Message from our President and CEO

Welcome to the River Region United Way Website! This new site will provide a “one-stop shop” for most everything River Region United Way. The site links to our affiliate agencies, an events calendar, a blog, current RRUW stories from the media, and just an overall wealth of information – all available in this one spot. Please set us as one of your Favorites – you will “like” what you find here and we hope you find yourself checking in often.

For 89 years United Way has been part of what is now known as the River Region. For 140,000 of our friends and neighbors who are served by one or more of our 46 affiliate agencies, United Way has, at times, become a lifeline. From disaster assistance to substance abuse treatment, from youth organizations to services for older citizens, among many others, River Region United Way agencies continue to keep on serving our communities from cradle to grave. What a great group of community organizations this is!

For our donors, River Region United Way makes it easy to support these 46 community service providers while ensuring that your contributions are acknowledged, accounted for and used as intended.

* Our 45 member volunteer Board of Directors is committed to being Focused, Inquisitive, Transparent and Deliberate as we strive to continue evaluating and providing services for this five-county region with the best possible community-wide, people-focused service options.

* Our 45 member volunteer Community Council is continually evaluating the range of options for needs provision by looking at how best to fill gaps where they exist and reduce possible waste by making sure we do not overlap service delivery.

* Our 40 member Budget and Allocations Committee makes certain that each agency is living up to the standards they have established and what United Way expects of its affiliates in both program delivery and financial accountability.

Then there are the hundreds of volunteers who reach out and work hard in the fall of each year for the fundraising campaign effort, leaving no stone unturned as they seek the funding required for these 46 agencies to continue providing much-needed programs and services.

River Region United Way is focused on the future, looking back only to assure ourselves that we aren’t doing the same thing over and over while expecting different results. We want you to be a part of this effort and invite you to GIVE, ADVOCATE, and VOLUNTEER. As you explore our site, I hope you find something that interests or excites you, and that you decide to become more involved with United Way or with one of the great community affiliates we support. I also welcome your thoughts, comments, suggestions and particularly your criticisms. Without you, we can’t possibly meet our mission or improve our ability to serve. I would look forward to hearing from you at any time.

LIVE UNITED!

Russ Dunman

President and Chief Executive Officer

River Region United Way