Impact and Programs
Accomplishments
Interfaith Outreach helped 2,184 households move forward toward hopeful futures by working with our community to tackle complex issues: lack of affordable housing, food insecurity, underemployment, transportation barriers, lack of access to quality early childhood education, and an achievement gap that persists despite top-quality schools.
Case managers worked with families in times of need: job loss, pending evictions, family breakup, a medical crisis, car repair, etc. to help families. We provided nearly $2 million to help with 2,365 emergency financial assists. 432 families were helped with housing to keep a roof overheas, 200 utility shut-offs were prevented and 167 families were helped with car repairs.
The Food Shelf distributed 904,763 pounds of food to 4,485 individuals through the help of 955 volunteers and retail partners.
The CONECT program supported residents living in 8 neighborhoods by providing an array of comprehensive family and children’s services. 239 children participated in Homework Clubs. 127 youth thrived in summer camps. 226 volunteers and staff helped young learners build academic skills. Senior services provided social support.
274 jobseekers participated in Employment Services, receiving help with soft skills training, transferable skills, computer classes, technical training, job search assistance and coaching. The average wage secured was $18.76/hr.
Transportation barriers were addressed in multiple ways. 700 rides were provided to medical appointments and adult education classes. 791 families received gasoline cards. 452 received bus passes and/or cab fare.
180 children received scholarships for quality early childhood care and education through 12 accredited child care centers, including parent education and family support.
Nearly $350,000 in sales through ReSale 101 supported programs and resulted in $31,811 in gift cards given to clients to shop for their families. Winter and career clothing was provided free of charge to families in need.
In addition, 767 students received school supplies, 745 families receive holiday gifts, 407 children received birthday gifts and 66 babies were welcomes with new baby supplies.
Great Expectations, a school and community initiative providing in-school and out-of-school educational opportunities, was launched in collaboration with Wayzata and Orono school districts.
Current Goals
Client Services has 3 main goals in FY17: 1) Maximize service delivery, 2) Use data and stories to tell our story and inform our work, and 3) Move forward with our 3 year vision.
Strategies to maximize service delivery include: continuous improvement in existing programs; cross-program collaboration; volunteer training and support; integration of client voice into program planning, delivery and evaluation; continued focus on diversity and inclusion; developing, nurturing and sustaining partnerships to improve client services; continue internal alignment of programming to support the Great Expectations initiative.
Strategies to use data and stories to tell our story and inform our work include: development of an evaluation framework in collaboration with Wilder Research; use of data to describe our work and its impact; improve internal processes around data accuracy and completeness; develop and implement structured ways to efficiently and effectively share information about programs, clients and impact.
Strategies to move forward with our 3 year vision will focus on mental health, transportation and housing/homelessness.
Community or Constituency Served
Interfaith Outreach serves families, children, and individuals who live in eight west Hennepin suburban communities. 93% are households within 200% of the federal poverty level. We also serve households on low/fixed incomes including seniors and adults with disabilities, families facing an unexpected financial crisis, and homeless families/individuals.
Geographic Area Served
8 west Hennepin communities: Hamel, Long Lake, Medicine Lake, Medina, Minnetonka Beach, Orono, Plymouth, and Wayzata
