United Way of Snohomish County kicks off its annual campaign on Wednesday with the goal of raising $7.4 million for the Local Community Fund for vital human services in Snohomish County.
To me, United Way demonstrates just how caring and how powerful our community is when we all work together, whether as committed volunteers, supportive partners or generous donors.
It’s particularly appropriate that United Way’s fundraising drive begins with the Spirit of Snohomish County Breakfast to honor our community’s top volunteers. The kick-off breakfast is followed by Days of Caring on Sept. 28 and 29, when volunteers all over the county will literally pitch in to help others.
As 2007 campaign chair, it’s my job to ask each of us to pitch in this time with a donation to help United Way create real, lasting change in people’s lives.
That’s why United Way’s Local Community Fund is so important, and why this year’s campaign goal focuses on the portion of contributions that go to the fund. Every investment United Way of Snohomish County makes in our community comes from the Local Community Fund, including:
n Grants to 93 local nonprofit programs some well-known, others less so, but all providing services that people count on every day;
n support for initiatives like the 2-1-1 information line and the Volunteer Center, and
n United Way’s ongoing work of finding solutions to the underlying causes of problems like hunger and homelessness.
When I heard United Way volunteers talk about funding grants this year, the long hours they put in and the tough decisions they faced, I gained a new respect for how hard United Way works at investing my money where it will do the most good for the most people. That’s just one example of how United Way volunteers and professional staff do the homework and measure results. Together, their work and our contributions are making an impact.
Visit United Way’s Web site at www.uwsc.org and find out how your donation makes an impact every day. Here are just a few results you helped achieve:
n More than 7,000 preschoolers benefited from quality early learning programs to help them start school ready to learn and succeed.
n 8,035 homeless people had emergency shelter.
n 4,714 elderly and disabled people received medical and mental-health care.
n 100,807 individuals found a meal at a food bank instead of going hungry.
Those are powerful results for those who need our help. The United Way campaign also has a powerful effect on those who give.
I am always impressed with how our own campaign motivates employees at Frontier Bank. Payroll deduction makes it easy to give and to give more generously. Employees have fun, build teamwork and feel good about the difference they are making. I know that what I see at Frontier Bank is also happening at 650 other workplaces that hold annual campaigns, and in the homes and hearts of those who donate directly to United Way by check, credit card or online.
This is a community that steps up when there’s a need. Our $7.4 million goal is ambitious: we can’t make it without you. This year, I’m not only asking you to step up, I’m asking you to “One Up.” Consider giving one percent or one hour’s pay per paycheck to your community. Already giving to the Local Community Fund? Thank you, and please consider increasing your donation by one dollar per paycheck.
Of course, whether you give and where is your choice. Most donors, when they see how their contribution is invested and the results, choose the Local Community Fund. It speaks to a simple yet profound truth: together, we can accomplish more than we can alone. That’s the United Way of doing what matters for our kids, our families and our community.
John Dickson is the 2007 campaign chair for United Way of Snohomish County and CEO of Frontier Bank.
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