United Way of St. Charles marks record-setting $3 million campaign

Hitting a record-setting $3 million campaign this year signaled a significant milestone for the United Way of St. Charles.

“I feel grateful and a particularly high sense of responsibility that the community is trusting us to take action and make a difference in people’s lives,” said UW Director John Dias. “We’ve not thought it small that our level of commitment meets their level of expectation.”

The record-setting total edged up from last year’s $2.8 million and set the agency apart from others in the nation.

According to United Way Worldwide, the more than 1,100 United Way agencies in the last 5 years reported a 2 percent decrease in fundraising efforts while the United Way of St. Charles is up 35 percent in this same period.

The United Way, as have others in the nation, has replaced the campaign monetary goal with “Goal Zero” that translates into zero children not being fed on weekends or entering kindergarten unprepared or zero senior citizens lacking transportation to see doctors.

“More than 40,000 of the 55,000 residents in St. Charles Parish have some connection to United Way in a given year,” he said of the agency’s programs and their reach.

Of UW’s contributors, Valero topped the list with $1.07 million, a total up from last year’s $988,793.

“This is the biggest and best campaign we’ve ever had,” said company spokeswoman Taryn Rogers of the combined company and about 600 employees’ dedication to supporting the organization. “Our employees are very generous and our company matches every $1 donated. Our employees kind of set the goal themselves and they have big hearts. They wanted to set an aggressive goal because they knew they could to this for the community.”

UW is a significant part of the company culture at all of Valero’s 16 sites in the U.S., but the one in St. Charles Parish ranks among the best in supporting the United Way, Rogers said.

This is due in part to allowing employees on company time to tour UW agencies like ARC of St. Charles to see firsthand what they do for the community. Workers helped raise this substantial contribution through such efforts as jambalaya and gumbo cookoffs, and much more.

“They’re not just reading about it in a brochure, they’re seeing it,” Rogers said. “This is big. That’s how important United Way is to our company.”

Other major contributors include Norco Manufacturing Complex, $781,907; Dow St. Charles Operations, $322,030; Monsanto, $153,724; Entergy Waterford 3, $145,109, and St. Charles Parish Public Schools, $100,000.

Dias said more funds will translate into advancing and expanding long-range goals such as expanding programs like the School Backpack Program that provides meals to needy children and UW’s newest health initiative, Get Fit United, to serve more parish residents.

He also hopes to provide resources such as job training and transportation to help residents improve their financial stability and growth through such efforts as strengthening job skills and training.

Dias added, “It will also allow us to turn new resources toward assisting the 36 percent of households in our community where the residents are employed, but still struggling financially.”