SIDE BY SIDE INC.
Lake Geneva, WI
Website | Phone: (262) 581-5927
Mission: Volunteers responding to neighbors in need of compassion, hope, community resources and financial assistance. Residents who live in the Badger High School District who do not have enough money to cover their rent/mortgage, utility bills and prescription medications can seek assistance from Side by Side once a year. We listen to their story to provide them not only with the financial portion of their request, but to find additional ways to assist through other organizations we can direct them to, such as clothing, food and job leads. Offering words of encouragement that they can make it through this rough patch of life’s journey can be just as impactful as our financial help.
Community Resources: In 2021 Side by Side distributed $46,000 to landlords and utility companies to cover overdue expenses for our clients. Volunteers call each landlord or utility company before a check is written to confirm the past due bill. Landlords, in particular, are so appreciative of the support from Side by Side, particularly during the pandemic when so many tenants have fallen behind on their rent. In December, 2020, for instance, a single mother came to Side by Side in need of rent, and shared that she did not have any extra money for Christmas gifts and that even food was going to be hard to provide. Using Side by Side’s network of resources, we were able to obtain a wallet that was filled with several gift cards to local stores. This is very indicative of how we help families. Working “side by side” with our community, we are able to match resources with people in need of help.
We have created a “quicklist” of resources that is requested and utilized by many local organizations and churches to assist those that come to them for help. It provides phone numbers for a variety of resources to contact for many categories of need that they many have.
Most Urgent Need: We are hoping to increase the amount of money that we can provide to each family that comes to us. We want to be prepared for this new phase of the pandemic where families who are “living on the edge” are trying to recover from lost revenue and hardships over the past 2 years.