Over the next week, the News Tribune's annual "A Christmas Wish series" will showcase community members whose lives have been enriched by the work of six United Way of Central Missouri partner agencies.
The United Way of Central Missouri has served people in Cole, Moniteau, Miller, Osage and southern Callaway counties for 96 years. The organization helps fund its 28 partner agencies while working to streamline the work of the charitable services it supports to make them as effective as possible.
As the cold weather hits and the holidays near, certain needs -- as well as the community's awareness of them -- are amplified.
"With the cold weather comes the need for utility assistance, and then of course for those people who don't have a stable home, it becomes even more critical to find shelter for them," United Way President Ann Bax said. "And then with the holidays, we see people that have the need for assistance with Christmas and things like that."
But while the spirit of giving is usually associated with the holiday season, there is a need year round -- especially now as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to increase costs of supplies and cause numerous challenges for many.
"We continue to get calls for people who have needs that have been brought on by COVID," Bax said. "(We're) trying to continue to be agile, figure out what agencies can help them and continue to help people, as some are more heavily impacted than others. Our agencies try to look at that on a case-by-case basis."
Knowing not every agency can fill every need, the United Way agencies fit together like a puzzle -- where the services of one stop, another one picks up, Bax said.
"That's the beauty of the United Way is that the agencies don't work in silos," Bax said. "We work together as a family and as a team to provide holistic support to individuals and families."
The United Way's annual fundraising campaign amassed $2.3 million this year, exceeding the goal by more than $100,000. In addition to being used to fund partner agencies in the next year, this money will be used to distribute community support grants to other Mid-Missouri agencies.
Bax said she's grateful for the community's generous support and for the people who were willing to share their stories through A Christmas Wish.
"(A Christmas Wish) comes right after our United Way campaign where we're asking the community to support our work, and so people are able to see -- up close and personal -- some individuals and families that have been impacted thanks to their generous gifts," Bax said.
Features in this Christmas Wish series:
A Christmas Wish: Formerly homeless, woman looking forward to her new apartment
A Christmas Wish: Man's wish is to visit his new grandson
A Christmas Wish: Compass Health provides a 'village' of care for clients
A Christmas Wish: 4-year-old celebrating adoption that changed his life