Archive: Around Town

Ithaca, NY –  United Way of Tompkins County and the Triad Foundation have awarded a combined grant totaling $33,000 to Foodnet Meals-on-Wheels. This grant will be used to employ a Nutrition Outreach Worker for one year, who will be responsible for implementing a plan that will include identifying seniors in Tompkins County who have low-incomes and then linking them with other valuable services and resources available within the community.

The grant was awarded as a result of the successful Foodnet Food Card Program, a two-year summer program funded by United Way of Tompkins County with additional funding from the Community Foundation of Tompkins County for the second year.  A social worker funded through Foodnet identified needs, mailed 700 people information, made 280 connections for service, and increased food card usage for 25 elderly people. As an extension of this program, United Way of Tompkins County awarded $17,500 and the Triad Foundation $15,500 to fund the new position. The outreach worker will work 50% with food card outreach and 50% with case management of participating Foodnet clients.

  Tompkins County has been identified by New York State as a pilot county for receiving online applications for food card usage. Together, the Triad Foundation and United Way of Tompkins County are committed to this program, which will identify low-income elderly persons living in Tompkins County who are facing nutritional risks. The county population of persons aged 60 years and over is approximately 12,000, of whom 53% are estimated to be food insecure, which means they lack access to enough food to fully meet basic needs as a result of insufficient financial resources.

Regarding Triad Foundation’s decision to make this grant award, Executive Director Joanne Florino commented: “The Triad Directors appreciated this particular opportunity to collaborate with United Way to continue and expand a program that had already demonstrated impact in improving the lives of a particularly vulnerable population. While providing for the nutritional needs of low-income elderly, the Nutrition Outreach Worker will also be able to assess and address other needs and offer much-needed protection against the dangers which result from social isolation.”

The Nutrition Outreach Worker will:   

• Travel to rural townships to meet with seniors

• Conduct comprehensive intake assessments for Meals-on-Wheels under the supervision  of Foodnet’s registered dietitian

• Provide Food Stamp Benefit Card pre-screening and application assistance to isolated low- income seniors throughout Tompkins County

• Assess other unmet needs

• Identify other available services and assist with applications

• Conduct process and outcome evaluations of the project

The goal is to reduce food insecurity among frail, isolated elders by increasing participation in the Food Card Program and other valuable services within Tompkins County. This will be accomplished by incorporating Food Card outreach into assessments and reassessments of Foodnet’s clients, working with the Tompkins County Department of Social Services to identify actual and perceived barriers to seniors’ participation in the Food Card Program, and assisting elders to help them overcome these barriers.
 
The outreach worker will identify seniors at-risk who are not receiving needed services and connect them to these resources, making at least fifty appropriate referrals to community programs per year, and providing more in-depth case management of clients receiving home-delivered meals.

This will enable Foodnet’s registered dietitian to provide more nutritional counseling for their clients. The outreach worker will also share the client assessment and reassessment caseload that is currently the sole responsibility of the registered dietician.

James Brown, President of United Way of Tompkins County,  stated, “Triad Foundation was United Way’s first partner in trying to quantify the scope of local hunger and food insecurity and develop solutions. The fact that three years later we are jointly funding this project demonstrates the commitment both organizations have to strengthening the lives of all Tompkins County residents.”  Brown added, “This program and these two grants represent collaborations between funding organizations and both public and private service providers.  Along with Foodnet, the Tompkins Department of Social Services played a key role in both summer pilot programs and will be an important contributor in this year-round effort.”

United Way of Tompkins County is committed to addressing unmet health and human service needs in our community by working with partners to develop solutions.  For the last five years, United Way of Tompkins County has been actively addressing hunger and food security issues in the county.  This has been possible because of the generous support from businesses, individuals, foundations, and the community-at-large.  As a result, United Way of Tompkins continues to build Strong People    Strong Families    Strong Communities.

United Way of Tompkins County is an independent, non-profit corporation, incorporated and governed by a volunteer board of directors. Its mission is to improve lives by mobilizing the caring power of our communities. 

Triad Foundation is a family foundation led by Roy H. Park, Jr. and his children. Triad continues to honor the legacy of the late Roy Hampton Park and makes philanthropic investments in the communities in which its family members are active.