Message from our CEO

Sometimes it may seem like tough times dont know when to stop. Our region is one of the hardest hit in the entire nation indeed many analysts believe the economic downturn started in our own backyard. But tough times are the reason for charities. United Way is the engine that supports many of our most vital agencies. Without these organizations, this recession would much more resemble the pictures we have all seen of the Great Depression, with bread lines stretching around city blocks, soup kitchens filled with broken people and the look of hopelessness etched into the faces of so many.


Before the bad news became apparent, back in August of 2008, we set an aggressive goal for our campaign. Little did we know how the bottom was going to fall out of the economy. Many United Ways across the country have suffered significant losses as a result of reduced giving. We can be proud here that we have at least managed an essentially flat campaign, primarily because of the increased generosity of public sector employees and the energetic use of best practices.


An unfortunate result of a flat campaign that includes such a dramatic rise in public sector contributions means there must have been a proportional drop in the funds raised in the general campaign resulting in a lessening of the availability of allocable funds. The public sector campaigns are contracted with the various local governments. These campaigns are designation only and we have no say over how those monies are designated. Consequently, donors to the public sector campaigns may give to practically any nonprofit organization they wish to, even if that organization resides out of state. This means that when the portion of donations that are designated rises in comparison to the undesignated, there simply are fewer dollars that are available to be allocated to our agencies.


Despite what is comparatively a good year (compared to other United Ways across the country) it is not good enough. Our need is increasing and our population continues to grow. Therefore, we are already concentrating on how we can help this United Way to begin to reach its potential. This means getting more resources by getting more companies and individuals to participate, by making sure that donors can see the results of their donations and that our systems and finances, and those of our partner agencies, are transparent and open.


We are making important strides in reducing the amount of paperwork our agencies have to file with us while maintaining supportive oversight of how they utilize allocations. We are providing financial literacy in the workplace. We are providing regional and county leadership among nonprofits in cooperating in our responses to disaster. In the coming year, we hope to make contributions to our regions health needs and to addressing our drop out rates all with fewer available dollars due to rising designations and declines in our general campaign.


There is much to do and we need to do it. Our supporters are needed to stand fast with us and to dig deeper if at all possible. Those who sit on the sidelines need to be encouraged to get into the game. The tasks we face are steep and sometimes daunting, but we are determined to meet these challenges and deliver to our donors and to our community the service they expect and deserve. With your help, and by LIVING UNITED, we can make it happen.