Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, September 9, 1994 TAG: 9409210033
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Unfortunately, because agency requirements continue to surpass the amounts raised, human-services groups have to do more fundraising on their own. And needs - for emergency food, clothing and shelter; for child care; for health care for children, the elderly and the disabled; for teen-outreach, and a host of other services - continue to go unmet.
Not just United Way staff and volunteers but everyone in the valley should be disappointed that the yearly campaign goal hasn't been met since 1988. Everyone ought to be determined, this year, to do better.
The 1994 goal, $4.9 million, reflects a reasonable increase over the $4.7 million raised last year, when United Way broke with tradition and set no figure for its yearly objective. This year's goal certainly appears achievable.
United Way, to its credit, is on a constant lookout for new ways to make its work more effective, to broaden support, and to compensate for losses resulting from job shifts and employer downsizing. This year, it has:
Continued to upgrade, with help from Council of Community Services, its evaluation of programs. Specific performance objectives are being worked up, along with measures not just of numbers of clients served, but of the social impact of services.
Held the second annual "Day of Caring," which mobilized more than a thousand volunteers to spend a June day helping with community projects and getting acquainting with the year-round work of United Way agencies.
Helped increase minority membership on local boards and task forces with a leadership-development program funded by a Ford Foundation grant.
Started campaigns with several employers who haven't conducted workplace fund-drives before.
Improved training for loaned executives, who serve as full-time campaign workers while remaining on their employers' payroll.
Such efforts reinforce United Way's longstanding advantage as a charity that makes fundraising more efficient, that holds down overhead for human services, that enlists citizen volunteers to monitor programs and prioritize needs, and that now offers donors the choice of selecting recipients.
Yet, all such efforts and benefits notwithstanding, the campaign's success still requires commitment and caring from Roanoke Valley residents.
The number of United Way contributors has dropped since 1991, a reflection of corporate consolidations and economic uncertainty. While more are being asked to contribute this year, those who have given before will also need to give more.
Not a lot more. An additional 25 cents a week, from each of last year's 34,161 donors, would raise an extra $444,000 - exceeding the 1994 goal nicely. That would make a difference for groups such as Total Action Against Poverty, the Bradley Free Clinic, the YWCA and the Salvation Army, and for the thousands of people they serve.
The problem is not that we aren't giving enough in relation to other communities. In an analysis of 30 metropolitan areas of similar size, Roanoke ranked sixth in per-capita United Way giving, and fifth in giving as a percentage of disposable income.
The problem is that we aren't giving enough in relation to our own community's needs. At the least, this year, we ought to achieve the United Way goal.
by CNB