About Us

Montgomery County United Way--- Improving Lives…

When you see all the giving trees and bell ringers around the county, you realized (realize) how great the need is in our own community and how crucial United Way’s efforts are. Over the next few weeks, we will share the progress, success stories, and challenges facing Montgomery County residents as we at United Way work with  others to bring the community together to  Be Part of the Solution. 

Community-wide data and listening sessions tell us Income, Education, and Health are key areas we need to impact and are vitally important to our residents.  They all fit together, interconnected.  Montgomery County United Way is working on these with areas with  key community partners by focusing on helping move people out of poverty and accessing healthcare.

Moving People out of Poverty: Together we work with our neighbors to find and hold onto stable work, and a way to make ends meet every month.   We increase the capacity of the community to help people earn a family sustaining income, hold on to their hard earned dollars and grow their assets.  This Income effort works hand-in-hand, like a puzzle piece, with Education and Health. None of these areas can be considered apart from the others.  If people have better, reliable income, they’ll use social services less over time, and depend on ”the safety net” less as a result. Imagine a world where there is less need each year instead of more.  Imagine a single mom being able to shop at her local grocery store, and not have to depend on food banks to get her through the month. That’s the community Montgomery County United Way envisions, and we won’t stop until we get there together.

Education is one essential building block for moving people out of poverty and increasing  financial stability, but Education doesn’t stop with schools.  It continues into adulthood and beyond.  We want people to have a strong foundation from pre-kindergarten through high school, and to be able to get training for a good paying job later in life. If their employer shuts down, or they just want a better future for their families, they can grow and adapt through education.   Dream for a minute that a high school drop out dad can work with community partners to get his GED, and then get trained for a skilled trade he can build a life on.  Imagine the example he’ll be to his friends, his family, his children.  He can’t make this happen alone, and with the help of our local United Way, no Montgomery County citizen stands alone, either.

Accessing Healthcare: Good health is something we all strive for.  It starts early and keeps going throughout our lives.  Just think of our area having all our kids immunized, and making sure moms get good prenatal. We want to help our citizens find healthcare information, and navigate the health care system.  We’re working to bring key players in the local healthcare arena together to find ways to help our neighbors get access to care when needed. That way families can stay well, seniors can live more vigorous lives, and all our neighborhoods can be proud of what they’ve done.

While working to build stable lives and stronger communities, MCUW is committed to making sure those who are in crises and those with ongoing challenges have access to a community wide safety net that supports them. 

What an exciting time for Montgomery County United Way!  We’ll be sending you more detailed information on how we are moving people out of poverty and facilitating access to healthcare, and be available to help you with any type of story you might like to run to educate our area on the needs that exist, but more importantly---on finding ways Montgomery County United Way and its partners can help them live better lives every day! 

In the meantime, for more information, call Julie Martineau at 281.292.4155 ext. 245 and find out how easy it is to help Montgomery County United Way Be Part of the Solution.  She can also help you find other ways to Give, Advocate, and Volunteer!