Community Partners

United Way of Pierce County works collaboratively with its partners on targeted community projects. These strategic and focused projects deliver positive solutions to the most urgent and serious issues facing our Pierce County community.

EDUCATION

In 2007, United Way of Pierce County convened a group of local partners to strategize the best way to make sure kids 0-5 years of age in our community are getting good developmental care. This is vitally important to ensure young children enter school ready to learn and succeed. This group, named the Pierce County Early Learning Consortium, quickly got to work developing a business plan that addresses early learning in a systemic way and includes nonprofit partners, local government, for-profit partners, parents and other caregivers.

INCOME

On an equally important front, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation awarded $1 million to United Way of Pierce County to help increase the number of affordable housing units in our community. By partnering with the City of Tacoma, an additional $500,000 from the Tacoma Community Redevelopment Authority was leveraged to create the Housing Trust Fund Demonstration Project. The Housing Trust Fund Demonstration Project presented its first award to Habitat for Humanity for two affordable housing projects. These projects will make homeownership a reality for low-income families.

HEALTH

Over the last year, United Way also partnered with healthcare providers throughout the area to increase dental care for thousands of low-income children, advocated for adding a mental health component to public benefits and helped improve healthcare access for rural communities in east Pierce County.