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Community CommentaryIn an effort to serve the Lakes Region of NH, Lakes Region United Way hosts this space for the discussion of important human services topics. Thoughtful and courteous community discussion is welcome. Please be sure to include your own contact information with your commentary. To post a commentary, please email the request to info@upstream.org. Thank you. Commentaries will be posted at the discretion of the Lakes Region United Way Directors and/or Staff. Comments and opinions posted here are not necessarily those of the Lakes Region United Way, it's Directors or Staff. Community Needs Assessment, 2009 Introduction The Lakes Region Partnership for Public Health and other health and human service groups in the Lakes Region have been working together for over one year to collect information about our community. This information is essential to organizations, community groups, municipalities and the general public to better understand the needs in our communities and to identify ways we can work together to meet some of these needs. The members of the Community Needs Assessment Group (listed below) will be presenting this report throughout our community. We hope to do this through community presentations, media, distribution of a community report card and distribution of this report to key stakeholder groups such as police, housing and government officials. We will continue to meet throughout the year to assess our communities' progress in meeting the identified needs. As citizens, all of us can participate in activities that benefit and strengthen our community. Agencies may use the information in this report to seek funds to meet a need and businesses may assist with fundraising and awareness. Community members may join with others to form committees to help others with significant needs, or as individuals we may choose to help neighbors by volunteering time and/or expertise to help meet a community need. Thank you to everyone who participated in this assessment as well as to those who will work toward its improvement. Belknap County Citizens Council on Children & Families Community Action Program Belknap-Merrimack Counties, Inc. Community Health & Hospice, Inc. Genesis Behavioral Health Lakes Region Community Services LRGHealthcare Lakes Region Partnership for Public Health, Inc. Lakes Region United Way Taylor Community Posted 1/5/09 Now available is the new Procedural Safeguard Handbook (Parent's Rights for students with disabilities) with the additions/changes to the New Hampshire Rules for the Education of Children with Disabilities effective June 30, 2008. The booklet was developed with the hopes to be both user-friendly and in compliance with federal requirements for a "procedural safeguards notice." This New Hampshire Procedural Safeguards Handbook is linked below and is available on the Department of Education's website and on CD from the New Hampshire Department of Education 101 Pleasant Street Concord, NH 03301-3860 For more information, please contact Santina Thibedeau: sthibedeau@ed.state.nh.us or 603-271-6693. New Hampshire Special Education Procedural Safeguards Handbook N.H Rules for the Education of Students with Disabilities http://www.ed.state.nh.us/education/doe/organization/instruction/bose.htm If you have questions about the special education process or concerns, please contact Parent Information Center 224-7005 or 1-800-947-7005. -- Audrey Burke NH Connections Concord-Lakes Region Facilitator (603) 860-7015 audreynhc@gmail.com Posted 1/5/09 Through the Eyes of a Community Champion By Mike Seymour Lakes Region United Way's Community Champion  With the approach of holiday family gatherings and the beginning of a new year, I wanted to touch on some thoughts that may not be very original, but nonetheless extremely valuable. We have heard so much about the current economic situation across the nation and in our own state. From that, we can surmise that our neighbors, families and children will need help now more than ever.Drawing from my service along side so many other community volunteers and as the Community Champion for Lakes Region United Way's fundraising campaign, I feel compelled to share my experiences with you. I liken the United Way to that house or business that you always commute by, but don't give it a second look. LRUW has been around since 1957, yet so many do not "notice" it… so many are not aware of its true value to our community. I have seen firsthand the homeless shelters, child cares, after school programs and senior centers that change lives. I have learned about programs like 2-1-1 NH information and referral phone number and website www.211nh.org and the FamilyWize prescription drug discount program that make it easier for people get help and keep more income in their pockets. I have seen countless volunteers put their heart and soul into the due diligence process so that your donations are carefully granted to effective, well managed programs that provide a "hand up, not a hand out". I have seen so many caring, dedicated employees at funded agencies give 110% and more to those they serve. I have seen countless Lakes Region residents give, advocate and volunteer for the common good. My holiday wish is that more community members will have their eyes opened to see the tremendous value of what can happen when many give from their hearts, at whatever level their budget allows. I urge you to reach out a hand to one to influence the condition of all, by donating what you can through your employer or by sending a donation to LRUW. You can learn more about how effective our local United Way is, and how your donation is invested back into our community, by visiting their website www.LRUW.org or by calling 524-6864. My best wishes to all for a safe, healthy New