About United Caring Services

With so many things happening in the world today, I wanted to tell you about some of the good things we are doing to impact people’s lives here at UCS. A few weeks ago, a gentleman that we have helped in the past came into our office for some help getting a document he needed. My Director of Programs, Adam Schaaf, thought the gentleman was still staying with us, but was pleasantly surprised to learn that he had obtained housing! Last summer this gentleman was sleeping outside across from our building. He was hesitant to come into the shelter, but we were able to talk him into getting a bed inside. From there he got the resources to obtain housing.

Not all of our stories have the same ending, but we still make a difference. A few months ago, I was coming back from lunch at Rotary and came upon a gentleman sleeping on our sidewalk. Oftentimes I know the faces of the people I see outside our building, but this was not someone I knew. I came in and said something to our Case Manager who then went outside to speak to the gentleman and got him to come inside to our Diversion Center. Because he had been drinking, he did not think he was allowed in, and tears started rolling down his face when we offered him a bed to sleep in, a shower, clean clothes and a meal. He only stayed with us for a few days, but during his brief stay we treated him like a human being worthy of receiving care.

This past November we expanded our White Flag program to a full 6 months from 11/1/2025 to 4/30/2026, regardless of temperature. This has helped provide our neighbors with a safe place to sleep every night for the past 6 months and kept them off the street. During this time, we have had over 800 unduplicated individuals stay with us in our White Flag program. The expansion of this program has been a great benefit to many of our community partners and we were awarded the Barbara Y. Ferguson Spirit of Social Work Award at the Aurora Supporter Breakfast.

Some of our other accomplishments this past year:

• We have served over 90,000 meals since 8/1/2025
• Our 5 bed Diversion Center has helped 93 individuals since 7/1/2025
• Our Respite programs have helped 41 individuals since 5/1/2025
• Our Men’s Shelter has housed 390 individuals since 5/1/2025
• Our Women’s Shelter has housed 244 individuals since 5/1/2025

While we continue to have several building projects going on, our most basic need right now is to help our unhoused neighbors and provide them the resources they need. Any donation, large or small, is greatly appreciated. It can be restricted to help with any of our programs above, or it can be an unrestricted gift for us to use as needed. Please note any restrictions on your check, otherwise it will be considered unrestricted. If you have any questions about any of our programs, please contact me at [email protected] or call us at 812-422-0297.

Finally, I want to end by letting you know 2026 is our 35th Anniversary! In 1991, a compassionate Sunday school class from Bethel United Church of Christ served meals to those in need, a simple act that sparked the creation of United Caring Services. To commemorate, we plan to have an event on October 3rd at Helms Hall, located on the second floor of the Goodwill offices at Washington Square Mall. More details to come. We look forward to seeing you there!

Ryan Rigg

Ryan Rigg
Executive Director, United Caring Services