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Posted on April 12, 2010 09:09
Local United Way Falls Short Of Goal, But Happy With Response
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| The United Way & Volunteer Services of Greater Yankton fell short of its fundraising goal, but Executive Director Pam Kettering and other United Way officials are pleased with the response, given the recent poor economy. (Kelly Hertz/P&D) |
Published: Monday, April 12, 2010 1:15 AM CDT
Not even United Way & Volunteer Services of Greater Yankton was immune to the economic challenges that have plagued most sectors during the last year.
Having officially wrapped up its 2010 fundraising campaign, the organization reports that it collected approximately $412,000 in donations, about $50,000 short of its $460,000 goal.
Last year, the local United Way raised approximately $455,000, which surpassed its goal of $450,000.
Executive Director Pam Kettering said the organization knew it would be a challenging year for fundraising but decided to increase its goal anyway.
“We knew that the agencies we serve were going to be stressed because of the unemployment,” she said. “We felt we needed to try and stretch a little bit more, if possible.”
United Way President Bob Cappel said he is pleased with raising about 90 percent of this year’s goal.
“Ninety percent is nothing to look down upon,” he said. “It could have been a lot worse when you consider the number of jobs that were affected through the year. This community continues to step up and answer the call when we have organizations that serve this community. It always seems to find a way to help.”
United Way & Volunteer Services of Greater Yankton supplies funding for 19 agencies and various programs.
“The United Way is a unique fund-raiser when you compare it to all the other fundraising done in the community, because we are not just there for one interest,” Kettering said. “When people give to the United Way, they are reaching a lot of people with that gift.”
Kettering said the shortfall should not endanger funding for agencies the United Way supports at this point.
“At 90 percent, we feel we can still fund the agencies,” she said. “Because former years have been so successful, we do have a reserve we can use. That’s what the reserve is for.”
Part of the decline in fundraising was due to the fact that some companies were unable to donate as much as they had in past years, according to Kettering. In some cases where companies matched the donations of their employees, they could not do it at previous levels.
“There were some pretty drastic reductions due to that fact,” Kettering said.
The United Way held two new events during the past year in an attempt to supplement the funding it knew it might lose during its normal fundraising activities. A golf tournament was held in September and an archery shoot-off for local celebrities was held in February. Together, they raised approximately $5,000.
“For the first year, we were very pleased,” Kettering said.
A meeting was held Friday to begin planning for the 2011 campaign. Cappel said very little is set in stone right now. It is undecided if the organization will raise its fundraising goal beyond $460,000.
“Most of it is really going to depend on what the agencies’ needs are,” he said. “We’re just beginning to work with the agencies and their budget requests.”
Even though the 2010 campaign has officially ended, Kettering said the United Way is still happy to accept donations.
“We will always take contributions, because there are always the needs of our neighbors,” she said. “We’d still love to make that 2010 goal, if possible!”
Copyright © 2010 - Yankton Press & Dakotan
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