Upcoming Events

Offices Closed

January 20th

All Western Dairyland offices will be closed on Monday, January 20th in observation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

 

Staff and volunteers from local homeless shelters and community organizations recently concluded a semi-annual count of homeless individuals in Eau Claire, Buffalo, Trempealeau and Jackson counties.

The most recent count, conducted July 24th through 31st, found a total of 104 unhoused individuals. Jackson and Eau Claire counties both doubled their numbers from the last count in January 2024 and saw a significant increase in the number of homeless households with children.

The four-county region was canvased starting at 11 pm on July 24th, with volunteers offering access to immediate services, providing information about local programs, and administering a survey developed by the State of Wisconsin Continuum of Care. Everyone included in the final numbers provided a name and/or initials, date of birth, demographic data, and information about recent health and living conditions. These numbers do not include an additional 26 individuals who were observed but did not provide enough information to be counted.

Known nationally as the Point-In-Time count, the activity is intended to provide a statistically reliable, unduplicated count of people experiencing homelessness during a designated period twice each year. The data collected during the count is included in the Annual Homelessness Assessment Report (AHAR) that is provided to the U.S. Congress. Homeless information is also reported to the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development, and is utilized to develop the Housing Inventory Chart for the Balance of State Continuum of Care.

This year's count was conducted by dozens of community members and representatives from the ADRC of Eau Claire County, ADRC of Jackson County, Black River Falls School District, Bolton Refuge House, Catholic Charities, The Center for Veterans Issues, Children's Wisconsin, City of Eau Claire, The Community Table, U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs, Hope Gospel Mission, Ho-Chunk Nation, Eau Claire County DHS, Family Promise of the Chippewa Valley, Great Rivers 211, local law enforcement, Western Dairyland EOC and the Wisconsin Balance of State Continuum of Care.

The next Point-in-Time count is scheduled for January 22, 2025. Anyone interested in participating may contact Western Dairyland EOC at 715-836-7511 or info@wdeoc.org.

The information collected in this survey is confidential between the parties and shall not be disclosed to anybody else. The results will only be shared with the parties on a collective basis and the submission will remain anonymous.

Kristin Walukas, RSVP Director at Western Dairyland EOC, worked with Melissa Youngbauer, Director of the Trempealeau County Aging & Disability Resource Center, and Whitehall Superintendent Mike Beighley to secure a $100,000 Livable Communities Grant from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. The funding is designed to address the issues of social isolation and loneliness and increase overall community livability, with a special focus on providing services to senior citizens.

“Social Isolation is as dangerous to the health of individuals as physical inactivity,” said Walukas. “This project ensures that everyone, including seniors, can benefit from the opportunity to participate in physical fitness activities together.”

Initial funds will be used to purchase exercise equipment and signage, and also provide training for staff. The fitness center will be partially run by volunteers from the Western Dairyland RSVP Program and will be open at no cost to the entire community residing in and around the city of Whitehall.

The facility is tentatively scheduled to open before the end of 2024. For more information about volunteering or donating to the project, contact Western Dairyland by email at info@wdeoc.org or by phone at 715-985-2391.