Year. Nomination Packets for the Annette P Schmitt UnSung Hero Award are now available at www.bccj.org This award, presented annually by the Belknap County Citizens Council on Children and Families, honors an individual who has worked quietly behind the scenes on behalf of children and families in Belknap County without any expectation of recognition. The 2009 Schmitt Award will be presented at the Belknap County Convocation on Children and Families on March 31, 2009. Nomination Packets are due by February 20, 2009. Important information from the Federal Communications Commission on the subject of the upcoming transition from analog to digital television. I have attached two one-page information sheets; one is a general information sheet and the other addresses hooking up the digital television converter box. I would like to emphasize the following three points. After February 17, 2009, full-power television stations will be broadcasting only in digital. Television sets NOT CONNECTED to a paid tv service will need to be connected to a converter box in order to maintain service. To help pay for the boxes, the U.S. Government is offering two $40 coupons per household. Those who want the coupons should apply for them as soon as possible. Hooking up the converter box is not hard, but some people may need help. One of the handouts addresses this specifically The FCC is looking for opportunities to schedule "sign up and set up" events to help people apply for the coupons and that we are also looking for opportunities to schedule "train the trainer" events. Our hope is to reach people, including social service providers, who are in direct contact with those (e.g., seniors, the disabled, low income people) who might need help. We would come and give a brief demonstration of how to hook up the converter box. Any ideas or suggestions that you or your colleagues might have in this regard would be gratefully received. I am focusing on the time period from Dec. 8-19 in my planning. Cordially, Jonathan Levy Federal Communications Commission (202) 418-2048 Jonathan.levy@fcc.gov A Question of Alignment Community Commentary by Jack Terrill President, Lakes Region United Way There has been a spirited discussion about recent proposals regarding the upcoming budget for Belknap County. The Commissioners are attempting to reduce tax payer burden while balancing an increasingly onerous budget. And the game has changed. The partnership between State and County has shifted. In prior years there has been some cost sharing for elderly and juvenile expenses, but now the State is assuming all juvenile expenditures while passing on to the County all nursing home and elder home care expenses. Consequently, the mission of the County Commissioners and Delegation is not what it used to be. Now is the time to rethink how we work together in Belknap County. For the purposes of this discussion, we will assume that we have two sources of revenue streams to address the common social good in our County. The two sources are tax payer revenue (involuntary) and charitable giving (voluntary). In their quest to reduce expenditures and balance the budget, the Commissioners have stated that they seek to end "outside program" support. I would suggest we modify this statement to read that the Commissioners will realign their support for "outside programs". For example, if involuntary dollars are used to fund the nursing home and in-home elder care, I would suggest it is in the best interest of both the County and the tax-payer to seek means to reduce the overall cost of this work. There are "outside programs" that are doing just that in our County. The Belknap-Merrimack Community Action Program, to name one, delivers elder care on a daily basis, with excellence. These services are designed to help people live in their homes for months and years longer than unassisted conditions would allow. Given that for many of those served the next stop would be the County Nursing Home, doesn't an alignment with "outside agencies" and the County make sense? If, say, $100,000 of tax payer money produced savings of $800,000 for the budget, would any tax payer have issues with this? I think this presents a wonderful opportunity to explore the possibilities. On the other hand, we have the work of the Belknap County Citizen's Council now in jeopardy because of the budget challenges. First fully funded by the Annette P. Schmidt foundation, the County has increasingly taken on larger chunks of the Council's cost. The Council has focused on juvenile issues, in particular juvenile justice. We have been fortunate to have such a dedicated group of staff and volunteers working in this County on these issues. Their work has been necessary and valuable. But is the work of the Council aligned with the new mandates of the County? While you could draw a line, albeit a little choppy, between juvenile and elder care expenditures, the realistic answer is that alignment no longer exists. Does this mean the good work of the council should cease? Only at the risk of the long-term health of the social condition of this County. I would advocate that the Council's work must continue on, perhaps adopting a slightly different look, but still working towards the same goals. As far as funding streams go, involuntary funding of this program may no longer be appropriate for County tax payers. Tax dollars should be used to either fund the mandated services or support ways that reduce the total cost of those mandated services. The Council and the County missions no longer align. In the world of attempting to advance the common good through social investment, much of our work is generational. Just as wealth is passed on from generation to generation, so are social problems. Our work is deliberate, multi-faceted, and often speculative. For every successful