| SToughton Area Resource Team (START) - 2022 |
Amount Funded: $5,000.00 |
| In early 2020, just before Wisconsin’s Safer at Home Order #72, START moved from a one small office space within the Stoughton Senior Center to space within the Neighborhood Free Health Clinic. Since that time, START employees have been working primarily out of their homes and in the community making home visits. START is happy to unofficially announce its plan to move to a 3-office suite downtown Stoughton. The space will support our goals to expand our program to strengthen direct access to resources families need to support housing, employment, education, financial education and budgeting assistance, transportation, physical and mental healthcare and all other basic needs to reduce the impacts of poverty.
Between January and August of 2022, START has served 136 households with resources focused on housing and utilities stability and access to transportation, employment, and other basic needs. The location of our new office space is extremely beneficial and critical for more community visibility and physical access for those in need of START resources. Having a larger, centrally located office will increase the impact and numbers of households that are able to access services. |
| START receives ongoing requests for emergency assistance related to rent, utilities, car repairs and other basic and general needs. Many households contacting START are still seeking help due to loss of income caused directly or indirectly by the COVID-19 pandemic. START works closely with individuals and families who have formerly experienced homelessness or live in poverty; we know that this population of people are especially vulnerable to ongoing housing insecurity particularly throughout this unprecedented economic downturn. START embraces a multi-generational approach (2Gen) when working with households with children. The 2Gen approach centers on the whole family to foster educational, employment, social and emotional success, and economic stability that passes from one generation to the next. In addition to providing housing and utilities assistance and budget guidance, we offer access to resources families need to build health and well-being intergenerationally. As an imperative piece to focusing on the outcomes for the children, eviction prevention work will also be a priority. Statistics show instability of housing and living in poverty are known risk factors for a variety of negative behavioral and emotional outcomes for children and adolescents, including academic failure, antisocial behavior, depression, drug/alcohol use, and teenage pregnancy. The goal of the 2Gen approach is to provide interventions to stop the cycle of poverty from continuing. Interventions focus on investing in the ability to offer or access basic needs that promote; a sense of community belonging, socialization and effective communication, education, conflict resolution, team building, diversity and acceptance, relationship building, positive decision making, planning for a successful future, physical and emotional health, and wellbeing. Needs that are a long-term investment of youth to reduce the cycle of poverty and teach children to be engaged in their community into adulthood. |
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