Impact Week: Reaching That First Birthday

Impact Week-Reaching That First Birthday

When a community commits itself to safeguarding the health of its most vulnerable people, that means more babies—especially babies of color—will celebrate their first birthday. United Way BCKR set a goal to improve infant mortality rates in families of color and low income to 6.0 per 1,000 births by 2025. Tristen’s Story Before his sophomore…

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Partnership Tackles Racial Disparities

When it comes to racial equity, our regional community can do better. By Sara Coppo, Guest Blogger “Whether it’s education, whether it’s income, whether it’s health, families of color line up behind at all times.” As CEO of YWCA Kalamazoo, an organization that has been active in the community for 130 years, Dr. Grace Lubwama…

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Building Healthy Families One Connection at a Time

Lee Gray and Amy Smith know how to build relationships. It’s a skill that has proven essential to the facilitation and growth of their family education program, Family Connections. By creating an environment of trust and open dialogue, program co-directors Gray and Smith say they are quickly able to engage even the most reluctant of…

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Impact Week: Saving More Babies

[su_label type=”info”]IMPACT WEEK[/su_label] Infant mortality is more than a measure of babies’ health; it’s a sign of a community’s commitment to its most vulnerable people. Editor’s note: We’re celebrating Impact Week—highlighting how support for United Way is changing lives. Read our Impact Week overview here. Also, check out this week’s blogs on Education and Income/Financial…

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888-KIDS Rings Up Better Infant Health

Better health for vulnerable infants is now just a phone call away. A new infant health hotline, 269-888-KIDS, was launched today by Cradle Kalamazoo, a multi-agency community initiative that includes United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region. “We are excited to launch this phase of the project,” states Grace Lubwama, CEO of YWCA…

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