Neighbors in Need works to ‘refocus its mission’

When dialing the main phone number for Neighbors in Need, there’s a good chance you’ll hear a recorded voice after the fifth ring telling you the organization is unable to provide any services “until further notice.”

For the past several months the organization, which has provided temporary emergency assistance to residents since 1984, has been in transition.

That’s according to Glenn Burfeind, board president for Neighbors in Need, who said the nonprofit has been working to “refocus its mission” and “realign its priorities” after ending relations with Northwest Montana United Way in late 2019.

In a letter sent out to Neighbors in Need supporters in early February, Burfeind wrote, “We will no longer receive United Way’s fiscal agent services and are now in a period of restructuring as we open a new chapter of ministry.”

Although all of Neighbors in Need’s funds come from local church support and the nonprofit operates independently from United Way, the two organizations had become connected over the years in several ways.

United Way was providing various services, including bookkeeping and accounting, up until United Way’s former Executive Director Sherry Stevens, stepped down from her position amid allegations of mismanagement, among others. Stevens had also served on the board for Neighbors in Need and the organization operated out of the Gateway Community Center in Kalispell — a building in west Kalispell that houses multiple nonprofits and is considered United Way’s capital project.

In addition to becoming fiscally independent from United Way and Stevens, as was indicated in Burfeind’s letter, Stevens has stepped down from her position on the board and Neighbors in Need is now operating out of the First Presbyterian Church in Kalispell. Burfeind, who is also the pastor of the church, said the location is likely temporary, but nothing is set in stone.

Burfeind said moving out from under the United Way umbrella has been a challenge, but is one that has been welcomed and is being tackled head on by the board and others. He said Neighbors in Need has put together a five-member team to navigate the transition successfully and bring clarity to the agency’s priorities.

“We have been working with getting the accounting books back in line and discovering where we stand,” Burfeind said. “We have only shut down temporarily to get refocused. The learning curve has been steep but we are seeing this as a great opportunity to grow.”

According to Burfeind, Neighbors in Need is financially stable and still receives widespread support from more than two dozen congregations in the valley.

“We have always had really solid support throughout the church and through the community,” Burfeind said. “We anticipate we’ll be back to providing our core services within a month or two.”

He said the organization is still accepting donations because the temporary closure was never intended to be permanent.

Burfeind added that although the relationship between United Way and Neighbors in Need has taken several steps back, he and the board are forging a new relationship with United Way’s board members and new executive director.

Neighbors in Need and other organizations had been working for quite some time with United Way to create a drop-in day center for the valley’s homeless and others in need at the Gateway Community Center.

The undertaking has been placed on pause for the time being, but Burfeind hopes to resurface the project sooner than later.

“This is an incredible project that we would all like to see come to fruition,” Burfeind said.

Reporter Kianna Gardner can be reached at 758-4407 or kgardner@dailyinterlake,com