Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1531086
UNITED TO END POVERTY "H ow can you be for us without us?" poses Tania Banks, a member of Hartford's Young Legends, a group of young adults actively engaging and committing to the development of leadership skills in order to strengthen career pathways. "Being a part of Young Legends, we can finally find that framework and I can be a part of cultivating that framework that addresses the issues that young people are facing," added Khamari Thornton, a fellow Young Legend. Equity is at the core of United Way's Onward860 strategic vision to end poverty in all its forms. Leveraging feedback and lived experience from a diverse cross-section of stakeholders – including residents experiencing working and extreme poverty – keeps community members' perspectives elevated throughout our strategic planning process. Using our centennial milestone to develop a new strategic plan meant: • Inviting partner, community and staff experts to the conversation; • Building upon a century of United Way's service to the 860 region; and, • Investing in data research to earn a clear understanding of community conditions. United Way started by convening two dozen community champions to serve on our strategic planning committee, helping shape the framework and act as a sounding board as we progressed through this exploratory process. Next, United Way hosted 41 community conversations throughout the summer of 2023, deeply listening to nearly 400 community, corporate, municipal and philanthropic participants. We heard consistently from people that they wanted United Way to unite the 860 region so your zip code does not determine your life expectancy; that United Way's role in our community is to convene and advocate for policy change; and, United Way needs to narrow its focus to deepen its impact. No one person or organization alone can tackle the toughest issues facing our community. That's why United Way is uniquely positioned to bring together partners across sectors to collaborate on solutions that close gaps and create opportunities so everyone succeeds. When examining the feedback, data (including the Connecticut United Ways ALICE Report and DataHaven's Greater Hartford Community Well-Being Index) and advice from subject matter experts, the strategic planning committee and United Way staff distilled a signature, unifying cause: United to End Poverty. LEVERAGE United Way leverages 100 years of expertise, experience, data, community voice and resources to deepen impact. The Young Legends work to connect youth and young adults, ages 16 - 29, to quality employment opportunities and resources. They connect young adults to programs and trainings that aim to equip them with the skills needed to become successful in and out of the workplace. The Young Legends creates and sustains a peer outreach network of trusted community messengers. And, this ini- tiative provides various opportunities for young adults to share their perspectives with leaders in the workforce system to influence policies and practices. 8 | COMMUNITY IMPACT REPORT 2024 | UNITED WAY OF CENTRAL AND NORTHEASTERN CONNECTICUT CLICK HERE to hear more from Tania and Khamari about the value of young adults' perspectives being included in United Way's strategic planning process.