Posted by Neva Geisler, Director, Volunteer Engagement
More than 1200 people showed up to support the community over a plate of flapjacks at yesterday’s campaign kickoff breakfast–doubling last year’s attendance.
This was a first time event for United Way. In the past, we’ve done your basic big event breakfast, $30 tickets, reserved tables, a program of the coming year. But that kind of event never quite felt consistent with UW’s broad community focus. Anybody can give or volunteer with UW, and anybody might be a beneficiary of a UW program, so it seemed like we should kick off our campaign with an event that anybody could come to. And thanks to some great sponsors: Simplot, Albertson’s/Supervalu, KTVB, we were able to throw the kind of party that reflects how we feel about this year’s campaign and the work ahead of us–a celebration OF community and FOR the community where everyone could be a part of it. The fact that our numbers doubled makes us feel like we really got it right.
Check out our Celebrity Pancake Flippers!
Governor and Mrs. Otter Flipping Flapjacks for United Way
Blog post by Neva Geisler, Director of Volunteer Engagement
We’re going to raise $6 million during this year’s campaign.
I say this with confidence because I believe it. I believe it so much, in fact, that I’m already thinking of the agencies who are going to be relieved to hear that in an economic downturn, when their resources are being stressed to the max, they’re going to get a little extra help from their community.
I believe it because the Idaho Foodbank just told me not to send over a group of volunteers because they didn’t have enough food on their shelves for them to sort. I believe it because Jesse Tree, an emergency rental assistance agency who receives UW grant money, recently told us they are receiving more requests for help from intact families than ever before.
Hardworking people who are living paycheck to paycheck, are struggling under dramatic increases in food, energy and gas prices. When they can’t quite make it to the next paycheck, these are the services that are there to make sure they don’t fall through the cracks.
And it’s not just these emergency services, it’s the stuff that prevents people from being at risk in the first place–it’s programs that help youth reach their potential, families achieve financial stability, and substance abuse recovery and mental health crisis services. Last year’s community donations are at work at more than 30 different agencies in the Treasure Valley. View the list.
When you look at the web of services, how they all work together to lift people to a better quality of life, it is impossible to choose where you’d make the cuts.
Which is why I believe that we can raise $6 million–because we can and we have to.
Ever wonder who you’re helping when you check that little box for payroll deduction during your United Way campaign? Look around—because 100 percent of your gift to the United Way Community Fund is going to work to improve lives of people who live right here in the Treasure Valley.
The entirety of your donation is invested in your community, reaching people in 50 different programs at 32 local agencies.
Chances are, you interact with someone touched by your gift to United Way every day; at work, at the grocery store, at school—your gift supports your community. Listen to stories from people whose lives have been changed in the Community Campaign video:
In 2006, Money Magazine ranked Boise, Idaho the eighth “Best Place to Live” in America. In that same year, Idaho was ranked as the eighth hungriest state in the county.
In 2007, Boise was named one of the “100 Best Cities for Children” by America’s Promise. And yet 17 percent of children born in Idaho are born into poverty.
Idahoans built nearly 68,000 new homes since 2001; the 12.8 percent increase was the seventh highest in the nation. And yet there are an estimated 2,000-3,000 homeless people in Boise.
What’s going on here?
We recognized a serious and growing disconnect between those enjoying a high quality of life in the Treasure Valley and those who are struggling to get by. So why is that?
We started talking to people–all kinds of people. We asked them what they knew, what they saw and what, if anything, they wanted to do about this livability gap. Occasionally we would hear how lucky we were to live in a place like Boise, where “there weren’t any of the problems you see in big cities, like hunger of homelessness.”
We discovered that people wanted to do something they just didn’t know what or how or where. Also no surprise, whatever the what, how, where was, it had to be something that could be worked into a life full of jobs, kids, school, commuting; the stuff of life. What we needed was a perspective commitment, not a time commitment. We had to get people out there on the front lines of need, so that they could see it firsthand. The story tells itself; we just had to give people a chance to hear it. It was the perfect example of how United Way could bring people together to address issues in our community.
Thus was born the United Way Direct Impact Response Team, (D.I.R.T.)
DIRT is a loose knit group of volunteers who give one lunch hour a month to volunteer at a project that is dirty or otherwise difficult to recruit help for.
There are only three criteria for DIRT projects:
1. They help people
2. There’s an opportunity for education
3. The project is considered undesirable or too difficult for traditional volunteer groups
Anyone can come and everyone is welcome. The format makes it easy for people—all people, to do a little something that takes them out of their daily routine and into the community to places they may not otherwise see. It is a chance to gain a different perspective on our community, without a large time commitment that might thwart their inclination to do something.
Founding DIRT Clod, Holly Sue Kerns, said this about getting DIRTy:
Holly Sue Kerns, Founding DIRT Clod
“What I love the most about DIRT is that I have gotten to work with so many different types of people in our community and have had such a great time doing it. I have worked with many non-profits in the past and have gotten a bad taste in my mouth because I felt like I was caught up in red tape and meetings–never really feeling like I actually helped someone. With DIRT I see the end result of what I am doing and who I am helping. I just love it.”
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About United Way of Treasure Valley
United Way of Treasure Valley advances the common good by focusing on education, income and health. These are the building blocks for a good life -- a quality education that leads to a stable job, enough income to support a family through retirement, and good health. Our goal is to create long-lasting changes that prevent problems from happening in the first place. We invite everyone to be part of the change. Together, united, we can inspire hope and create opportunities for a better tomorrow.
