation Director JeremiahMack.
Following the panel was two hours of collaborativegroup discussion & exploration led by CandiceZimmerman and Amy Kortissis of WCCA. Topicsincluded; Healthy Food Access, Affordable Housingor Homelessness, Dental Care, Mental Health,Substance Abuse, Transportation, CommunityEngagement, Affordable Child Care and SeniorServices.
2019 COMMUNITY SUMMIT
This summit was hosted by WCCA and is the firstcommunity-led forum of its kind to not onlyrecognize barriers in Wright Countybut to encourage wide-spread communitycollaboration across all sectors.
130 W Division StreetPO Box 787
Maple Lake, MN 55358
www.wcccaweb.com
Phone: (320) 963-6500Fax: (320) 963-5745
Our mission is to work in partnership with the community toempower residents to improve their physical, social, and
economic well-being.
Main Office LocationMaple Lake
Food Shelf & Thrift Shop Waverly
Head Start LocationsAnnandale
BuffaloDelano
Howard LakeMonticelloMontrose
MoundRogers
LOCATIONS
WIC ClinicsBuffalo
Howard LakeMonticello
CONTACT INFORMATION
