Published December 2002

United Way dollars, volunteers impact community

By John Wolcott
SCBJ Editor

For more than 62 years United Way has taken a leadership role in Snohomish County, raising funds for an expanding variety of social-service agencies that work to help less-fortunate residents in communities across the county.

Now, the growing agency is becoming more involved in building communities as well as serving them. As United Way executives quickly point out, no other charity program focuses on a holistic approach to addressing the most pressing needs of people in the county, rather than on single areas of concern.

And no other charitable community organization has the broad support of United Way. When its fall 2002 campaign kicked off in September, 93 coordinators had been trained, 211 speakers were scheduled for presentations and 843 individual accounts were assigned to campaign executives. There were 121 small-business accounts, and the campaigns in county, state and federal offices totaled 227.

United Way contributions support 106 programs delivered by 50 agencies, from Boys & Girls Clubs and Camp Fire USA to the American Diabetes Association, Community Health Center, Little Red Schoolhouse, Deaconess Children’s Services, Compass Health, American Red Cross and the Snohomish County Center for Battered Women.

Last year, $9.8 million was raised, just ahead of this year’s goal of $9.6 million, a lower goal that reflects a recognition of the soft economy as well as an awareness of a growing need for funding even in tougher times.

Yet, even in difficult times United Way supporters come through with new successes, such as when Boeing Co. employees contributed 20 percent more this year than in 2001 — even at a time when a 25 percent work-force cutback at the company’s Everett assembly plant shrunk the ranks of available donors. Employees donated $3.9 million, and the Boeing Co. also contributed a gift of $783,000, including $60,000 offered as a challenge to attract new corporate gifts to United Way.

United Way staff also has been encouraged by the turnout for this year’s Day of Caring, which attracted 1,300 volunteers from 84 county businesses, up dramatically over last year’s 900 people from 74 companies.

This year’s event represented an investment of an estimated $250,000 worth of valuable “people time” donated by those who took time from their workplace to staff community projects.

The importance of United Way in the county is also reflected in the caliber of those who co-chair its annual campaigns. The current effort is lead by Snohomish County Executive Bob Drewel and Boeing Community Relations Manager Tim Nowlis, assisted by the two vice-chairs who will head the 2003 campaign, Lori Husa of Wells Fargo Bank and Charlie Earl, president of Everett Community College.

“United Way has a great history in this community in terms of building community,” said President Brent Stewart. “In the last two to three years, we have transformed ourselves. We are being recognized more as a community impact organization. Fund raising is what we’ve been best known for, and that will always be a key part of our role, but the things United Way is doing now go way beyond just fund raising.”

Now two years into its five-year strategic plan, United Way has set its sights on such goals as collaborating to create a community agenda, investing in ways to significantly impact major community changes and creating a volunteer culture throughout the county.

“We have great business leadership in Snohomish County, and those people want to give back something to their community. I think United Way helps them do that ... and people who volunteer to help us also develop skills that add to their value to their employers, so everyone benefits,” Stewart said.

In January, Stewart expects a recommendation from a joint committee of the Snohomish and King County United Way organizations that could lead to a merger of the two groups into a regional United Way that would address regional as well as local issues, yet maintain a local focus.

“The dialogue has been around what we can do as a region to have greater impact in our two communities,” Stewart said. “We would be able to help more people in need, grow our resources and create greater efficiencies of scale in our operations.”

For more information, call United Way at 425-921-3400 or visit its Internet site at www.uwsc.org. The organization’s Web pages include details of its strategic service plan, information about the agencies and programs it supports, plus a new survey of community assets, data and organizations made public by United Way to help county agencies and individuals understand their communities better.

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