Living United

December 5 is New Date for Awards of Nonprofit Excellence

The United Way Awards of Nonprofit Excellence, originally scheduled for October 29, but postponed due to Hurricane Sandy, have been rescheduled for Wednesday, December 5 at the Boars Head Inn. 

We ask that everyone who RSVP'd for the first date, please confirm your attendance (or now send a regret) for the new date. Here is a link to the RSVP card with the new date. You can fill it out, save it to your computer and then send it as an attachment to Leigha Rae at [email protected] before November 30. If you are simply confirming your attendance, please call Leigha at 434-972-1708.

 If you were not able to attend on the original date, but are now able to attend, please use the RSVP card.

We are loooking forward to celebrating the accomplishments of our finalists, and announcing this year's recipients.

 

Posted by: Kim Connolly

Our United Way Has Got Talent!

In 2008, we partnered with our friend, Don Rich, owner of Zestivities! (now in Nellsyford) while he was also a Segway dealer. We had a lot of fun using Segways during our United Way Day of Caring and then had the idea to create a "United Way Segway Drill Team" for Charlottesville's Dogwood Festival Parade.

We had a blast practicing and then participating in the parade. Here is a blog post about it, featuring the videos we posted to YouTube. They are our most popular YouTube videos to date.

Imagine our surprise when we received this email last Friday:

-------- Original message --------
Subject:America's Got Talent Season 8

Hello,

    I work for the television show America's Got Talent, and I came across some youtube videos of the United Way Segway Drill team and loved it! I couldn't find a direct email address for the team but found this one that is associated with it. I don't know if you have seen our show before but we are NBC's number one show of the summer and are the only variety talent show on television where you can be any age and have any talent! Every season we look for new and exciting talent we have never seen before and we have never had a segway drill team on our show before! I was wondering if your team would be interested in auditioning for us this season. We are going to be holding an open audition in Norfolk, VA in December and love you guys to come out for it! The routine would have to be a 90 second routine and we ask that people use current or popular music. I think NBC and our producers here in Los Angeles would really like you guys! Look forward to hearing from you!

Best--
Kayla DeFrancesco 

Assistant to Producers

Americas Got Talent

Season 8

Our current and former Segway drill team staff members could not stop laughing as we exchanged emails back and forth. Tempting as it may be to hold a reunion tour, we won't be participating, but it has been fun reliving the experience!

Posted by: Kim Connolly

United Way Excellence Awards Dinner POSTPONED

Thanks to Hurricane Sandy and the forecast wind gusts of up to 60 mph later today, the United Way Awards of Nonprofit Excellence Dinner scheduled for tonight, October 29, at the Boars Head Inn, has been POSTPONED.

We will announce the new date as soon as possible.

Please stay safe.

 

Posted by: Kim Connolly

October 29 United Way Awards of Excellence Update

We are watching Hurricane Sandy very closely as it may impact our plans to hold the United Way Awards of Nonprofit Excellence tonight at the Boars Head Inn.

As of 6 a.m, Monday, October 29, the dinner is still ON. If the Boars Head Inn loses power today, we will postpone the dinner to another date.

Please bookmark this blog and check back during the day for updates. If our office loses power, we will not be able to update our website, but can update this blog.

Posted by: Kim Connolly

Vice President of Marketing & Communications, United Way-Thomas Jefferson Area.

Celebrate Excellence in Local Nonprofits

Tomorrow is the last day to RSVP for the United Way Awards of Nonprofit Excellence next Monday, October 29 at the Boars Head Inn. Join us in recognizing, celebrating and promoting excellence in local nonprofit leaders and boards of directors.

Finalists for Excellence in Board Governance award: Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville, The Senior Center, and The Women's Initiative

Finalists for Excellence in Nonprofit Leadership award: Jacki Bryant, CYFS; Fay Painter, MS Society, Blue Ridge Chapter; Erika Viccellio, Charlottesville Free Clinic.

We are so fortunate to have such strength in our local nonprofit organizations. Help us shine a light on those who work so hard behind the scenes to make our community a better place to live.

 

Posted by: Kim Connolly

A Big United Way Day of Caring Thank You!

Any event that involves over 2,300 people, 65 businesses, 113 nonprofits/public schools and 234 volunteer projects take the coordination and involvement of many.
As I reflect on my second and our office’s 21^st United Way Laurence E. Richardson Day of Caring, I can’t help but to feel grateful. I’m grateful for all of the people, organizations and groups that came together to bring over $304,000 of volunteer hours into our community on a single day.

