United Way campaign hits 50 percent of goal

Major milestone hit in just three weeks; volunteers, donations still needed

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The United Way of Howard and Tipton Counties has returned to full function, and the community quickly embraced it. Three weeks ago, the organization announced its goal to raise $1.2 million for nonprofit programming in the community in 2024. Already, the campaign is halfway home.

United Way Howard-Tipton CEO Dana Neer announced that the campaign surpassed the 50-percent mark in the first week of December. The campaign launched on Nov. 15, just three weeks prior.

“We have been so well received; really, it has been great,” said Neer. “And there are so many people we still want to reach out to. We want everyone involved with United Way again. We’re halfway there. That’s big!”

United Way 2023 Campaign Chair Paul Wyman is similarly excited about the early and enthusiastic response from the community.

“I just could not be more thrilled,” said Wyman. “It is great to see people excited about the United Way and all it does. The enthusiasm, not only from the community, but from our staff at United Way. is just fantastic.

“This is really sending a message. There are going to be a lot of nonprofits, and therefore a lot of people, positively impacted by these dollars in 2024.”

Allie Tomlinson, United Way’s Campaign Director, said that most of the donations to date have come from Howard County, but she wants to make sure Tipton County knows the organization is there for them, too.

“We really want to make sure that we're focusing on Tipton,” said Tomlinson. “Maybe they're not realizing all the work we're doing there already, like the food initiatives -- buddy bags. We've been supplying some of the food to those programs. Tax prep is starting up again, and we'll be representing United Way at the library once a week. That's really big as well. We want Tipton to realize that and support our campaign in return.”

The campaign organizers and United Way staff were a bit surprised by the strong response. Just a year earlier, the organization had to cancel allocations and regroup to fight off insolvency. No one was certain how United Way would be perceived. It turns out those concerns never surfaced. In fact, the charity is having trouble meeting demand for campaign presentations.

“There are so many organizations I know want to participate in this campaign,” said Wyman. “Please, reach out to us. We are glad to come to your workplace and make presentations, or host a luncheon, or anything along those lines. We're glad to participate with you, and we appreciate the ongoing support.”

Tomlinson explained that United Way can help businesses and organizations put on promotional events or come up with incentive ideas to help encourage employees to give.

“We're hearing from a lot of businesses that are doing incentives,” said Tomlinson. “One of our donating businesses is doing a promotion. For every five people who give $25 or more, they'll do a drawing for extra paid time off.

“Another of our donors decided that for each $100 an employee gives annually, they get entered in a drawing for a $500 bonus. Others passed out wristbands and different things. And some organizations, after they run their campaign, will have us come back in the spring and help them organize a picnic or event. We are happy to volunteer at those events because we are super grateful.”

“We don't want to have a system that we thank them once a year, and then come back and ask them for money,” added Neer. “We want to thank them and be in touch with them throughout the year.”

United Way definitely is looking for monetary donations, but there are volunteer opportunities available as well. During the campaign, United Way historically has used “loaned associates,” employees donated to the organization to make campaign presentations and assist with campaign programs and events. Since the campaign is scheduled to run until Feb. 15, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved.

‘The business would need to understand that the employee is still on the payroll during that timeframe,” said Tomlinson. “You're practically volunteering out your employee to us. And we’ll take any amount of time you can volunteer, whether that's a half day a week for six weeks, or if it's three days a week for the next month.

“We're grateful for whatever time you can give. We're looking for people who have great communication skills and love being a part of this community and are passionate about this community. We're looking for people that are energized.”

For additional information about the United Way serving Howard and Tipton Counties, and its 2024 funding campaign, visit the Facebook page or call 765-457-4357.