Imagine knowing that a child is going to bed hungry on a regular basis, a woman is being abused by her spouse or boyfriend or a homeless person is out in the rain, heat, or cold. Well, it’s not imagination and it does go on here in our community in Region 8 . Since 1955, United Way has been helping organizations in Northeast Arkansas that deal with these problems. Within the last few years, United Way of America has urged local United Way chapters to move from funding “United Way Agencies” to making grants available for specific and more targeted “programs”. This funding approach is designed to help get at the root of problems that cause issues like those I just mentioned. This funding model is called Community Impact. United Way of Northeast Arkansas has joined this nationwide Community Impact movement and now awards grants to programs that specifically target Education, Income, and Health. Any 501©3 in our 8 county coverage area can apply for program funding. We even offer training assistance in completing the application. Tax returns, audits, and financial statements are submitted with each application. We also ask for a program budget, program partners, projected outcomes data and the measurement tools used to obtain the data. Several committees and our board of directors review the information and ask many questions including: Is the organization financially sustainable? Will the program continue with or without our support? Would it exist with only partial support? After reviewing, considering, and discussing each application the Regional Impact Committee attempts to allocate United Way funds to affect the greatest possible Community Impact. Now, this may seem like a cumbersome process, but it is necessary to insure that YOUR dollars, the dollars that are donated from the citizens of Region 8, are put to their highest and best use throughout our communities. With $1.2 million in requests, and only $720,000 to award in our most recent application process, a lot of difficult decisions had to be made. These decisions were not made lightly and were heart-wrenching for many. There just simply wasn’t enough money to fulfill each request. The bottom line is that there is a lot of need in our area & United Way is here to help fill as much of that need as possible. United Way of Northeast Arkansas is committed to helping make lasting changes in our communities. Will you join the effort to LIVE UNITED to make this a “Better Region 8”
Comments