United Way, one of the world's best recognized nonprofits, is reliant on donations and volunteers. Daily, the agency provides direct need-based assistance. The United Way, I feel, is in every aspect of Fall River from helping families, the elderly, providing them services, sending them to places where they need services. They are well known in the city and they're a great partner.
0:27At Frank M. Sylvia Elementary School.
0:29Care and concern are evident from the bustle at the back entrance. Employees of Bristol County Savings Bank work alongside school staff to complete food baskets for 45 families.
0:40Gratitude is always a a big theme, especially around this time of the year.
0:44And it's just amazing. Maybe it's from what they've grown up here learning with us, but how much kids show gratitude and feel gratitude and want to help. Bristol County Savings Bank was founded 180 years ago and continuously steps in as need fluctuates.
1:03Fall River is my city and I think we all feel that way who work in the Fall River office. So the Fall River crew always helps out every year.
1:10Discreetly since September, teachers here note which families appear to have fallen on hard times.
1:16Our staff has been here a long time.
1:18I've been here for like the last 10 years and we really know our families.
1:22So um whether it's talking two of the families that we've known or um working with teachers to identify newer students and just out outreach too. And you know the wonderful thing is a lot of people say no I'm all set this year or one year they need it one year they don't the United Way opened a Fall River chapter nearly 100 years ago.
1:45Generationally, the United Way has been there with hope for so many in so many ways, especially coming off of the SNAP pause.
1:53We're looking at um a lot of uncertainty around food access, which is why this initiative is really timely. Um we're also in the process of distributing our annual food grants that we're going to go out anyways um and looking to increase the amount of money that we're able to give to food distribution partners from last year to this year.
2:09[snorts]