March 25, 1965-Present

“The moral test of government is how it treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the aged; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped.” -Hubert Humphrey

History President Lyndon B. Johnson vowed to carry forward John F. Kennedy’s “new frontier” which included programs to prevent juvenile delinquency and prevent poverty. He expanded the plans and programs of his predecessor and declared a “War on Poverty” in In 1964 Congress endorsed the effectiveness of the Community Action process and President Johnson signed the Economic Opportunity Act, which created a federal Office of Economic Opportunity. This was the first step toward the creation of Community Action Agencies. At the same time this “War on Poverty” was being declared in Washington, groups were meeting in Windham County to address the needs of people locally.

“The great society is a place where people are more concerned with the quality of their goals than the quantity of their goods.” Lyndon B. Johnson May 22, 1964

Local History The Greater Willimantic Human Rights Council was incorporated and became Windham Area Community Action Program on March 25, WACAP provided opportunities for low-income residents in distressed communities to achieve economic stability. Around the same time, the Quinebaug Valley Action Committee developed a 10 town service area and used a regional approach to support low-income residents to achieve economic stability. In 1980 the incorporation was again modified to add Tolland County to the service area.

The Early Years Newspaper clipping from 1976 regarding a job training program.

Partnering to Fight Poverty Community Action was a local affair in the early days  Thompson Action Committee  Eagleville Action Committee  Plainfield Action Committee  Killingly Action Committee  Putnam Action Committee  Coventry Action Committee Northeast Action Committee

Community Focused Puerto Rican Organization Program, Inc. Quinebaug Valley Senior Citizens Center, Inc. Putnam-Thompson Community Council Hockanum Valley Community Council Windham Regional Community Council Steppingstones Generations

WACAP Logo

Mission Driven “Let’s make Northeastern Connecticut, WACAP, Inc, 20 town area a better place to live for all people.” (1973) “Our primary goal is to provide assistance to low-income residents in these (22) communities in an effort to combat the symptoms and causes of poverty.” (1975)

Mission Driven WACAP is a private, nonprofit corporation which provides assistance to low income residents in the 29 towns of northeastern Connecticut to help them overcome the entire complex of interrelated problems which blocks their escape from poverty and to encourage them to become self-sufficient. (1985)

ACCESS Logo Name change and logo came into existence in 1994.

Mission Driven (cont.) “To provide opportunities that assist low income families and distressed communities in achieving economic independence.” (1996)

Mission Driven (cont.) 2001 “The mission of The ACCESS Agency is to serve the basic human and economic needs of its customers in Northeastern Connecticut. We will measure our success by: the number of customers who have become more self-sufficient; our ability to enhance relationships with funding sources; the number of collaborative relationships established with other organizations; and the strength of the agency’s Board of Directors.”

The Faces We Remember…

2007

Service Focused The Early Years: Community Participation Neighborhood Youth Corps Senior Citizen Center Job Development Head Start / Child Care Recreation/Summer recreation Housing Legal Services Volunteers VISTA

Service Focused (cont.) Through the years: Dial-A-Ride WACAP Community Health Center Elderly Companion Community Garden in Willimantic Head Start/Early Head Start/Child Care Welfare to Work Displaced Homemakers Sewing Classes Community Store in Moosup GED New Careers Programs Woodworkers Guild Surplus Food Distribution Access Transportation Program IDA Eviction Foreclosure Prevention Program

Service Focus 2015:

THANK YOU TO ALL STAFF – PAST AND PRESENT Your contributions to Access and our customers are always appreciated.