Trending
For many years now, the United Way of Jefferson County has opened its annual campaign with an event that encourages area residents to come together and help the organizations that help others across the community.
It’s been known by a couple of names -- it started as the Day of Caring and has now grown into a Day of Action.
Whatever it has been called, it’s always held a special place on the organization’s calendar.
This year was no different. Volunteers, board members and other associated with the United Way and its member agencies gathered on Aug. 27 in Hellenic Hall at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, ate breakfast that was prepared and served by members of the church and then fanned out around the county to donate their time and their talents while giving back to the agencies and groups that continue to provide needed services and assistance to all parts of the county.
“Our campaign is not simply about raising money,” Marci Crawford, executive director of the United Way, explained during her remarks. “It’s about what the money makes possible. It’s that parachute -- food on a family’s table, a call to 2-1-1 that’s answered when someone doesn’t know where else to turn. Help during an unexpected crisis. Support for nonprofits every single day.”
According to the United Way’s website, the organization has had an impact on 15,369 people during the past year. When you consider that the population of Jefferson County is around 63,500, that means right around 24 percent of county residents have been touched by the agencies the United Way supports.
“We are so thankful for all that you guys do in our community and the giving back,” Ted Gorman, the board president explained. “We know that today is a day of caring, day of giving. We know that just doesn’t happen on one day. We appreciate everything you do in your community.”
An example could be found in this year’s day of action honoree, Linda Slowikowski of Toronto. She has been involved with the organization for more than 30 years, before, during and after her daughter, the late Suzanne Kresser, served as the United Way’s executive director.
“This is what my family and I have believed in for years,” she said, explaining that two of the leaders at the former Eastern Gateway Community College, Jim Morgan and then-President Ed Florak, help build her interest through their involvement with the United Way.
“We helped the community, and this day of caring is where I got involved,” Slowikowski added. “I felt that they inspired me so much and that was my mission, to help people. I had been through a really rough time in my life, and I felt like I had to give back and step up to the plate. I had seen the need, and each time I went out into the community, it just made me more inspired to truly help people in our community. You can see what the need is now -- it’s even worse than when I started helping.”
Bringing members of the community together to work on those issues can make a big difference, Slowikowski explained.
“If we work together in being united, we call can make a difference. That’s each and everyone of us. I’m so thankful that you are all here today. This is going to affect you -- it affected me.”
Crawford has some great ideas to help the organization grow, Slowikowski added, and those will no doubt make the organization even stronger in the future.
Among those goals is the expansion of the number of agencies that are under the umbrella of the United Way. Six nonprofits are being added to the campaign this year, Crawford explained. And that means the organization needs to continue pressing forward.
“Every donation matters. Every volunteer matters. Every person who shares our mission matters,” she said. “So, as we head out across Jefferson County, I want you to take a look at the people who are standing beside you. This is what it looks like when a community comes together. This is what it means to live united.
“I want to leave you with one question: What would Jefferson County look like if the United Way was successful in bringing every business, every nonprofit, every church and every single person together for one mission? I believe we are beginning to see that, and today, every one of you is a part of that,” she said.
Most of the work done during the day of action encompassed small projects, things that the volunteers were able to accomplish in a couple of hours, but things that the agencies seldom had the time to do for themselves. From cleaning to painting to helping make order of records and making repair to drywall, the work really added up -- and made it easier for the agencies to work on their shared goal of helping area residents.
It’s an important thing to share across the community.
“It just helps to kick off our campaign and show that we’re making an attempt to pay it forward,” Tony Mougianis, vice president of the United Way board, said before the breakfast began. “It’s always great to see people come together to start the campaign off by working and helping people and getting results.”
(Gallabrese, a resident of Steubenville, is senior writer of the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times. He is a former board member and served as board president of the United Way of Jefferson County.)