FamilyMeans
Background and Purpose
Established in 1963, FamilyMeans is a counseling and human service agency with a mission to "strengthen communities by helping families learn, work, and nurture healthy relationships." Services are provided at the organization's central facility in Stillwater, as well as sites in Woodbury, Landfall and Hudson, Wisconsin. In addition, the organization provides Consumer Credit Counseling Services in Rochester, the Twin Cities, and the Eau Claire, Wisconsin, area.
Approximately 14,000 individuals and families are served annually by FamilyMeans through mental health counseling, credit counseling, caregiver support, youth programs, emergency financial assistance, and employee assistance. FamilyMeans is staffed by 55 employees and enlists 135 direct service volunteers.
Current Request
For the past fifteen years, FamilyMeans has run a youth development program in Landfall, MN. This is a community of manufactured homes east of Saint Paul adjacent to I94 where 91% of the children qualify for free or reduced school meals and 20% of families live below the poverty line.
Children from kindergarten through high school have the opportunity to participate in programming every day after school and during the summer. During this time they have seen successes such as 96% of the elementary aged children achieving proficiency on the most recent state tests. In addition, police calls dropped by 54% with juvenile offenses down by over 60%. FamilyMeans now wishes to replicate this program in Cimarron, a similar manufactured home community in Lake Elmo.
For a number of years, community members, representatives from the local United Way, the county and the school district have asked FamilyMeans to bring their youth program to Cimarron. They began serious discussions in early 2007 and then conducted needs assessment meetings with youth and parents. With help from The Saint Paul Foundation, FamilyMeans would hire two part time youth workers and begin this summer with daily programming.