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| United Way Coastal and Western Connecticut envisions a community where every person is healthy, safe, and economically secure. We work in partnership with community to address critical needs and advance equitable pathways to wellbeing and financial security for everyone. We serve 27 communities across Fairfield and Southern Litchfield Counties and more than 25-percent of the state's population. Our work is centered on the ALICE® (Asset-Limited, Income-Constrained, Employed) population. These households work hard, but still either find it difficult to afford basic necessities like housing, food, transportation, child care, healthcare, and utilities or are just one crisis away from financial instability. ALICE families include essential workers such as child care providers, health aides, retail staff, and educators. In Fairfield and Southern Litchfield Counties, 42% of households live below the ALICE Threshold or the minimum income level necessary to afford the basic cost of living in their community. To create meaningful and lasting change in our community, UWCWC employs a comprehensive strategy that integrates immediate support with long-term systems change to promote economic stability and opportunity for ALICE households. We operate through five distinct strategies: Advocacy, Collective Action, Community Partnerships, Direct Service, and Grantmaking. Together, these interconnected strategies form a unified approach to advancing equity and improving lives across our region. We serve 27 communities across Fairfield and Southern Litchfield Counties, including the Cities of Bridgeport, Danbury, Norwalk, and Stamford, and the Towns of Bethel, Bridgewater, Brookfield, Darien, Easton, Fairfield, Kent, Monroe, New Canaan, New Fairfield, New Milford, Newtown, Redding, Ridgefield, Roxbury, Sherman, Stratford, Trumbull, Warren, Washington, Westport, Wilton, and Weston, Connecticut. |
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