August 10, 2007
News from the United Way of Summit County
| CAMPAIGN COORDINATORS: SIGN_UP NOW! |
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Join us for the Campaign Coordinator Workshop 2007 on Wednesday, August 15th, 2007 from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. At this free training, you will learn so much more than how to run a successful United Way campaign in your place of employment. You'll learn why being a Campaign Coordinator means you are United Way's partner in improving lives. The training is sponsored by Roadway and will be held at Roadway's office at 1077 Gorge Blvd., Akron (please park in rear of building, see map here). Register today online or call Sherry at 330.643.5518 or email sguiher@uwsummit.org Registration deadline is today! |
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Chickenfest Returns
to Barberton! |
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| Show Off Your Company's Basketball Skills |
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Sign up your teams now for the Basketball Skills Competition on Tuesday, September 18, 2007, one of United Way's Campaign Kick-Off events. The event will take place at Cascade Plaza in downtown Akron from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm. Corporate teams of two (one male, one female) are invited to compete in free-throw shooting, a timed three-point shootout, and an Around the World contest. Each company may enter up to three teams. There is no charge to participate, so mark your calendars and start forming your teams. Please contact Michael at mgaffney@uwsummit.org or Veronica at varcher@uwsummit.org as soon as possible if you are interested in participating. |
| FIRST-TIME CAMPAIGNS |
Our thanks to these companies that have agreed to run a United Way Campaign
for the first time. Your contributions to United Way will improve
lives and strengthen our community!
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| JOB OPPORTUNITY |
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Resource Development Director:
Manages workplace campaigns for a portfolio of assigned accounts. EOE Click here for a full description of the position |
| MAKE A CONTRIBUTION |
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You can donate securely online or call 330.762.7601 for more information. |
| UNITED WAY BROWN BAG SEMINARS |
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| ARE YOU A DIAMOND DONOR? |
| You are if you have been giving to United Way -- any United Way in any city, in any amount -- for 25 years or more. It doesn't matter if you have given individually or as a couple. If you are a Diamond Donor, United Way would like to know so you can be recognized as members of this outstanding group. For information about the Diamond Donor Society, contact Charlene Corlett, Vice President Major Gifts at 330-643-5537 or ccorlett@uwsummit.org. Click here to enroll online. |
| TAKE OUR SURVEY |
| United Way of Summit County is conducting surveys of donors and non-donors. The information gathered through these surveys will help determine United Way marketing plans in the future. Please complete the brief survey online. Thank you. |
| Looking for Volunteer Opportunities? Check out the United Way of Summit County Volunteer Center listing on our website. Updated Weekly! |
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CONTACT |
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what
matters President: |
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family, friends, and employees in your workplace. Want to be added to our email newsletter list? click here |
Born Learning
Playgroups Begin at Summit Lake United
Way of Summit County and Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority (AMHA) are currently in the process of holding a
series of Born Learning playgroups at Summit Lake Apartments. The playgroups are
designed to help parents and other caregivers of children ages 0-4 see how they
can turn everyday experiences into
 opportunities for learning in order to
improve school readiness. Additional funding has been provided to expand the
program further within AMHA by the H. Peter Burg Fund at Akron Community
Foundation. The curriculum is being developed by a team of early childhood
education specialists and the University of Akron, and the program will be
evaluated by the University of Akron on several levels. Fun activities, games, stories, songs and craft activities illustrate the everyday learning possibilities. Discussions are encouraged among the parents on how to make everyday activities, a trip to the store, a walk in the neighborhood, or household chores such as cooking or doing laundry into an opportunity to encourage learning. Born Learning is an initiative of United Way of America that focuses on creating early learning opportunities. It includes public service advertising, a content-rich website and educational materials. United Way of Summit County introduced the Born Learning program locally in 2006 as a community initiative of our Women’s Leadership Giving Society. Visit our Born Learning website. |
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Andre
Thornton Featured at Knight Breakfast
 United Way of Summit County held their annual
Knight Breakfast featuring Cleveland
Indians all-time legend Andre Thornton on Thursday, August 9th at the Crowne Plaza Quaker Square Hotel
Ballroom.
Cleveland Indians legend Andre Thornton was the
featured speaker for the event and spoke
Thom Mandel, United Way Board Chair and President of Rubber City Radio, and Tom Strauss, 2007 Campaign Chair and President of Summa Health System also addressed the crowd. |
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Your United Way Donations Improve Lives...
United Way
Helps Parents Find "Ways to Work" |
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OMNOVA Solutions Celebrates
United Way Kick-Off With a goal of raising over
$200,000 for United Way in an astonishing three
days, OMNOVA Solutions' three Summit County facilities in Mogadore, Akron
and Fairlawn got their 2007 United Way campaign off to a great start!
