Local community non-profit, Engage Winona, has launched the mother of all resource pages, with links to everything from closures and takeout food businesses to volunteer forms and in-need forms. Transportation, child care resources, government links and so much more – it’s all here.
The group has also created two separate Facebook groups aimed at helping Winonans stay informed, as well as assisting each other during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first group, named Winona COVID-19 Community Info Hub, describes itself as, “a home for the Winona (Minnesota) community to share locally relevant news, information and updates on COVID-19 from well-established, credible sources.”
The group enlists local volunteers as moderators, “To help create and maintain a trusted, supportive local resource.” On the page questions can be asked by people on subjects ranging from where to find common necessities that are in short supply, to how to interpret stay at home orders from the State of Minnesota, and much more. The moderators also share pertinent information that can help the community be best prepared for the crisis.
The page attempts to operate as a non-partisan safe space, setting up rules such as: “share credible sources only”, “promote calm not drama”, “be kind and courteous”, “no hate speech or bullying”, “no politics”, and “no selling or self-promotion”. There is a search function within the page to find answers to questions that may have been already asked in the forum.
Currently the COVID-19 Community Info Hub has over 5,600 members.
The second group, named Winona Neighbors Helping Neighbors, “is a place for Winonans to connect with and support one another during the COVID-19 situation and beyond.”
Again, the page is moderated, and encourages people to ask for assistance, or to offer help to those in need in the community. It lists 3 ways to use the page: “1. ASKS: If you, or someone you know, especially the less tech-connected among us, has individual or family needs (food, delivery, household supplies, chores, etc.)… 2. OFFERS: If you would like to volunteer to help your neighbors… 3. IDEAS: Share tips and inspiration for how to keep spirits up, stay connected, and hopeful.”
There is a request form for those in need of help located here
There is also a sign up sheet for those willing to volunteer to help their neighbors here
The Winona Neighbors Helping Neighbors group has over 1,400 members
About Engage Winona
Engage Winona began as a community-wide conversation project in 2016 to envision Winona’s future by bringing the full community to the table. The success of that project led to innumerable ideas and projects to improve Winona – including the idea to create an independent organization to help the community get that good work done. Engage Winona became that organization in early 2017. Their primary programs vary widely depending on community need.
Engage Winona’s vision is of a community where everyone feels welcomed, heard and connected; is empowered to see themselves as leaders and changemakers; and has the resources to create change that supports a resilient, inclusive community.
They accomplish this by creating the conditions, events and networks for all residents to have the capacity to imagine and the ability to create a collective, shared vision of Winona’s future.
The organization bring folks together to imagine transformative projects and bold ideas for the community’s future, then provides the training, support and resources to help folks turn those ideas into reality. All of Engage Winona’s conversations, programs, workshops and events are free and available to all, with a special focus on serving traditionally unheard and underserved populations.
Visit Engage Winona’s website here
Donate to Engage Winona’s work here