Funded Programs

The vision is a day when no one is hungry and everyone in Marathon County has access to nutritious food.

The vision is that every child is supported in their early years for a journey of lifelong success.

The vision is that Marathon County youth faced with risk factors are inspired and equipped to become positive contributing members of the community.

The vision is to eradicate homelessness and to create and sustain affordable housing solutions for Marathon County.

Career Closet is a volunteer run project of Emerging Leaders, providing donated clothing to help people have suitable clothing for their job interviews.

Rebecca’s Closet is a volunteer run project of Women United, working exclusively with local agencies and schools to provide infant and children’s items for their client families in need.

Ready to Read is a project that distributes free books to children age 5 and under to help them develop and parents to understand the importance of reading to their young children. Over 10,000 books are distributed annually through program partners.

United Way’s 211 provides free, confidential community service information and referrals 24 hours/day, 7 days/week, an online searchable database, and publishes resource directories and guides.

RSVP is a specialized volunteer group, where members who are 55+ receive personal volunteer placement, connections with each other and the community.

Volunteer Connection’s purpose is to connect volunteers and organizations with opportunities to serve. They lead projects including Bundles of Joy and Make a Difference Day and offer web site connections to volunteering 24/7.

Good Start Grants provides financial assistance for eligible families in Marathon County to ensure they have access to quality, affordable child care.

Group-Based Parent Education seeks to provide information, education and resources to all parents throughout Marathon County. Services include Play and Learn, Ask The Experts, LEAP, and Family Matters.

LENA Start is a parent group model that uses “talk pedometer” technology to support interventions that improve early language exposure. Parents are empowered to improve the cognitive, social, and emotional health of their children through talk.

Start Right provides evidence-based home visiting (i.e. parent education, coaching, resource connection) to families of children birth to 5. Eligible families have risk factors such as substance use, mental illness, domestic violence and poverty.

Triple P, Positive Parenting Program, is a parenting and family support system designed to prevent as well as treat behavioral and emotional problems in children and teenagers.

These programs enable members to become proficient in basic educational disciplines, apply learning to everyday situations, become global citizens and embrace technology to achieve success in a career.

Reaching Out programs are brought directly to girls, eliminating financial, cultural, language and transportation barriers. They provide an introduction to Girl Scouts, enabling girls to develop valuable life skills and healthy relationships.

Scouting Outreach serves at-risk youth in Marathon County through caring adult mentors, outdoor adventures and quality programs. Target youth living at/below 200% of the FPL, children with physical and/or mental disabilities and children in single-parent households.

Spencer Kids Group has been providing a safe, fun and supervised area for youth for nearly 23 years. SHIP, youth center and summer rec are the programs that we run. Youth Center is open year round for students to attend.

BBBSNCW will match children between the ages of 6 and 18 with a mentor they meet with on a weekly basis. Matches can meet either in our School Based Program or in our Community Based Program. All matches are supported monthly by BBBSNCW Staff.

ARCW will provide high-quality meats, fresh fruits/vegetables, frozen food, canned goods, cleaning products/personal care items, and nutrition education to HIV positive clients from the northern public health region, which includes Marathon County.

Beyond Shelter provides housing for chronically homeless men in the Wausau area. The current housing consists of private bedrooms with shared living spaces of kitchen, dining, living, meeting, and bathrooms. Ongoing case management is provided.

The Emergency Food Assistance Fund exists to eliminate hunger in our community. The goal is to improve food security for families in Marathon County.

EHAF intends to prevent and reduce homelessness through collaborative partnerships. The goal is to strengthen families through financial stability and help people become more self-sufficient.

Salvation Army’s Lunch Program provides individuals with a hot nutritious meal six days a week. This is to ensure that individuals may make his/her limited income stretch to pay for other needed things such as rent, prescriptions, and other bills.

Salvation Army’s Transitional Living Center provides a temporary place for individuals and families that have no other place to stay due to being homeless. They also provide food as well as case management to help clients be able to transition into more stable housing.

