Supporting United Way helps families get on the pathway to a financially secure future. Together with our partners, we offer a comprehensive approach to connecting individuals with skills and training for jobs in our region as well as the financial services and supports to achieve their goals.
Our Work - Family Financial Security
Family Financial Security
Because of your collective support, the following outcomes were achieved in our region in the last year:
1,471 individuals participated in financial coaching services to increase income, build wealth, reduce debt
10,122 people filed their 2021 tax returns at no cost through Volunteer Income Tax Assistance sites and MyFreeTaxes.com returning $27.5M in federal refunds and credits to our community
78% of adults enrolled in United Way-funded career advancement initiatives obtained a good paying job that helped them earn more than just ends meet
Strategies
We invest in integrated programs and initiatives that provide employment services, financial coaching and connection to income supports which help families on their path to financial security. We also convene multi-sector partnerships focused on better connecting systems to advance employment opportunities for individuals in our region.
Workforce Solutions Collaborative of Metro Hartford:
United Way is the lead partner for the Workforce Solutions Collaborative of Metro Hartford – a nationally recognized employer led effort that aims to connect lower wage workers with industry specific training and support to find jobs that are in demand by local employers. Over the years, we have convened hundreds of employers, in key industries – including health care, manufacturing and transportation/distribution/logistics – to create a pipeline of qualified employees that meet workforce demand in jobs that pay family-sustaining wages with opportunities for career advancement.
No-Cost Tax Preparation
Get help from an IRS-certified volunteer, if your household income is up to $60,000. Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) is a partnership of United Way, the IRS, The Village for Families & Children, Inc. and Human Resources Agency of New Britain, Inc. which provides tax preparation services at no cost to eligible families at community locations throughout our region. In addition, online filing is also available at myfreetaxes.com.
CWP Navigation Tool
The HOYC Youth Training and Employment Navigation Tool is designed to promote access and engagement for disconnected youth in the Greater Hartford Region. The tool will be available on the HOYC website, United Way 211, and elsewhere with mobile compatibility. Youth will complete a brief survey relating educational needs, career interest, and desired services. The tool will then direct the youth to a list of programs and services provided by HOYC partners that is tailored to youth’s individual survey responses.
Success Story
What makes Upper Albany is the teamwork that happens here. We now have volunteers come to our site from across the region. We work hard, we get to know our taxpayers and we are committed to providing people with a quality and professional experience.
– Naomi McKoy, Upper Albany Neighborhood Collaborative
We tend to think of trailblazers as people who walk ahead, finding new paths and solutions, leaving the trail better for those who come after them. Naomi McKoy, Dorothy (Dot) Biggs and the late Patricia (Pat) Williams are the trailblazers for their neighborhood, their city and the region through the Upper Albany Neighborhood Collaborative.
Every tax season since 2002, the three would work together to provide free income tax assistance to residents through United Way’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) campaign.
“What makes Upper Albany is the teamwork that happens here,” said McKoy. “We now have volunteers come to our site from across the region. We work hard, we get to know our taxpayers and we are committed to providing people with a quality and professional experience. The tax site is often at the center of the Collaborative’s work.”
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