In-a-Fix Program

In-a-Fix Program is sponsored by CAP Services, Inc. (Portage County). This program provides monetary assistance for car repairs and/or tire repair and replacement for income-eligible individuals who are employed at least 20 hours per week.

Funded Programs | United Way of Portage County AGING & DISABILITY RESOURCE CENTER OF PORTAGE COUNTY Adult Day Center - The Adult Day Center provides respite to families and caregivers who support older adults and individuals with disabilities in a safe, meaningful and therapeutic environment, which allows caregivers time to work, complete errands and continue meeting their own personal needs.

Caregiver Support Services - The Aging & Disability Resource Center of Portage County offers a variety of services for people who provide care to a family member or other loved one. Prevention Health Education - The purpose of the ADRC’s evidence-based health programs is to improve health and quality of life for older adults and adults with disabilities.

Programs are designed to create long lasting behavior change, reduce social isolation, prevent falls, and improve outcomes for adults dealing with chronic conditions.

Rural Delivered Meals - The Aging & Disability Resource Center of Portage County Rural Home-Delivered Meals Program provides services to individuals, 60 years and older, and those who are disabled, who can benefit from a full nutritionally balanced hot noon meal, a friendly hello, a daily safety check, and easy access to community supportive services.

Community-Based and Site-Based Mentoring - Big Brothers Big Sisters provides quality one-to-one mentoring relationships for children in need, based on a proven model that includes careful matching and ongoing professional support for mentors, mentees, and parents/guardians.

BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF PORTAGE COUNTY, INC. Boys & Girls Club-Great Futures - Specialists work in conjunction with school teachers and many others to support children's mental health through the Great Futures Program.

Boys & Girls Club-Rural Programming - The Rural Services Program provides high quality Outside of School Hours (OSH) programming for youth that have limited access to academic and enrichment supports due to their location in the small, rural communities of Almond-Bancroft, Rosholt, and Junction City.

Boys & Girls Club-Teen Programming - The Boys & Girls Club Teen Center provides teen-specific and relevant after school and summer programming that prepares our teens to be well-rounded future community leaders. In-a-Fix - This program provides monetary assistance for car repairs and/or tire repair and replacement for income-eligible individuals who are employed at least 20 hours per week.

Assistance is limited to $500 per calendar year, while funding lasts. This program is only available in the Portage County area. Family Crisis Center - The Family Crisis Center operates 24‑hour crisis counseling and shelter to victims of domestic violence.

The Center offers support groups to help families identify long‑term strategies to eliminate the violence and its causes. The Center also provides short term crisis intervention and a shelter for runaway youth and youth in crisis. Mental Health Navigation - Individuals with mental health concerns often are left isolated and may be reluctant to seek services.

Barriers include fear or stigma of seeking mental health services, transportation, financial and insurance issues, availability of services, and discouragement. The result is episodic treatment. The Mental Health Navigation program attempts to reduce the barriers to accessing services and increase follow-through with treatment plans toward the goal of improving mental health functioning.

UPLIFT - Hmong UPLIFT is a multi-generational family literacy program that helps bridge gaps within families looking to improve their lives. UPLIFT assists Hmong parents in setting goals and gaining the skills and knowledge to advance while modeling the importance of education to their children. The program embraces parenting education, adult education, and early childhood education, as well as parent and child time together.

The program is open free of charge to all Hmong families who reside in the Stevens Point School District, with a child ages 6-8 and at least one parent looking to advance their life through school or work. Skills Enhancement Program - This program is designed to provide part-time educational and skills training opportunities for individuals working in low-wage jobs.

The goal of the program is wage and career advancement above the poverty level. Financial assistance is available for tuition, books, child care and transportation. Small Loans, Big Difference - The Small Loans Big Difference program provides low-cost financing to help with household emergencies and unplanned expenses, credit building, refinancing, and support individual or family goals.

Loans up to $2,500 at 10% interest can be used for repairs and purchases for household needs and build credit. Loans up to $5,000 at 12% interest can be used to refinance higher cost or predatory debt to lower existing monthly payments and repair credit. VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) - The VITA program provides free tax help for low-to moderate-income residents.

All volunteers are trained and certified. Volunteers provide assistance with special credits such as Earned Income Tax Credits, Child Tax Credits, and credit for the elderly or disabled. Appointments are scheduled using United Way's 2-1-1 program, which is a free information and referral service.