engagement of the community or an individual that is made, more will fail. We live and operate in a world of venture social capital. This work is a good place for voluntary revenue streams, where people know that their voluntary dollars are going to fight the good fight, but successful results are not always guaranteed. In the end, it is these voluntary investments which in turn will offer social dividends. The on-going shortage of funds and realignment of missions has presented challenges and opportunities for us as a community. The debate isn't about the value of the work of "outside agencies". The debate is about alignment and the use of voluntary and involuntary streams of revenue. Let's take advantage of this unique time, and put together a cohesive, County-wide strategy. Let's begin the discussion! Posted 11/19/08 The Home Visiting NH program sponsored jointly by Early Head Start and Community Health and Hospice has immediate openings for new clients. This program provides health, education, support and linkages to community services to Medicaid eligible, pregnant women and their families. Some of the services that are provided are:
The goals of the program are to:
This program is free to the participants. We serve families in Belknap County.To make a referral or to request brochures contact: Linda S. Clairmont Family and Community Services Manager Head Start/Early Head Start/HVNH 528-5334, ext.125 E-mail: lclairmont@bmcap-lrfc.org Dynamic Estimates of the Fiscal Effects of Investing in Early Childhood Programs By William T. Dickens, University of Maryland and the Brookings Institution and Charles Baschnagel, University of Maryland Introduction (Download the full report in PDF format) Children living in families with low incomes, a single parent, and/or poorly educated parents are much more likely than other children to grow up to be adults with less education, lower wages and incomes, poorer health, and shorter lives. There have been many attempts to break this cycle of poverty by enriching the environment in which disadvantaged children grow up and to better prepare them to enter school. In order to decide if these programs actually deliver the results they are aiming for, it is necessary to have high-quality evaluations using a random-assignment experimental approach with a long time horizon. Unfortunately, relatively few of these "gold-standard" evaluations have been carried out. However, some programs — notably Perry Preschool, the Abecedarian Project, and the Mother-Child Home Program, have been demonstrated to have positive effects on later life outcomes. Others have shown that the social benefits of such programs can substantially outweigh the social costs suggesting that such programs could be excellent social investments. Most of the benefits of these programs accrue to the participants while most of the costs,when they are implemented as public programs, fall on taxpayers. Taxpayers, however,also reap some of the benefits. If program participants earn higher incomes as a result of participation, they will pay more taxes and be less likely to rely on government transfers,and; if they are less likely to require special education or to repeat grades, they will cost less to educate. This study attempts to calculate the fraction of the total costs to taxpayers that would likely be recovered by government if large-scale versions of two such early childhood programs were to be instituted. We use a simulation model of the US economy to estimate the net effects of investing in early development programs on government budget surpluses. Ideally, governments would undertake all projects for which net social benefits are positive.2 However, if a program which has been shown to have positive net social benefits also pays for a large fraction of its own costs with revenue increases and savings,it then becomes more attractive than other programs that produce the same level of benefits but without the fiscal dividend. More such programs could be undertaken within a limited budget. Thus, we believe that the estimates that we provide here are a useful supplement to the more traditional benefit-cost analysis of these programs. We examine two programs for which long-term, randomized control experimental evaluations have shown notable, statistically significant, effects on ultimate educational attainment. We find that large-scale versions of both programs that produced the same results for participants as the programs tested could be expected to recover a substantial fraction of their costs within 75 years. These programs are the Abecedarian Project and the Mother-Child Home Program. Download the full report in PDF format. Posted 10/23/08 2-1-1 New Hampshire Partnership to receive NH Advantage Award 2-1-1 connects people with social services available through local and state government and nonprofits. Representatives from nonprofits, state, corporate and volunteer partners who created and launched 2-1-1 NH will receive award at BIA annual dinner. A new system in New Hampshire that connects people in need with essential health and human services is the recipient of the Business and Industry Association's 2008 New Hampshire Advantage Award. This award, now in its third year, honors individuals, businesses or organizations for their extraordinary work on a specific initiative, event or project that helps preserve New Hampshire's special character and quality of life. The 2-1-1 New Hampshire Partnership is a collaboration of nonprofit organizations, the state, corporations and volunteers who worked to develop an easy and efficient way to link New Hampshire citizens with essential government and community services. As of June 11, 2008, callers from anywhere in New Hampshire who dial 2-1-1 are connected, at no charge, to an information and referral specialist who can provide them with the information they need to get help. The system is a comprehensive information clearinghouse about local and state government services, as well as charitable programs and initiatives available to New Hampshire citizens. For example, a mother of an autistic child may call 2-1-1 to find out what services are available in her area. Or an elderly man may fall, enter the hospital and be unable to return home. He will need to know what assisted housing options are available in New Hampshire. 