United Way of Larimer County

In our community. In our neighborhoods. In our lives.

Meet the Rumneys
Linda and Richard Rumney didn’t think they’d need United Way’s help until...

Meet Carlie
A beautiful 6-year-old in Loveland, normal in appearance but plagued with troubles.

Meet Mary Ann
A Fort Collins resident, who has been fighting one challenge after another...

Meet Linda
Linda's need for assistance came unexpectedly when she suddenly became guardian of her two granddaughters – ages two and four.

Meet Dodi
“If I didn’t have United Way’s help, my life would be terrible.”

Meet Ed
“I am proud to be living here.”

Meet Cecilia
“Our town is rich – in the incredible kindness and generosity the people have.”

	The United Way of Larimer County and its Partner Agencies provided the Rumneys with inform programs, such as Foothills Gateway and Respite Care, Inc., which have consistently helped Kelsey and her family face new challenges.
	Meet the Rumneys Support in tmes of need

Linda and Richard Rumney didn’t think they’d need United Way’s help until their daughter, Kelsey, was born with Down Syndrome. The United Way of Larimer County and its Partner Agencies provided the Rumneys with inform programs, such as Foothills Gateway and Respite Care, Inc., which have consistently helped Kelsey and her family face new challenges.

The Rumneys never imagined that they’d need to utilize additional United Way services until Richard was laid off from his job in 2001. The loss of health insurance, especially with Kelsey’s condition, quickly became the family’s main concern. Fortunately, the Rumneys qualified for Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+), a program that provides health insurance to children in need. Then, Richard was in a near-fatal car accident and his hospital bills left the family more than $100,000 in debt. Thanks to the community’s generosity, though, the family was able to remain stable and self-sufficient.

By funding many worthwhile programs, United Way of Larimer County helps people like the Rumneys. Although no one plans on using United Way’s services, when you donate to United Way, you support programs that could help you, your neighbors, and your community when unexpected challenges arise. Please help those in need. It’s what matters..

	A beautiful 6-year-old in Loveland, normal in appearance but plagued with troubles.
	Meet Carlie A better quality of life

A beautiful 6-year-old in Loveland, normal in appearance but plagued with troubles. Early onset bipolar causes a host of symptoms: bizarre sleeping patterns, destructive emotional and physical outbursts and depressed periods. With severe sensory integration disorder, a pin prick may be excruciatingly painful yet serious injuries may not hurt at all.

Foothills Gateway, a United Way partner agency, was there to assist Carlie's family in the most difficult phase — diagnosis. Now, United Way-funded agencies, Hearts and Horses and Namaqua Center, have enabled Carlie to improve tremendously by fostering behavior modification and self-awareness. Carlie and her family have a support system allowing them to cope with her challenges.

Give to United Way and you can improve the quality of life for Carlie and many other children in need in Larimer County.

	Since a very young age, Mary Ann, a Fort Collins resident, has been fighting one challenge after another...
	Meet Mary Ann A better quality of life

Since a very young age, Mary Ann, a Fort Collins resident, has been fighting one challenge after another through a multitude of life-altering illnesses — polio, multiple sclerosis, congestive heart failure and diabetes.

As a mother, her focus has always been on what she can do for others. Mary Ann benefits from, yet continues to give back to, numerous agencies funded through the United Way network — FirstCall, Disabled Resources Services, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Consumer Credit Counseling Service, Food Bank, and Neighbor To Neighbor.

Mary Ann provides countless hours of volunteer work, fund raising efforts and support to others struggling with disabilities. Mary Ann truly believes in "Paying It Forward." You can help Mary Ann improve the quality of life for others in Larimer County coping with physical challenges.

	Linda's need for assistance came unexpectedly when she suddenly became guardian of her two granddaughters – ages two and four
	Meet Linda A better quality of life

Linda's need for assistance came unexpectedly when she suddenly became guardian of her two granddaughters – ages two and four. Fortunately the girls were already enrolled at Springfield Court Early Learning Center where the staff was adept at guiding Linda through the application for the Colorado Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) and suggesting other possible programs to assist Linda. United Way funds paid the children's tuition at Springfield Court Early Learning Center during the CCAP application-processing period. This stopgap measure allowed the girls to remain in the program and gave LInda some time to restructure her work schedule, personal life and budget.

