Upload
kaela-cogdill
View
212
Download
0
Tags:
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
“The moral test of government is how it treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the aged; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped.”
-Hubert Humphrey
HistoryPresident Lyndon B. Johnson vowed to carry forward John F.
Kennedy’s “new frontier” which included programs to prevent juvenile delinquency and prevent poverty. He expanded the plans and programs of his predecessor and declared a “War on Poverty” in 1964.
In 1964 Congress endorsed the effectiveness of the Community Action process and President Johnson signed the Economic Opportunity Act, which created a federal Office of Economic Opportunity. This was the first step toward the creation of Community Action Agencies.
At the same time this “War on Poverty” was being declared in Washington, groups were meeting in Windham County to address the needs of people locally.
“The great society is a place where people are more concerned with the quality of their goals than the quantity of their goods.”
Lyndon B. JohnsonMay 22, 1964
Local HistoryThe Greater Willimantic Human Rights Council
was incorporated and became Windham Area Community Action Program on March 25, 1965. WACAP provided opportunities for low-income residents in distressed communities to achieve economic stability.
Around the same time, the Quinebaug Valley Action Committee developed a 10 town service area and used a regional approach to support low-income residents to achieve economic stability.
In 1980 the incorporation was again modified to add Tolland County to the service area.
Partnering to Fight PovertyCommunity Action was a local affair in the
early daysThompson Action CommitteeEagleville Action CommitteePlainfield Action CommitteeKillingly Action CommitteePutnam Action CommitteeCoventry Action Committee
Northeast Action Committee
Community FocusedPuerto Rican Organization Program, Inc.
Quinebaug Valley Senior Citizens Center, Inc.
Putnam-Thompson Community Council
Hockanum Valley Community Council
Windham Regional Community Council
Steppingstones
Generations
Mission Driven“Let’s make Northeastern Connecticut, WACAP,
Inc, 20town area a better place to live for all people.”
(1973)
“Our primary goal is to provide assistance to low-income residents in these (22) communities in an effort to combat the symptoms and causes of poverty.” (1975)
Mission DrivenWACAP is a private, nonprofit corporation which provides assistance to low income residents in the 29 towns of northeastern Connecticut to help them overcome the entire complex of interrelated problems which blocks their escape from poverty and to encourage them to become self-sufficient.
(1985)
Mission Driven (cont.)“To provide opportunities that assist low
income families and distressed communities in achieving economic independence.” (1996)
Mission Driven (cont.)2001“The mission of The ACCESS Agency is to serve
the basic human and economic needs of its customers in Northeastern Connecticut. We will measure our success by: the number of customers who have become more self-sufficient; our ability to enhance relationships with funding sources; the number of collaborative relationships established with other organizations; and the strength of the agency’s Board of Directors.”
Service FocusedThe Early Years:Community ParticipationNeighborhood Youth CorpsSenior Citizen CenterJob DevelopmentHead Start / Child CareRecreation/Summer recreationHousingLegal ServicesVolunteersVISTA
Service Focused (cont.)Through the years:Dial-A-RideWACAP Community Health CenterElderly CompanionCommunity Garden in WillimanticHead Start/Early Head Start/Child CareWelfare to WorkDisplaced HomemakersSewing ClassesCommunity Store in MoosupGEDNew Careers Programs Woodworkers GuildSurplus Food DistributionAccess Transportation ProgramIDAEviction Foreclosure Prevention Program