UMOS is offering food, rental and mortgage assistance and health services for low-income residents with $2.1 million in funding that the state previously allocated to the Social Development Commission.
“UMOS and its partners are stepping in to ensure services are available countywide, and we are committed to serving residents in need,” UMOS President and CEO José Martinez said in a news release.
SDC laid off employees and ceased operations in April 2024, because of financial and other challenges. Since then, it has not provided its regular services or programs, such as tax assistance, career services, senior companionship and child care center food distribution.
The Wisconsin Department of Children and Families removed SDC’s community action agency status, which ended its access to block-grant funding, in November 2025. An office of the federal government upheld the state’s decision to remove SDC’s community-action status in December.
The Department of Children and Families contracted UMOS, a South Side nonprofit that operates in multiple states and also provides services statewide, to get anti-poverty services up and running on an interim basis with the remaining $2.1 million of Community Services Block Grant funding for Milwaukee County in 2025.
Those funds are set to expire at the end of September, according to the department.
UMOS is leveraging its existing organizational infrastructure and resources to support the implementation of the funded services and plans to partner with community-based organizations to make the services more accessible, said Marjorie Rivera-Torres, the nonprofit’s interim vice president of social services.
Food services
UMOS is running block-grant-funded food insecurity programming through its existing food pantry, said Gina Paige, communications director for the Department of Children and Families.
That includes purchasing food and strengthening distribution efforts across Milwaukee County, Rivera-Torres said.
Residents can access food pantry distribution on Monday through Friday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at UMOS, 2701 S. Chase Ave., in the back of Suite A behind the Career and Family Success Center.
The pantry has food items for breakfast, lunch and dinner meals, diapers, baby food, pet food and other household supplies.
UMOS plans to host pop-up food pantries with partner organizations around Milwaukee to make the food resources more accessible, according to Rivera-Torres.
Milwaukee Diaper Mission, Wellpoint Care Network and UMOS are hosting a diaper and food pantry pop-up and resource fair at 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 15, at Wellpoint Care Network, 8901 W. Capitol Drive.
Housing and health services
UMOS is scheduling intake appointments for housing and health services funded by the grant, Paige said.
“Services are currently active and will continue to expand as outreach efforts and partnerships are finalized,” Rivera-Torres said.
UMOS is taking applications for a rental and mortgage assistance program, which will provide financial support to households experiencing housing instability.
Residents can also apply for physical and mental health support resources available through approved service providers, Rivera-Torres said.
UMOS plans to offer free therapy to individuals and families in need by the end of January, she said.
How to apply?
Residents may apply for these services by calling UMOS at 414-389-6207 or visiting in person at 2701 S. Chase Ave. and working with a resource navigator. A digital intake option will also be available soon.
Under the funding income guidelines, households can qualify for support if their income is at or below 125% of the federal poverty level.
A formal application is not always required for food distribution, Rivera-Torres said.
Meredith Melland is the neighborhoods reporter for the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and a corps member of Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Report for America plays no role in editorial decisions in the NNS newsroom.
Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.
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