By Stephanie Faudoa
Contributing Writer
GREEN BAY – The Aspirus New Grad Apprentice (NGA) program is geared towards new nurses who are seeking a hospital position, but may be unsure of where they want to practice.
The organization is no longer a part of Valley Packaging Industries, or VPI.
CAP Services is a private non-profit community action agency that promotes social and economic justice.
With the change, Community 2000 will be able to offer resources in Outagamie County and the greater Seymour area, but will still offer the same services.
Juli Meulemans, a founder and current Community 2000 coordinator, has been working for Community 2000 for over 20 years.
“Our services here at Seymour are not going to change at all. Everything is still the same as far as us working with the Seymour Shiocton School District,” she said. “We will help anyone outside of our area. We are still going to provide emergency food; we are still going to have clothing, bedding, and kitchen items here for people. It is offered at no charge for families that are eligible. We go off a 200% poverty level, and if the families in our area made that much, they wouldn’t need the help.”
Community 2000 helps about 2,000 families a year on average.
Meulemans adds, “Already this year, we have helped over 90 families since the first of the year.”
The community of Seymour and Shiocton plays a significant role in Community 2000 due to all of the donations that they provide to this organization.
“Things haven’t been normal since COVID. Things changed so much for families, people in new situations, and we are seeing a lot of new families that are looking for help now that haven’t had to ask for help before. We are really blessed to be here in our community. All of the stuff, clothes, and bedding that is donated is from the people we work with and from the people in our school districts,” explained Meulemans
When it comes to Community 2000 being a part of CAP Services, they want to ensure that the community’s voices are heard and that they are receiving services that are important and pertain to their community.
“[CAP services] wants to make sure that the community has a buy-in for us to be here. It is not just a place for donations, but people can come here and meet with a disability specialist, or the elderly benefit specialist, and they want to know what kind of programs they want here. And [CAP services] wants to know what the community really wants to have in order for us to be here,” Meulemans said.
Meulemans said that she is excited about working with CAP services.
“At first, it was like, what is this community going to do if this [Community 2000] isn’t going to be here anymore? And with United Way, CAP, and VPI all working together, they found a way to make it work. There have been a lot of good things happening since then. I think it is important to know that VPI helped build this program and build the foundation that this program is, and with CAP, we are going to continue that growth in the community.”
Community 2000 will host a fundraiser and golf outing at Crystal Spring Golf Course on Thursday, June 1 starting at 8 a.m.
For more information, contact [email protected].