2023 UWSC Campaign results are in

It is hard to believe that we are in a new year, but here we are, ready to serve!  The United Way of Steele County and the nonprofits we collectively work with, is made possible because of the generosity of people like you.  We raised our goal this past campaign to $815,000, to meet the growing needs in our community and while we didn’t quite hit this goal, we did achieve our 2nd highest giving level in history at $785,598 (96% of our goal).  Congratulations to each of you for helping to make a lasting impact on our community!!  We will be hosting a celebration event in the very near future, so please watch for those details so you may join us.

With a new year also comes tax season.  I am proud to announce that we have received a VITA grant to provide free tax preparation services to households with an annual income of $78,000 or less.  We will begin this service towards the middle of February; however, registration is open now by going to our website or by calling our office.  A huge THANK YOU to all the volunteers that have signed up to help prepare taxes this year!! 

I also wanted to share a change in Women United Membership.  For those not familiar with Women United, we are an affinity group under the United Way of Steele County umbrella that focuses our energies on Early Childhood Literacy and Development.  We raise funds to support Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, Bright by Text, and Born Learning Trails. In the past, membership was based off donor level, which was not in line with our goals of being an inclusive organization, welcoming to all women with a philanthropic heart and a passion for creating opportunities for children to succeed.  With that said, we have changed our membership guidelines.  For an annual membership fee of $100, to cover the cost of four quarterly lunch meetings and two socials, any woman that wants to make a difference in Steele County may join.  Scholarships are available.     

We have a lot of community impact work planned for this year, so I hope you continue to follow this column, so that you can join us in changing lives in Steele County!!  Thank you for your continued support of our work, together we LIVE UNITED.  Engaging Communities, Connecting People.  We’re YOUR United Way!

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Annette Duncan is President of United Way of Steele County.  She can be reached at 507-455-1180 or via email by president@unitedwaysteelecounty.org. Our website is www.unitedwaysteelecounty.org