Hundreds of volunteers, business leaders and community partners gathered this week in Mobile to kick off the United Way of Southwest Alabama’s 2015 fundraising campaign, setting an ambitious goal of just over $5.1 million.
The launch event drew roughly 275 attendees to the VIA Health, Fitness and Enrichment Center, where organization leaders outlined plans for the year ahead and unveiled a new mobile app designed to connect residents with volunteer opportunities and community resources.
The board chairman for this year’s campaign, a human resources executive at Austal USA, told the crowd that the new app would give users quick access to the United Way’s 2-1-1 database, a free service that links people in need with local assistance programs. He said the tool was built to make it easier for smartphone and tablet users to give, volunteer or find help in a few taps.
Campaign organizers pointed to a strong recent track record heading into this year’s push. The organization’s last three annual campaigns each exceeded their fundraising targets, and pledges have climbed by nearly 10 percent over that stretch. Last year’s effort brought in just over $5 million, and a summer pacesetter campaign this year, which typically involves early commitments from major employers, raised more than $1.3 million on its own.
The campaign’s chairman, a South Alabama banking executive, urged the audience to embrace what organizers are calling the “One Percent Challenge” — asking donors and workplace giving programs across the region to increase contributions by just one percent to help close the gap toward this year’s goal. He emphasized that money raised locally stays in the four-county service area rather than being redirected elsewhere.
United Way of Southwest Alabama funds a broad network of programs and partner agencies that together serve more than 600,000 residents across Choctaw, Clarke, Mobile and Washington counties. Services supported by the campaign span early childhood education, financial stability programs, health initiatives and crisis assistance.
This year’s kickoff event was sponsored by Kimberly-Clark, one of the region’s major employers with manufacturing operations in the Mobile area. The organization’s president and chief executive, who took the helm this year, told attendees that reaching the new goal would require the whole region working in concert, describing the campaign as a way to “unite and mobilize resources” behind long-term community improvement.
Workplace campaigns, individual donations and employer matching gifts typically make up the bulk of the United Way’s annual haul in the region. Organizers said the campaign would run through the fall, with results tallied and shared with the community once the drive wraps up. Residents interested in giving, volunteering or learning more about which local programs the United Way supports can find information through the organization’s website.