United Way of the Midlands has been awarded a grant of $499,714 from the Office of Community Services in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for a Compassion Capital Fund Demonstration Award.

United Way of the Midlands' Partners in Compassion project will help faith and community-based organizations to address homelessness and at-risk youth in Richland, Lexington, Fairfield, Newberry, Calhoun and Orangeburg counties. The program is a collaboration between United Way of the Midlands, the Edisto Council of United Way of the Midlands, Women in Philanthropy, SCANPO, Claflin University and the Central Carolina Community Foundation.

"Our collective experience and knowledge of the strengths and challenges in our region will allow us to efficiently target resources for solving two of our highest priority issues -- ending homelessness and improving the success of at-risk youth," said Mac Bennett, president and CEO of United Way of the Midlands.

Partners in Compassion will initially assist 20 organizations each year to achieve the levels of functioning they desire in five capacity-building areas. As a result, the organizations will be able to increase the number and quality of services provided to the homeless and at-risk youth.

"Our ultimate goal is to expand and sustain the delivery of effective services in the Midlands by increasing the number of organizations that can compete successfully for funding and that employ effective practices," Bennett said. "The long commitment of United Way of the Midlands, more than 80 years, to its partners in the region will continue beyond the grant period, making the benefits to the region sustainable for years to come."

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