Caring for Children and Youth Community Impact Team

FOCUS AREA VISION

Children are the future. All children will have the opportunity to thrive in healthy, productive, and safe environments. Working collaboratively we can provide opportunities for children to thrive in healthy, productive and safe environments.

PRIMARY SERVICE RECIPIENTS

Children 0 – 18 years.

ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS

The United Way of Mid-Maine seeks to make this vision a reality by supporting the following essential elements:

• Ongoing relationships with caring adults.
• Safe places and activities where young people can learn and grow.
• Healthy growth – physically, socially and emotionally – at all developmental stages.
• Appropriate life skills to become productive members of society.
• Opportunity to give back through community service and leadership.
• An atmosphere that promotes diversity, tolerance and peaceful resolution.
• Core Values – honesty, respect, fairness, compassion, integrity, responsibility, social courage to do the right thing.

Within the elements above, we have identified 6 Key Issues that require attention in our Northern Kennebec and Somerset County communities. They are:

•   Children age 0–5: Children entering school ready to learn and succeed.
•   Children age 6–11: Children with access to safe programming outside regularly scheduled school hours, that teaches personal responsibility and tolerance, increases resilience, and decreases vulnerability.

• Mental health services including - but not limited to - early preventative treatment, and intervention for depression and suicide.

• Specialized training and/or education for delivery of children’s services.

• At risk/vulnerable children’s engagement in behaviors unsafe to self or others; including violent, criminal, and/or destructive behaviors.

• Underserved communities and neighborhoods experiencing gaps in and barriers to service.

  High priority: the issue requires attention and was not addressed in the prior grant process.

Board Approved 1/20/2004
Revised 12/19/06 dw

Caring for Children and Youth
Community Impact Team Members