Many families have found themselves in similar situations due to a struggling local economy and change in the Larimer County poverty level. As a result of the change in poverty level, more than 200 local families have been disqualified from the CCAP. Less income from this state program has made United Way funding even more crucial to a growing number of local families.

	“If I didn’t have United Way’s help, my life would be terrible.”
	Meet Dodi A better quality of life By: Sophie Waghorn

Loveland resident Dodi suffers from multiple sclerosis and without United Way, it would be another story for her. "There might be the possibility that I wouldn’t have my son, that I’d have to live in a care facility," she says. "It would be a totally different life, one I don’t ever want to experience."

But now, thanks to your donations, Dodi is able to see her two-year-old son grow up and live with more independence than she dreamed possible. For eight years, Dodi’s illness has been progressing so fast that she is now unable to even lift herself out of her wheelchair.

Fortunately, three United Way-funded agencies, the Multiple Sclerosis Society, Disabled Resources and RVNA Homecare Services, have helped her. Adaptations to her house and provision of regular homecare mean that Dodi can live a more mobile life with self-respect and dignity.

"Because of all the help, my health is so much better and I don’t worry like I used to," Dodi says. "Without United Way, I wouldn’t have a quality of life." Smiling at her son, she says she feels blessed and grateful for the support. "There are people that it means the world to."

	“I am proud to be living here.”
	Meet Ed Looking After Our Seniors By: Sophie Waghorn

After 75 years of life in Fort Collins, these words come easily to Ed. It’s not that life itself is easy for him, living alone with declining health, but through agencies funded by United Way he feels supported and valued as part of the community.

Three days a week he visits Elderhaus, which provides care, activities and, above all, much needed company.

"I look forward to coming here," Ed says. "I’d be lonesome otherwise."

Elderhaus is an organization for the elderly that provides meals with the help of Food Bank, wheelchairs and walkers through Disabled Resources and craft projects through Retired Seniors and Volunteers Program (RSVP); agencies also funded by United Way. Ed especially enjoys creating things with RSVP as they often get donated to other charities in the community, a true case of what goes around comes around!

At home, Ed receives lunch from Meals on Wheels, another United Way-funded agency. With a crippled leg, he finds it hard to get around, shop and cook meals.

"Meals on Wheels made my life better," Ed says. "The meals are nice, varied and hot and they’re delivered to me at home. And the people always ask how I’m doing."

Those who support United Way are making sure our seniors, like Ed, can maintain an independent life without suffering from isolation and malnutrition.

	“Our town is rich – in the incredible kindness and generosity the people have.”
	Meet Cecilia Changing Lives By: Sophie Waghorn

Cecelia, a single mother living in Loveland, had thought that there was no way out. Trapped in a violent marriage and without a high school diploma, she couldn’t see how she and her two young daughters could survive if they walked out. She was stuck in a state of desperation, not knowing where to go or how to change things.

Today, Cecilia is living in safety with her daughters in a subsidized apartment and is back at school, so she can become qualified for a job that can support her family. She believes that because of this, her daughters have been spared the future cycle of poverty and abuse. It hasn’t been an easy road, however. When the domestic abuse became unbearable, a week at a United Way funded safe house for women (Crossroads) helped Cecilia understand there were choices other than staying. A year later, she and her daughters finally left for good, and three more United Way agencies helped her: Alternatives To Violence and Neighbor to Neighbor provided her with low-cost housing, food and counseling, and Colorado Legal Services helped with the divorce.

On the path to self-sufficiency, another United Way agency, The Women’s Center, supported her with counseling, returning to school to earn her GED and with job advice - even offering her a set of business clothes for job interviews. House of Neighborly Services and Project Self-Sufficiency (both funded by United Way) provided clothing, food and low cost housing, a donated car and additional counseling.

"By donating to United Way," Cecilia says, "it’s helping change people’s lives for the better. There aren’t words that can tell the appreciation I have that it’s helped my family get to this place." And that is why a woman who has struggled with poverty and homelessness can say: "Our town is rich - in the incredible kindness and generosity the people have."