Good Start Grants - Good Start Grants (GSG) help meet the funding gap between what childcare programs need to charge to offer a quality experience and what families can afford. Families should not have to choose between affordable health care and high-quality care.

Born Learning Initiative (Strong Start - Home Visitation) - Born Learning is a public/private partnership working collectively to build a community system that creates and invests in opportunities for children to realize lifelong success. United Way is the "Backbone" agency for this initiative, with many other agencies participating in this initiative work.

Child and Family Counseling - Child and Family Counseling helps children and their families heal from trauma and other adverse childhood experiences so they can become healthy, productive adults. Family Outreach & Support Services (FOSS) - The Family Outreach & Support Services program provides parenting education and support to families both in-home and through parenting classes.

FOSS – In Home Education : The goal of FOSS is to prevent child abuse and neglect and to reduce the likelihood of entry or reentry into the child welfare system. FOSS works with families voluntarily to mitigate the risk of child maltreatment by strengthening families’ protective factors, increasing self-sufficiency, and improving family functioning.

FOSS Parent Education – In Community Classes : FOSS Parenting classes seek to reduce the incidence of child abuse and neglect by providing parents/caregivers with the information and support they need to raise their children in a healthy and nurturing manner.

Life Skills for Girls/Reaching Out - Life Skills for Girls is designed to help girls (K-12) discover their own talents, interests and values; learn to understand, empathize and connect with others of diverse backgrounds and viewpoints; and finally to take action to identify and solve problems around them.

Reaching Out partners Girl Scouts with other youth-serving organizations and schools to serve girls ages 5-17 by building upon activities offered at each site and providing educational and recreational programs that are not currently offered. Home-Delivered Meals - Meals on Wheels provides home-delivered meals to the homebound frail, chronically ill, convalescent elderly, or disabled persons in the Stevens Point area.

Volunteers deliver hot noon meals which are prepared at area health care institutions. Other services provided by the staff include nutrition education, assessment visits, daily safety checks, and referrals to other agencies as needed. Bread of Life Hope Center - The Salvation Army Bread of Life Hope Center addresses the need for secure and safe housing.

All residents work with a Case Manager to develop an individual case plan, which is tailored to the needs of the family or individual. The resident and Case Manager work together to remove the barriers that are in the way of becoming self-sufficient. The goal at the Hope Center is for clients to learn skills that will allow them to be less dependent on financial support.

SCOUTING AMERICA ‑ SAMOSET COUNCIL Scoutreach - The purpose of the Scoutreach program is to positively impact low-income and at-risk youth in their academic success and overall development. Scoutreach is reaching low-income and at-risk youth through after-school programs at the Almond, Junction City, Plover, and Stevens Point Boys and Girls Club locations.

United Way funds three specific YMCA programs: Birth to 5 Program - The YMCA Birth to Five program will focus on helping children meet developmental milestones in preparation for Kindergarten. The Early Childhood program will provide children an outlet to be physically active, obtain the necessary social and emotional competencies, and acquire the necessary language and communication skills needed for school readiness.

School Age Program - The YMCA School Age program will provide financial support to families for before and after school care. Parents who are working and or pursuing higher education will have the opportunity to receive financial support for the cost of before and after school care and direct their income and resources to the necessities of maintaining their households.

Adapted Recreation - United Way funding provides programs for children and adults with disabilities. Programs focus on improving the health and independence of each individual.

2-1-1 - United Way's 2-1-1 connects people in Portage County with community-based health and human service resources, in everyday situations and times of public disaster, by providing information and referral and serving as a catalyst for new or improved services. Portage County's 2-1-1 services are provided through a partnership between United Way of Portage County and United Way of Marathon County.

Learn for Life - United Way of Portage County is working to increase the academic performance of students by recruiting and training volunteer reading tutors and matching them with 2nd and 3rd grade students who have been identified as early learners needing additional help with reading skills. Tutors and students meet for individualized sessions during the academic year at the student’s elementary school for 30 minutes each week.

This program is a collaboration among community volunteers, local businesses, and dedicated educators who all want to see early learners in our community thrive. Volunteer Center of Portage County - Acts as a central referral source, recruiting and screening volunteers for placement in agencies throughout the county.

In addition to matching volunteers with organizations and individuals in need, the Volunteer Center coordinates annual projects such as Make A Difference Day and Project Fresh Start. The Center also works with local businesses, schools and community organizations to promote the value of giving through service.

ODC- Opportunity for Hope -Almond Bancroft and Junction City For more information on any of these partner programs, please call United Way of Portage County at 715-341-6740.