UNITED WAY OF NORTHEASTERN MINNESOTA INC

United Way of Northeastern Minnesota serves to strengthen our communities and create long-lasting, positive impact. Our service territory includes the Iron Range (northern St. Louis County and Eastern Itasca County), Koochiching County, and Lake of the Woods County. The organization focuses on three key areas: Helping Children Succeed, Empowering Healthy Lives and Stabilizing Families and Individuals. We provide funding to nonprofit organizations creating positive impact in these areas. In addition, we operate our own initiatives to help children and families:

Buddy Backpacks - Children most at risk of hunger in our area schools are enrolled in this program and receive a backpack full of nutritious, child-friendly and non-perishable food each Friday or holiday break before they head home from school.

Imagination Library - A school readiness program sponsored by United Way that delivers monthly age-appropriate books to children birth to age five for FREE! There are no income guidelines to this program.

Smiles United - A preventive dental care program that provides teeth cleaning, fluoride treatments, sealants, oral health, and nutritional education people of all ages who are underinsured or uninsured. The service is provided by a mobile dental unit that brings the equipment on-site with a local hygienist and assistant. Restorative care is provided when needed by a dental therapist or dentist.

Comforts of Home - Retail stores donate products throughout the year to United Way of Northeastern Minnesota. In turn, we make this product available to our agencies and individuals and families in need across our service territory at no cost through referrals.

Meet Up and Chow Down - UWNEMN's free summer lunch program that currently operates at multiple sites throughout our region. Lunches are available any child aged one to 18 and are served Monday through Thursday.

United for Veterans - A program designed to address the issues and gaps in services for local veterans in our service territory. Examples of services provided include annual veteran retreats, holiday meal baskets for homebound and low-income veterans, publishing and distribution of a Military Connections Directory, Veterans Wellness Passport networking and wellbeing activities, and more.

Lunch Buddies Mentoring - One-on-one mentoring program for elementary school students to be matched with caring adult mentors over the lunch break during school once per week.

On the Iron Range, United Way of Northeastern Minnesota provides funding to support the following agencies: Arrowhead Center Adolescent Out-Patient Treatment, Boys & Girls Club of Hibbing, Camp Chicagami, Check & Connect, Ely Community Resource, ServeMinnesota Reading Corps, Volunteers In Education (VinE), Girl Scouts of MN & WI Lakes and Pines, Angel Fund, Care Partners, Ely Community Health Center, Northwoods Partners, Project Care, Advocates for Family Peace, American Red Cross, Food Shelves Area Wide, N.S.L.C. Habitat for Humanity, Range Transitional Housing, Salvation Army-Hibbing, Salvation Army-Virginia, Second Harvest Northern Lakes Food Bank, Sexual Assault Program N.S.L.C., Star of the North Maternity Home, Support Within Reach, and United Way 2-1-1.

In Koochiching and Lake of the Woods Counties, United Way of Northeastern Minnesota provides funding to support the following agencies: Falls Hunger Coalition, Salvation Army-International Falls, Friends Against Abuse, Backus Community Center, Lake of the Woods Food Shelf, and Koochiching Aging Options.