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Level Up and Launch Mid-Year Presentations

Level Up and Launch grantees group photo (Photo: Daphnee McMaster)

Tuesday, grantees from United Way of Lancaster County’s Level Up and Launch program, presented their mid-year presentations at S. Dale High Leadership Center. The Level Up and Launch grant initiative empowers organizations to maximize their impact by connecting with both current and new donors through match funding. For every dollar donated by the community to a Level Up & Launch grantee, United Way will match it dollar-for-dollar, up to the original grant amount. Allowing grant recipients to obtain 3x the original grant amount. This grant cycle, United Way distributed $250,000 among 11 organizations. The organizations presented what they have learned, accomplished, and what is to come as they leverage United Way of Lancaster County’s support and funding.

Arch Street Center (Presenter: Director of Development, Susanne Materia) a social rehabilitation center for adults dealing with mental illness, displayed the effect of the Level Up & Launch funding for it’s Healthy Eating Program. The Healthy Eating Program provides three meals a day for members. This gives members a vital source of nutrition and stability. For some members, it’s the only source of stable food. The grant dollars helped offset the cost of making three meals a day.

ASSETS Lancaster (Presenters: Senior Loan Officer, Denzel Brown and Business Development Officer, Lindsay High) cultivates entrepreneurial leadership to create economic opportunity for underserved communities by providing entrepreneur programs tailored towards underserved communities, micro-lending services to fund business ideas, and a social enterprise that nurtures businesses prioritizing the triple bottom line people, planet, and profit. 2023/2024 the organization disbursed a total of $310,500 through 30 loans and $75,000 in grants among their partner entrepreneurs.

 Bright Side Opportunities Center (Presenter: Program Director, Isiah Perry) a local community center, detailed the success of it’s Sismantle tech program. The program, for high school aged female students, gave them foundational and advanced cybersecurity skills while enhancing their soft skills in leadership, teamwork, and financial literacy. All 13 participating young scholars completed the program successfully.

CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) of Lancaster & Lebanon Counties (Presenters: Executive Director, Jessica Laspino and Director of Development, Margie Lamberson) aimed to use their funding to recruit more workers that reflect their youth population. The organization swore in 10 new CASA volunteers, 20% of them are BIPOC individuals. Five CASA volunteers and 6 children have completed healthcare advocacy training, and 24 children have been appointed to a CASA Volunteer.

Ephrata Area Social Services (Presenter, Executive Director, Casey Ellis) a community assistance nonprofit created a workforce development program that build resumes, provides technology assistance, teaches job interview skills, and follow through/accountability practices. Twenty clients enrolled in the program. The organization was able to find new partnerships with the local school district, staffing agencies, and health agencies.  

Homefields (Presenters: Farm Manager, Andrew Phillips and Assistant Farm Manager, Tony Beers) specializes in providing farming lessons to kids with intellectual disabilities. The organization had 20 student participants, from three school districts in Lancaster County. It found new partnerships with the School District of Lancaster, Edible Classroom, and Columbia school district.

Lancaster County Food Hub (Presenters: General Manager, Christi Brown and Client Manager, Rebecca Saner) spoke about their street outreach team develops relationships with unhoused people in Lancaster County. The organization was able to expand city coverage by expanding hours of street time and gained collaboration with Lancaster County BHDS (Behavioral Health and Data Services), Penn Med Street Medicine, Tenfold, and Anchor Lancaster. Ultimately, the program was able to help 75 individuals into stable circumstances.

Lancaster EMS (Presenters: Director of Marketing and Development, Allsion Connelly and Director of Education, Richard Pearson) talked about the creation of it’s EMT Academy. In 2021, Lancaster County experienced a staffing shortage, and to address this issue, the organizations created the EMT Academy. The academy has graduated 93% of students, 77% of students pass the NREMT (National Registry of Emergency Technicians) exam, and currently 42 graduates work for Lancaster EMS.

 Parish Resource Center (Presenter: Executive Director, Kate Good) chose to tackle emergency food response because medical workers routinely ask patients about food insecurity and do not have a solution to provide them. The organization created tote bags filled with food for social workers and organizations to come in and pick up to use for their clients. As an outcome to this initiative, new partner Church World Services delivers food to unaccompanied minors, county outreach workers provide he bags to unhoused people, and the organization will be packing totes to be passed out during the upcoming point in time count, a night where volunteers from the, Lancaster Homelessness Coalition, go out and count the unhoused people in Lancaster County.

 Pennsylvania Furniture Mission (Presenter: Executive Director, Pashk Sokoli) explained how the grant money was used to expand the organization’s mission of creating warm and welcoming homes for all Pennsylvania residents. They do this by providing free furniture to families and individuals in need. The organization addresses poverty by providing recycled furniture to families that cannot afford it. This also tackles the environmental issues of overconsumption and waste by sourcing furniture sustainably. As of 2024, 450 plus families have furnished homes through the organization.

The Common Wheel (Presenter: Interim Development Director, Brenda Riehl), a local bike repair company, bought a van to have on-site bike builds for Lancaster County companies. Employees gather and get instructions on how to build bikes. These bikes will be given to local children.

• Related: Level Up and Launch Grantee’s New Years Aspirations