United Way of Charlotte County, INC. PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 19, 2019
CONTACT: Angie Matthiessen
941-627-3539 | director@unitedwayccfl.org
The United Way of Charlotte County (UWCC) is thankful to receive a $25,000 grant from Gulf
Coast Community Foundation. The focus of the work it will support includes identifying women
needing services, assessing gaps and opportunities for deeper engagement, and developing a
seamless process for partner agencies to connect these women with needed services. The
grant comes from the Miriam P. Raines Charitable Fund at the foundation.
“Eighty-one percent of single-female-headed households in Charlotte County are ALICE (Asset
Limited, Income Constrained, and Employed),” said Angie Matthiessen, Executive Director of the
United Way of Charlotte County. “These women are working hard, yet still struggling to make
ends meet. They experience the impacts of poverty and toxic stress daily.” Thanks to the Gulf
Coast Community Foundation funding, low-income female-headed households will have an
opportunity to access a variety of services that will further their life skills and help them to thrive.
In particular, women at the Family Services Center will be connected with a variety of available
opportunities, supporting integration and coordination of services offered by the UWCC-funded
agencies. The new Family Services Center will be completed in the next several years.
“Establishing the depth of service now will ensure success once the facility opens,” said
Matthiessen. “Women in Charlotte County who are empowered to change the course of their
own lives can change the course of their families and their community.”
Celebrating its 25th anniversary, Gulf Coast Community Foundation awarded funds to UWCC for
the second year in a row to further the support of ALICE women in Charlotte County. “Thanks
to the Miriam P. Raines Charitable Fund at Gulf Coast, our funded partners are working in
alignment to support the family unit, maximizing what each does best, eliminating duplication
of services, and utilizing shared best practices to help women and their families in Charlotte
County,” said Matthiessen. “Partners can more clearly see the gaps and are poised to address
those gaps through referrals to the right resources, whether that be income-tax assistance,
financial empowerment, GED and career pathway services, parent groups and caregiver
support.” This approach supports the collective-impact strategy that United Way of Charlotte
County has adopted to make community dollars go farther in improving the lives of all county
residents.
For more information, click on these links:
Donor’s Legacy Continues to Empower Women in Charlotte County
