“When I see a youth that has potential, I let them know. Even if they have struggles or challenges, I tell them, ‘You have potential and this is just a tough time right now that you are going to have to break through.’” – Mayela Gutknecht, Youth Specialist, MatchBridge From the CBS-5’s news story, “Service [...]
T'is the Season for a Job
November 3, 2009 By
This month, United Way community project MatchBridge kicks off its second annual Seasonal Job Fair series. Top retailers – including Best Buy, TJ Maxx, Gap, Old Navy, and several others – will partner with MatchBridge to meet their hiring needs for the holiday season. MatchBridge members, who are youth between the ages of 16 and [...]
It's More Than Just Taxes
September 14, 2009 By
For the past three years Corrin Buchanan has been doing taxes in San Francisco’s Women’s Building as part of the Earn It! Keep It! Save It! coalition. This year, along with the help of her volunteers, the tax site at the Women’s Building was able to file a record number of taxes. More importantly they [...]
MatchBridge Interns Receive Valuable Mentoring
August 26, 2009 By
Real Estate 4 Tomorrow’s Adults is a partnership between MatchBridge, United Way of the Bay Area, and the San Francisco Real Estate sector to provide paid internship opportunities to young men and women interested in real estate careers. This summer, 26 interns worked at various San Francisco property and real estate companies. The young people [...]
It Starts with a Dream
August 25, 2009 By
Bernina left Peru in 2001 as a refugee, fleeing the terror of the Shining Path extremist guerillas, as well as a violent marriage. After arriving in California, she worked two jobs, fighting her way out of poverty, when she met a new man. Unfortunately, she again became a victim of domestic violence. Bernina’s luck changed [...]
Welfare Mom Lands Her Dream Job
August 20, 2009 By
A teen mother at 17, Johnnetta struggled to stay in school while raising her son and taking care of her ill mother. For several years, she survived by supporting herself and her family on welfare. Johnnetta had dreams of working to support her family and making a difference in her community. Fortunately, she found Opportunity Junction, [...]
Creating Business Opportunities in Oakland
August 18, 2009 By
Helping ordinary people build new businesses is critical to our economic recovery, and one of the many goals of United Way’s Road to Recovery Campaign. At United Way’s SparkPoint Oakland Center, we are doing exactly that - working with low-income individuals and their families to address financial-stability issues and helping them pursue dreams of owning their own businesses. SparkPoint [...]
Meet the experts: Sharon Robinson, SparkPoint Oakland Coordinator
July 29, 2009 By
Sharon works for United Way as the site coordinator for SparkPoint Oakland Center, an innovative center that works with low-income individuals and their families to address financial-stability issues in a holistic way. The SparkPoint Oakland Center is a joint initiative of United Way of the Bay Area and the City of Oakland. United Way: What is United Way’s [...]
Taking Control of Your Own Future
July 23, 2009 By
Erin felt stifled in her job at Goodwill’s Fillmore Street store in San Francisco. She didn’t see any way to make things better, “unless I took the step to become manager—and that was too scary.” So she resigned herself to a job that didn’t challenge her. This is a common situation that many low-wage workers [...]
From Hopeless to Hopeful
June 10, 2009 By
2-1-1 has seen an increase in calls – especially in requests for basic needs like food, employment, or shelter. When the economy turned, so did the luck of a single father who lost his construction job. He was falling behind on his utility bills and mortgage payments. He was worried about whether he could feed [...]
