News
Thank you letter to Ozaukee Press
February 17, 2011
The United Way of Northern Ozaukee Board of Directors and the 16 agencies assisted through the campaign would like to thank the entire community for their overwhelming show of support of this year’s campaign.
The Press ran an article on December 16, 2010 mentioning that despite lowering our goal due to a tough fundraising climate we were still forecasting falling short of goal. But shortly after the story ran this community responded!
We are very blessed to live in such a supporting, caring community. Thanks to your donations the 2010 campaign has met and exceeds its goal of 175,000.
By supporting the United Way Campaign, donors help local families, the elderly, the developmentally disabled and the unfortunate. Donations are also used to support programs that provide services to the children in our community.
The United Way is so much more then just an 18 member board. The United Way is all of us. It is the 16 Agencies providing much needed services, it is the people receiving help every day from our partners, it is heritage donors, employers and employees donating to company run campaigns, community leaders advocating for support.
Together WE ARE THE UNITED WAY!
Our heartfelt thanks to the community for their support of the 2010 United Way Campaign. Thank you for supporting 60 years of giving. Together we can LIVE UNITED by Giving, Advocating and Volunteering in our community.
Gerry Antoine, Board President
Barb Dickman, VP/Campaign
Chair
Charlie and Kathy Watry, Honorary Heritage Society Chairs
Dividing the Fundraising Pie
The plethora of events for charity speaks well for our communities, but one cause, the United Way, deserves special generosity
Reprinted with permission by the Ozaukee Press, October, 6 2010
Would life as we know it at the end of the first decade of the 21st century go on if we didn’t have fundraisers?
Probably not. Fundraising events are the default response to just about any need in the community. It is safe to say that in a given year hundreds of people who live in the Ozaukee Press circulation area help organize fundraisers and thousands of local residents contribute to those fundraisers.
Fundraising isn’t new, of course. Girl Scouts have been selling cookies to raise money for their programs since 1917. The idea of collecting something of value for those in need probably dates to the dawn of civilization. But in the recent past it was expected that institutions—government, schools and large charitable organizations—would take care of most of society’s needs.
It doesn’t work that way anymore. Those institutions routinely seek help from freelance, volunteer-driven fundraising efforts. Beyond that, an endless list of needs is served by these grass-roots fundraisers.
There are so many of them that this newspaper established a regular op-ed page feature called Kudos that offers free space to thank fundraiser sponsors, contributors and participants.
Last week’s Kudos section featured Pumpkins in the Park, a five-kilometer walk and run in Upper Lake Park that seems to give great joy to the participants while raising money to benefit the Port Washington-Saukville School District physical education and health instruction programs.
There have been Kudos letters from a number of groups that raise money for public school athletic programs in Ozaukee County—for expenditures that once came out of tax revenue.
For private schools, it’s one fundraiser after another. One of the most ingenious, not to mention welcome, is the annual Dutch apple pie sale put on by Ozaukee Christian School of Saukville. Organizers hope to sell 2,500 of the scrumptious-looking, made-from-scratch pies at $12 each.
High up on the list of the most admirable fund-raising programs has to be the efforts of St. Peter’s United Church of Christ of Saukville and the Port Washington Food Pantry to provide school supplies for children in need. This year nearly 500 children got up to $50 worth of supplies needed for school from the programs.
All of this speaks well for our culture. It tells us that even as people deal with their own financial challenges and perceptions of a materialistic, me-first society endure, the spirit of altruism is alive and well.
It takes nothing away from that spirit, however, to acknowledge that some needs are greater than others, that some fundraising efforts enhance the quality of life in small ways, while others are needed to protect and sustain life. The United Way of Northern Ozaukee campaign falls in the latter category.
The campaign’s 2010 goal is $10,000 less than last year’s, a disquieting sign that even as the need for the work of agencies supported by the United Way is increasing, their funding is decreasing. The reduced expectations are a realistic response to the still struggling economy and last year’s shortfall in United Way collections.
Still, we would hope the people of northern Ozaukee County could do better. Admittedly, that’s not easy. Throughout the year they are asked to support cause after cause. All seek a piece of the same pie representing the ability of families to contribute to charity. In this world of worthy causes, the United Way occupies a special place because it supports agencies that are the very hearts of our communities, and it deserves special generosity.
LIVE UNITED SUCCESS STORY
Beth has flourished as she embraces new opportunities
Almost 20 years ago, a lovely young woman walked through the front doors of Portal Industries Alternative Day Services and decided this just wasn’t for her. Her name was Beth, and she has down syndrome. But after 15 years, Beth’s little sister thought it was time to give Portal another try and pushed her parents to revisit. So they did.
Admittedly, things didn’t go very well at first. Tears and anxiety usually started off each day as Beth waved goodbye to her parents. And though she would participate in the activities, she longed for her time at Portal to end, constantly asking staff members for the time.
When hope was nearly lost, a staff member had an idea to offer Beth a watch so she could see when it was time for lunch, an activity or going home. Beth’s watch quickly became a major turning point in her life. Now five years later, Beth has flourished as she embraces new opportunities, such as ceramics, plays and concerts, scrapbooking, sign language classes and art club. She also works on a regular basis with Meals on Wheels, folding church bulletins and working on the production floor. In fact, she currently works 4 to 5 hours per week with requests to work even more.
Beth’s inspiring story is a testament to the wonderful opportunities that Portal Industries Alternative Day Services provide to help all people become contributing members of society.
In the photo on the left is Beth Behnke - Portal Program Coordinator. Beth Poull a Portal participant is on the right.
