Published October 2004

United Way focus: making an impact
Agency aims to pool community resources to address issues

By Kimberly Hilden
SCBJ Assistant Editor

The United Way of Snohomish County, long a leader in raising funds for those in need, is changing the way it does business.

Although it still raises funds (more than $10 million during last year’s community campaign) and still disburses funds (more than $4 million this spring alone), the nonprofit agency’s mission has evolved into one of community impact, said President Carl Zapora, who joined the Snohomish County chapter in July.

This broadening of focus — from dollars raised to lives improved — is being undertaken by United Way chapters across the country, said Zapora, who formerly served as United Way of America’s Region II director, assisting 655 chapters in 20 states.

In Snohomish County, the seeds of change were planted about three years ago, under the leadership of former President Brent Stewart, said Dan Klusman, director of marketing and communications. “But we really kicked it into gear last year.”

The chapter has created a Community Impact Agenda, a starting point that highlights the needs of children, families and the community. Three Vision Councils — Kids Matter, Families Matter and Community Matters — also have been formed in support of the agenda. And the agency in April handed out Community Impact Grants totaling more than $4 million to support 114 programs in 50 organizations.

	Each year, hundreds of volunteers, such as employees of Agilent Technologies (above) and Wells Fargo (at left), lend a hand during United Way of Snohomish County’s Day of Caring. Photos courtesy of United Way of Snohomish County

In announcing the grants, United Way Board Chair John Gustafson said the awards were a departure from previous grants and part of United Way’s “new way of doing business.”

Not only are the grants multi-year rather than annual in nature, but those organizations seeking a grant have to align their programs with the Community Impact Agenda and demonstrate how their programs would deliver specific, measured results.

“The multi-year grant gives our partners a longer time to evaluate their program and demonstrate success and a consistent yearly funding target over the course of the grant,” he said. “However, grant amounts can be adjusted based on fund-raising results.”

Together, the Community Impact Agenda, Vision Councils and Community Impact Grants comprise phase one of the local United Way’s transformation, Zapora said. The second phase will be determining community-wide initiatives to tackle in partnership with other nonprofit groups, governmental entities, school districts and the corporate community.

For example, in Burlington, Vermont, there was an initiative to lower the high school dropout rate, Zapora said, while in another community, there was an initiative to increase the rate of infant inoculations, and in Atlanta, there was an initiative to increase affordable housing.

“In the old, traditional, fund-raising United Way, these were initiatives that we wouldn’t even look at. In its new impact role, United Way will identify broad county issues and bring together resources,” he said. “It may involve a little United Way funding, a lot or none.”

The initiatives are expected to flow from the three Vision Councils — a collection of 79 community volunteers who bring experience and understanding to the issues they cover, Klusman said.

The third and final phase of United Way’s transition will be one focused on customer service, blending customer relationship management into every aspect of the chapter’s activities, Zapora said.

Since his arrival this summer, Zapora has been making the rounds of the community, talking to nonprofit executives about the opportunities and challenges they share and to local business executives and community leaders about the United Way’s new community-impact push. The reception, he said, has been encouraging.

“There is a very high level of awareness and appreciation for the changes, the CEO calls, in particular,” he said. “Every CEO has been enthusiastically supportive of the change. It has led to a renewed support for the United Way campaign. In 24 years, I’ve not seen this kind of excitement about United Way and the campaign.”

United Way’s 2004 Campaign of Caring kicked off Sept. 17, along with the agency’s 12th annual Snohomish County Day of Caring.

“It’s a great day for us,” Klusman said, noting that along with the landscaping, painting and other “gritty” work that volunteers tackle across the community, Day of Caring volunteers read to schoolchildren and registered voters — an agency first.

As for the campaign, the United Way is looking to add 5,000 investors to the 21,000 already giving funds to the nonprofit group, which should translate to at least $10.8 million in funds raised, Klusman said.

But in the end, the campaign’s goals are focused on changing the human condition in the community, Zapora said. Making an impact.

For more information on United Way, call 425-921-3400 or go online to www.uwsc.org.

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