Provides on-going emotional support for victims of abuse, emergency shelter, safety planning, assistance with transitioning into safe homes, support groups, court accompaniment, acting as liaison with landlords, financial assistance and other needs.

The Wausau Warming Center provides a safe clean place for adult men and women to sleep overnight, clean their clothing, and eat while ensuring the guests’ personal dignity, respect, and safely. The center is open from Nov. 1 to Apr. 30 annually.

The POH program provides individualized services to families with children who desire to break the cycle of crisis. Helping families overcome various challenges and lack of education can lead families toward increased stability and self-sufficiency.

Project Step Up works with low-income families to help them achieve greater financial stability and independence. Families commit to the program for one year.

The Conference provides high-quality, unbiased, and affordable education on many financial literacy topics to adults and children from area low- and moderate-income households. We hold the Conference at Northcentral Technical College each February.

Wheels to Work provides transportation assistance to individuals living or working in Marathon County. Required financial literacy classes allow us to assist with both transportation needs as well as increase skills to improve financial stability.

Licensed therapists work with children (from toddlers through adolescents) and families to address problems and strengthen family ties. Therapists assist with issues like depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, anger, abuse, parent-child conflicts, etc.

This program provides specialized mental health therapy to community members ages 3 years and up who have been traumatized during childhood by sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect or by witnessing domestic violence.

Community Corner Clubhouse addresses community need by providing accessible, low cost services that address mental health and AODA issues across the life span (18 years+).

This program provides on-site mental health counseling in 11 school districts within Marathon County to reduce barriers to accessing mental health services, and provide school staff, students and parents education about mental health.

The Mental Health Counseling program provides mental health outpatient psychotherapy to children, teens and adults and assists people with navigating the difficulties of daily life stressors for community members who are uninsured or underinsured.

The Providers and Teens Communicating for Health (PATCH) Program is a youth-driven program working to ensure all young people are able to receive high-quality, youth-friendly health care services in their community with an emphasis on mental health.

Hope House is a voluntary, time limited -term, residential program for Clubhouse members experiencing psychiatric illness and/or psychological distress not requiring hospitalization who also have recovery needs.

This program provides individual and family therapy for community members battling an addiction to alcohol or other substances and their family members.

The CHOICES Program provides comprehensive education and therapy groups for adolescents who are diagnosed as substance abuse dependant or are at risk to abuse alcohol/drugs.

Provides support and advocacy for victims of domestic abuse including safe shelter, on-going emotional support, support groups, support for children who witness abuse, support groups, legal advocacy, criminal justice support and other needed services.

Weekly meetings with victims/survivors of domestic violence & sexual assault at The Women’s Community. Representation of victims/survivors who meet WJ’s financial criteria in cases such as divorce, custody, domestic abuse restraining orders, etc.

The Marathon County Visitation Center provides visitation and exchanges for families who have experienced violence. Our services are part of a collaborative community effort to provide victims and their children with safety and support.

Provides on-going support and advocacy to adult/child victims of sexual assault/abuse: one on one emotional support, support groups, criminal justice support, supporting during evidence collection, other support as requested and prevention education.

The mentoring program is for men who need more immediate guidance and support on a variety of basic living skills. The Aftercare program is an ongoing support group for men who have successfully completed the SAFE program.

The SAFE program (Stopping Abuse For Everyone), is a certified domestic abuse treatment program for adults who have been physically and/or emotionally abusive to their intimate partner.

Mobile Meals delivers hot, nutritious meals prepared by Aspirus hospital to the elderly, convalescing, chronically ill, and disabled members of our community. By providing these clients with a nutritious meal, it allows them to stay in their homes.

Faith in Action of Marathon County provides supportive services, at NO CHARGE, to Marathon County seniors (60 and over), regardless of income, religious belief, or ethnic background to help them stay safely and independently in their homes.