12th annual Weld Project Connect draws hundreds to Greeley for assistance with local resources, services - Greeley Tribune

“Community helping community” was the mantra of the time arsenic an service of organizers and volunteers flooded the Island Grove lawsuit halfway buildings connected Thursday for the 12th yearly Weld Project Connect astatine Island Grove Regional Park.

The lawsuit brings a assortment of work providers specified arsenic Social Security, North Range Behavioral Health, the Weld County Clerk and Recorder’s Office and the Rodarte Center to 1 location, offering residents of Weld County a one-stop-shop of resources.

“It’s conscionable unthinkable to spot each of the services successful 1 place. We’ve got 67 work providers present today,” Event Chairman and Greeley City Councilman Tommy Butler said. “Folks tin travel successful and get a batch of services successful 1 spot wherever it would instrumentality them days to if they did it autarkic of us.”

Over the past 12 years, the lawsuit has served much than 10,000 people, Butler added.

The 12th yearly Weld Connect Project offers assemblage members of Weld County the accidental to get assistance for a assortment of needs similar veterans benefits, Medicare and Medicaid enrollment, dental procedures, favored licensing and overmuch more. (Tamara Markard/Staff Reporter)

The free, one-day lawsuit ran from noon to the recently extended clip of 6:30 p.m. and was unfastened to each ages of residents and assemblage members successful Weld County.

Attendees began their travel with luncheon catered by Zoe’s Café and Events, wherever they were paired up with a navigator. After discussing what their needs were, attendees and their navigators headed crossed the courtyard to the services country wherever the navigators escorted attendees to the areas they were funny in.

From escaped haircuts and dental services to favored licensing and lodging assistance, and overmuch more, organizations, businesses and work providers eagerly greeted attendees and stepped up to help.

Volunteer navigators invited attendees to the 12th yearly Weld Project Connect that took spot connected Thursday astatine the Island Grove Regional Park lawsuit centers successful Greeley. (Tamara Markard/Staff Reporter)

Organizers added immoderate caller services to this year’s lawsuit with DMV2GO offering ID cards, Gracefully Etched Photography snapping household photos and Phil’s Pro Auto Service providing car and motortruck checkups for attendees, unpaid Kevin McFarling said.

“We are ever trying to adhd caller services each year,” McFarling said.

Dr. Melisa Benard Valle, who is studying astatine the University of Northern Colorado connected a Fulbright Scholarship, volunteered to beryllium a navigator astatine the 12th yearly Weld Connect Project connected Thursday astatine the Island Grove Regional Park lawsuit center. (Tamara Markard/Staff Reporter)

The lawsuit is facilitated by the United Way of Weld County with enactment from Weld County, the metropolis of Greeley, JBS, The Weld Trust, Big 97.9, Walgreens, IBMC College and High Plains Library District.

Each year, a chairperson and steering committee enactment unneurotic to stitchery work providers, organizations and businesses arsenic good arsenic enlistee volunteers.

The event’s steering committee is comprised of Perry Buck, Les Cogswell, Christine Cunningham, Dan Dennie, Jeff Harbert, Kaye Holman, Scott James, Rick Jenkins, Kim Joiner, Mike Ketterling, Margie Martinez, Nicole Quinn, Lyle Smith-Graybeal, Jeannine Truswell and Justin Watada.

Weld County Commissioner Perry Buck volition beryllium the chairwoman of the 2023 event.

The yearly Weld Project Connect lawsuit draws much than 600 Weld County assemblage members to Greeley to larn astir a assortment of section resources, get assistance with assorted programs and more. (Tamara Markard/Staff Reporter)

“There’s a beauteous bully exemplary and program of what needs to hap each twelvemonth and the seat conscionable leads that,” Watada said. “What’s antithetic astir this lawsuit compared to different events is that providers person to beryllium a service. You can’t beryllium present giving retired promotional things to spell to your store.  With the bulk of each the providers, you are getting immoderate benignant of service. The absorption is connected the impermanent to get one-on-one help.”

Melisa Benard Valle, a Fulbright student from Mexico studying astatine the University of Northern Colorado, volunteered to service arsenic a bilingual navigator for the day. As a first-time volunteer, Bernard Valle wasn’t definite what to expect.

“I thought it was a large inaugural due to the fact that it is specifically designed to assistance radical that are successful a assortment of situations. It’s very, precise divers with the assistance you tin get,” Bernard Valle said. “Now that I americium here, I americium amazed astatine the level of enactment and magnitude of radical here. It’s truly interesting, and everyone is truly into it. It’s amazing.”

Each year, the Weld Project Connect lawsuit gathers a assortment of businesses, organizations and services unneurotic successful 1 spot to connection resources and assistance to assemblage members successful Weld County. (Tamara Markard/Staff Reporter)

After witnessing the programme first-hand, Bernard Valle thinks the exemplary would beryllium “extremely useful” successful communities crossed the U.S. and astir the world.

“I’ve seen akin initiatives, but I’ve ne'er seen 1 this organized astatine this level,” she said. “I deliberation it would beryllium thing large to commencement implicit determination (in Mexico). A bigger inaugural and unpaid basal would beryllium astonishing retired there.”

A caller work this twelvemonth astatine the Weld Project Connect was the DMV booth that allowed attendees to get an ID card. (Tamara Markard/Staff Reporter)

Businesses, organizations and work providers, arsenic good arsenic assemblage members funny successful volunteering with the 2023 lawsuit are encouraged to interaction Project Manager Margie Martinez with the United Way of Weld County astatine (970) 353-4300 oregon astatine Margie@unitedway-weld.org.

To larn more, spell to https://bit.ly/3SoXgKK.