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Our Mission:
Uniting people and resources to improve lives and strengthen communities in southwest Minnesota.
What We Fight For:
United Way fights for:
- Healthy Community
- Youth Opportunity
- Finacial Security
- Community Resiliency
Who We Fight For:
We serve people living in Lincoln, Lyon, Murray, Yellow Medicine, and portions of Cottonwood, Lac qui Parle, Nobles, and Redwood counties in Minnesota.
Our service area includes the following Minnesota school districts: Canby, Dawson/Boyd, Echo, Fulda, Hendricks, Ivanhoe, Lake Benton, Lakeview, Lynd, Marshall, Milroy, Minneota, Murray County Central, Russell-Tyler-Ruthton, Tracy Area, Westbrook-Walnut Grove, and Yellow Medicine East.
For a comprehensive list of towns and zip codes within our service area, please click here.
United Way Internal Initiatives/Programs:
United Way of Southwest Minnesota (UWSWMN) manages several internal programs aimed at ensuring children enter school developmentally on track in literacy, social, emotional, and cognitive skills, and that students, K-12, have the tools needed to succeed and thrive. Each program is available free of charge because the cost of these programs is covered by donations to UWSWMN, through partnerships with other organizations, and/or grant funding. We serve 24 public, private, and charter schools across southwest Minnesota. For a complete listing of those programs currently being offered, click here.
Community Investments:
As noted above, here in southwest Minnesota, we focus on Healthy Community, Youth Opportunity, Financial Security, and Community Resiliency. United Way of Southwest Minnesota is investing its 2025 campaign funds in initiatives, community partner programs, and partnerships that serve over 35,000 local people.
Diversity and Inclusion:
United Way of Southwest Minnesota strives to be a model of diversity and inclusion. Our board, staff, and volunteers represent the diverse faces, cultures, and backgrounds that comprise the communities we serve.
We respect, value, and celebrate the unique attributes, characteristics, and perspectives that make each person who they are. We also believe that bringing diverse individuals together allows us to collectively and more effectively address the issues that face our communities. It is our aim, therefore, that our community partner programs, strategies, and community investments reflect these core values.
United Way of Southwest Minnesota takes a broad view of diversity, going beyond visible differences to affirm all individuals, including the realities, backgrounds, experiences, skills, and perspectives that make each person who they are. Engaging diverse talent and partners yields innovative solutions and the community ownership necessary to address complex issues, enabling us to collectively and effectively create opportunities for a better life for all.
Diversity and inclusion are at the heart of what it means to LIVE UNITED. We value EVERY PERSON in EVERY COMMUNITY!
For more DEI information and resources, click here