2-1-1 can provide this and similar types of information and assistance. 2-1-1 NH is an initiative led by the United Ways of New Hampshire, an organization that represents 10 United Ways across the state. Other partners include the Citizens Bank Foundation, the Endowment for Health, Exeter Hospital, Major General Joseph K. Simeone (ret.), New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, Public Service of New Hampshire and the state. Representatives from the partnering organizations will accept the New Hampshire Advantage Award at the BIA's annual dinner to be held Oct. 29, 5 p.m. at the Center of New Hampshire in Manchester. The event also features presentation of the 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award to former New England Telephone executive Patrick Duffy. Bert Jacobs, co-founder and chief executive optimist of Life is good® Inc., will deliver the keynote address at the dinner. Tickets for the dinner are available by calling 603.224.5388 x116 or visiting acteva.com/go/nhbia. Tables of 10 are $1,000 and individual tickets are $110. Posted 10/16/08 The Lakes Region Financial Stability Partnership's Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program offers free tax help to low- and moderate-income individuals who may qualify for the EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit). In 2004, it was estimated that 17 percent of U.S. taxpayers received the EITC for a total of $40 billion. EITC filers who paid commercial tax preparers to prepare their tax returns spent nearly $3 billion in fees. The local VITA site offers people free tax preparation assistance--allowing them to hold on to more of their EITC dollars rather than paying a third party to prepare their taxes. Many of the partners involved in the local VITA site are also able to provide information on important matters such as building savings, budgeting, or using credit wisely – a true benefit to the whole community. Susan Dagoumas Relationship Manager Commercial Lending Laconia Savings Bank Posted 10/2/08 Community "Lives United" People in the Lakes Region know how to LIVE UNITED. To give, to advocate and to volunteer. That was very evident on Friday, September 19 when over 130 employees exchanged a day at work to go out into the community to complete projects for local non-profits like painting, landscaping, cleaning, and stuffing envelopes. At the end of the day, the results at locations in Alton, Belmont, Bristol, Laconia, Meredith, Moultonborough and Plymouth were overwhelming.  We want to publicly thank all supporters of Lakes Region United Way's 13th Annual Day of Caring. Without this support, 44 projects would not have been completed. Breakfast was made possible by Sacred Heart Hall, with Linda and Tom Hanley coordinating the food and hall setup, and donations from Awakenings Cafe, Coca Cola, Contigiani's Catering, Dunkin' Donuts in Belmont and Union Ave. in Laconia, Hannaford's, Jackson's Star Market, Lakes Region Linens, Pepperidge Farm, Shaw's, Vista Foods and Water Street Cafe. Businesses that provided volunteers for the day included Belknap County Economic Development Council, Citizens Bank, Coldwell Banker, Franklin Savings Bank, Hannaford's, Inns & Spa at Mill Falls, J. Jill, Laconia Savings Bank, Laconia School District, Lakes Region Community Services, Melcher & Prescott Insurance, Meredith Village Savings Bank, MetroCast Cablevision, Northway Bank, Petal Pushers, Pike Industries, Public Service of NH, Sawcat Builders, Taylor Community, T. J. Maxx and Youth Services Bureau. Local businesses also provided raffle prizes for volunteers. The non-profit organizations that coordinated work projects included Alton, Belmont, Laconia and Plymouth Senior Centers, Baby Threads, Belknap Mill, Boys & Girls Club of the Lakes Region, Easter Seals Adult Day Center, Genesis Behavioral Health, Inter-Lakes Day Care Center, Laconia Area Community Land Trust, Lakes Region Child Care Services, Lakes Region Partnership for Public Health, Lakes Region United Way, Mayhew Program, Moultonborough Historical Society, New Beginnings, Ozanam Place, PACT/Veteran's Park, Pemi Youth Center, Prescott Park Audubon Center, and the Salvation Army. A special thanks to Patrick's Pub and Eatery for providing delicious food and a place to gather and share experiences at the end of a busy but rewarding day. Volunteers at this celebration agreed that when you open your heart and lend your muscle, you find your voice. And last, but certainly not least, we want to recognize the 3 Day of Caring Co-Chairs from Meredith Village Savings Bank. Bette Muise, Jane Scattergood and Barbara Gardner did a tremendous job matching all volunteers and their skills to the project requests. So yes, the Lakes Region is a wonderful community... filled with people who understand that when you reach out a hand to one you influence the condition of all. I encourage others who want to learn more to call United Way at 524-6864 or click on www.LRUW.org. Together, UNITED, we can make a long-lasting difference in so many lives. Judi Taggart Campaign Director Lakes Region United Way Posted 9/30/08 |
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Franklin Savings Reports Record United Way Support Lakes Region Linen raises $4000 MVSB raises $85K for United Way   
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