Leading up to campaign luncheon dates of July 31 to August 2, the company held a number of successful fundraising events, including bake sales, silent auctions and day-off drawings. Bake sales were held at all three locations, with associates at OMNOVA's headquarters facility in Fairlawn holding an intra-office competition to see which floor could raise the most money. "Summer Fun" baskets, Cleveland Browns tickets, and other fun items were up for bid in a silent auction. Funds were also raised through sales of beach chairs, t-shirts and glow sticks. OMNOVA's three Summit County locations were able to raise over $4,200 in special events alone. Employee pledges are still being tallied. Thanks OMNOVA for caring so much about our community! |
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United Way of Summit County
Welcomes New Staff Laura BrelinIn her position as a Resource Development Director, Laura's responsibilities will include overseeing all fundraising functions within an assigned portfolio of accounts in order to maximize potential and reach the desired division of goals, and also to communicate with, interact with, and support all departments within United Way in order to enhance fundraising and service opportunities within the assigned division. Originally from Canton, Laura, who received her B.S. in Business Administration from Columbia Southern University in Orange, Alabama and her Associates degree in Legal Assisting from the University of Akron, currently resides in Cuyahoga Falls. Before joining the team at United Way, Laura served as a Human Resource/Labor Relations Assistant for the County of Summit Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities division. Bob Kulinski, President of United Way of Summit County, said "We are excited to have Laura on our Team. She has excellent work experience in local government, the for-profit sector, human services, and she understands relationship management. She possesses a disciplined work ethic, qualities that are essential for success in community based fund raising. We expect great results from Laura!" |
 Aphii KalimaAs our new Volunteer Center Administrative Assistant and Receptionist, Aphii (pronounced Ah-Fee) is responsible for referring volunteers to potential organizations of interest, including Volunteer Match and conducting volunteer referral follow-ups as well as maintaining ongoing working relationships with volunteer-seeking organizations. Aphii joined the team at United Way after completing the ASSET program through the Akron Urban League. ASSET, which stands for Akron Selected Skills Enrichment Training, is a selective and intense 90-day business education course; Aphii finished an impressive second in her class. Aphii resides in the Tallmadge area with her two children, Darshon and Khara, where she is very involved with her church, the Community Fellowship Chapel. She is a member of the hospitality committee for her church and is involved in many church events. Aphii also enjoys singing, cooking, and reading murder mysteries. President Bob Kulinski says "We were very fortunate to hire Aphii who brings the necessary combination of skills and experience to greet visitors, handle incoming calls, assist people seeking help from community agencies, and providing staff support to our Volunteer Center. Aphii is a great addition to our team and we are delighted to have her!" |
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JC Penney Holds Brown Bag
Seminar |
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Gift of a
Remainder Interest in a Residence United Way of Summit County would like to share information about a unique way
for donors to help ensure the future of important services and programs in our
community. Have you heard about a Gift of a Remainder Interest in a Residence? This planned giving technique allows the donor the full use of a residence for their lifetime and also offers the ability to make an immediate gift to charity. The gift is deductible in the year it is made. The deduction also is flexible and can be carried over for as long as five additional years. And when the donor passes away, the value of the residence is not included in the estate so it eliminates any possibility of state or federal estate tax. This is just one of the ways to make a planned gift that will benefit you and your family and help United Way -- now and in the future. For a confidential discussion, contact Charlene Corlett, Vice President Major Gifts, at 330.643.5537 or ccorlett@uwsummit.org. |
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Run an Effective School Board
Campaign The School Board Governance Project is sponsoring a seminar called 'Keys to an Effective Election Campaign' on Saturday, August 11, 2007 from 8:30 am to 12:00 noon at the University of Akron Arts & Science Building, room 136 (at the corner of Buchtel & College Streets). This seminar is free and open to the public. School Board candidates, their committee members and other interested individuals from across the community are encouraged to attend and learn how to create a campaign plan, make wise campaign decisions and use campaign resources effectively. For more information, or to receive a flyer about this seminar, contact the Bliss Institute at 330.972.5182 or by email at bliss@uakron.edu. Read the full story |
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United Way Renews National
Membership Bob Kulinski, President and Chief Professional Officer, announced that the United Way of Summit County has successfully completed all of the United Way of America membership requirements for 2007. The requirements include: Membership Requirements Certification, Membership Investment, and the Database 2 Survey of Total Resources Generated (a survey that captures the full extent of a community's resource development efforts during the year). "The membership standards must be certified annually in order for us to remain a member of the United Way system," stated Kulinski. "It is important for us to maintain a high standard of accountability and this is part of the process to document that our operations are transparent and meet or exceed United Way membership criteria requirements." The United Way of Summit County is part of a system of 1,300 United Ways. Each local United Way must complete United Way of America's requirements annually in order to retain its United Way of America membership. Read the full story |
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Run a 2007 Pacesetter Campaign Pacesetters for the 2007 Annual Campaign set the pace for everyone else! Running a campaign in the late summer has great advantages, including energizing your employees halfway through the year, taking advantage of the warm weather for special events and breathing new life into a traditional fall campaign. These companies are running
Pacesetter Campaigns: Pacesetters receive unique recognition opportunities through media and our website and will be invited to our campaign kick-off event as a special thank you. Pacesetter campaigns should be completed by September 14, 2007. If your company would like to run a Pacesetter Campaign, contact Katie Rennard, Vice President Resource Development at 330.643.5517 or email krennard@uwsummit.org. Learn more about being a Pacesetter. |
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about the importance of supporting
United Way and our community. He currently serves as President and CEO of ASW Global, an international supply chain management company headquartered
here in Summit County.
A
young Summit County couple with a baby to care for recently had both of their
cars repossessed due to lack of income from his disability discharge from the
United States Air Force. As a result, the family was forced to walk everywhere
they went, baby in tow, no matter what the weather. The mother was limited to
working a low paying job within walking distance at a fast food restaurant. If
the baby needed medical care, the family had no choice but to make a costly call
to EMS to have the baby transported to a medical facility.
On July 24th, JC Penney at Rolling Acres had a Brown Bag Seminar to
teach their employees about the risk of Skin Cancer. The Seminar was
conducted by Sheryl Pflueger, from Stewart's Caring Place. A University of
Akron graduate and a 25 year registered nurse; Pflueger did a wonderful job
of educating the group of about twenty women on awareness, treatment and
prevention of skin cancer.