Town of Trumbull Receives Support from United Way

United Way of Coastal Fairfield County has awarded the Town of Trumbull a grant to support residents impacted by the Covid-19 crisis. Presentation was made to Michele Jakab, Director of Human Services.

United Way’s Covid Relief Grant provides funding for emergency assistance—for food, rent, utilities and critical bills—to help keep families in stable homes. This is the second round of grants from United Way to aid those affected by the pandemic in Fairfield County.

The grant will be used primarily to help Trumbull residents struggling with housing bills. Human Services’ Director Michele Jakab commented: “At the beginning of the pandemic, the big need was for food—especially among senior citizens afraid to shop in the grocery stores. As time went on, we began to see younger individuals and families who had lost jobs or income, and who needed rental assistance. We’re helping them now so they won’t fall too far behind on their rent. We want to avoid a crisis later when, eventually, the moratoria on evictions are lifted.”

Presenting the award were three long-time Trumbull residents: Paul Timpanelli and Paul Lavoie (both members of the Board of Directors), and Faith Douglass, the Director of Development at the local nonprofit.

Paul Timpanelli noted, “Our neighbors need our help, and many of them are seeking help for the first time in their lives. We’re honored to work with the Town of Trumbull to bring help and hope to those who are suffering in our hometown.”

Before the pandemic, more than one out of four Trumbull families struggled to make ends meet. Now families are challenged by increased household expenses and the loss of income due to reduced working hours or shuttered businesses. In the past year, Trumbull residents’ requests for help to United Way’s 2-1-1 Infoline have more than doubled.

Faith Douglass, United Way’s Director of Development, thanked Jakab and her team for their tireless efforts to meet the increasing need.

The grant of $4,000 follows support provided to the Town of Trumbull last spring in the form of electronic gift cards to meet immediate family needs.

Since the Covid-19 outbreak, United Way of Coastal Fairfield County (UWCFC) has made investments in every one of the 12 towns in its service area, offering:

• Grants for Basic Needs: Approximately $150,000 in grants to support towns and community partners providing for basic needs like food, rent, and utilities.
• Direct Help to Families: Over $89,000 in electronic gift cards to families in need, distributed by towns and local social service agencies.
• Protective Equipment: Tens of thousands of protective masks, gloves, and face shields to help neighbors ranging from frontline health workers to teachers and families, thanks to corporate donors and healthcare partners and like Bank of America and Yale New Haven Health.
• Virtual Learning Support: For remote learners in Kindergarten to 12th grade, UWCFC has provided a virtual tutoring program, a STEM enrichment workshop, and camps in robotics and engineering. These innovative offerings were made by the Greater Bridgeport STEM Learning Ecosystem, an initiative of the United Way’s flagship collective impact movement, Bridgeport Prospers.
• Freshly Made Lunches: Over 3,000 lunches delivered to hungry neighbors in 3 towns, through a partnership with Sikorsky Aircraft, a Lockheed Martin Company.
• Connections to Resources: Through the 2-1-1 Infoline, United Way has fielded over 86,0000 service requests from Fairfield County residents in the past twelve months.

These supports were made possible through grants, partnerships, local fundraising, and state-wide relief efforts.

Board of Directors’ member, Paul Lavoie, commented: “With the onset of the pandemic, our United Way pivoted quickly and worked innovatively to ease the burden shouldered by our neighbors. Together with our community partners, we will overcome this crisis and build a resilient Trumbull — where all our neighbors have the opportunity to thrive.”