I want to take this time to thank you.

Thank you to the sponsors who made the breakfast possible (State Farm), provided lunch for our staff (Raising Canes) and covered the event on the radio (WINA) and television (Charlottesville Newsplex).

Thank you to the nonprofits and schools that hosted volunteers and organized meaningful projects for local businesses.

Thank you to the thousands of volunteers who took time away from work to spend time making our community a better place to live.

Thank you to the companies that allowed their employees to miss time from work to volunteer painting houses, landscaping and much more.

Thank you to the United Way staff who spent time in the weeks leading up to the United Way Day of Caring to help print signs, bring up and sort supplies from our basement, and arrive so early in the morning to set things up.

People always thank me for the work that I do behind the scenes to plan the day, but I don’t (and can’t!) do this event alone. It’s because of the wonderful team leaders, thoughtful project coordinators and my supportive colleagues that this event is able to happen each year and make such a difference in Charlottesville and the surrounding counties. Without the support and teamwork of the thousands of people involved in even the smallest details of this community-wide event, the United Way Day of Caring wouldn’t have such a lasting impact on our community.

Thank you!

 

Posted by Jessica Snyder, United Way Volunteer Center Director

Sweating the Details for the United Way Day of Caring

The United Way Laurence E. Richardson Day of Caring.

The United Way Day of Caring.

The Day of Caring.

Or, in our office shorthand: DOC.

Our office is in “All hands on deck!” mode in preparation for our annual volunteer extravaganza next Wednesday, September 19^th.

This year, we have 2,300 volunteers registered for 234 projects at 113 nonprofits and schools. There are teams from 65 local businesses and organizations, with the University of Virginia and UVa Health Systems providing nearly 1,000 of our volunteers. Our good neighbor, State Farm Insurance is sending around 100 volunteers, and Lexis Nexis and the CFA Institute each send around 70 employees to volunteer. And other local businesses send from 2 to 50 employees.

That means a whole lot of local businesses allow and encourage their employees to spend a day volunteering in our community. And we can’t forget those employees left behind to keep things running.

Jessica Snyder, our Volunteer Center Director, is seeing her 9 months of preparation come to fruition and is deftly handling the thousand details that make the day run smoothly, not to mention taking the last minute changes in stride. The rest of us do what we can do help her. We haul the signs out of our basement, print new signs, arrange pick up of traffic cones, alert the media, assign our board members project sites to visit to thank the volunteers. The spread sheets detailing every one of the projects are voluminous, and the details (weights for balloons? – check) are numerous, but necessary to making such a huge undertaking seamless. It is fun, it is exhausting and somewhat overwhelming, but on that day, at the kick-off breakfast at Albemarle Square, when the State Farm Singers are lifting up their voices in joy, and the hundreds of volunteers are full of energy to make a difference in our community, it all seems worth it.

 

Posted by Kim Connolly

Charlottesville Region Anticipates the 2012 United Way Day of Caring

The excitement is building in our region as 2,300 volunteers prepare to work on more than 200 projects for local nonprofits and schools in the city of Charlottesville and Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa and Nelson counties on September 19.

Many thanks to Charlottesville Newsplex for capturing the community's anticipation in this public service announcement.

 

Nonprofit Volunteers, Boards and Governance in Charlottesville

This is a busy week for us.

Jessica Snyder, our Volunteer Center director, is finalizing all the United Way Laurence E. Richardson Day of Caring projects, with the final volunteer teams choosing their projects today.

Our annual board retreat is this Friday. It is a time to reflect and to plan. At last year’s board retreat, our board members self-selected which of our three impact teams they would serve on: School Readiness, Self-Sufficiency or Community Health. Board members invested a lot of time and energy this past year investigating the issues and unmet needs in our community relating to their specific impact areas. Our board members have already shown their commitment to positive change and are energized for further
action.

Speaking of good board governance, the deadline for nominations for our United Way Nonprofit Awards of Excellence, for leadership or board governance, is this Friday, September 7. Find more information and nominating guidelines here.

 

Posted by: Kim Connolly

United Way Day of Caring - The Olympics of Volunteering

Let the games begin!

Sure, it’s not as exciting as watching Olympic synchronized diving or your team’s next NFL preseason game, but completing the Project Selection Lottery for the United Way Laurence E. Richardson Day of Caring certainly feels like competing in a marathon! For two straight weeks, I’ll be working all day, every day to ensure that more than 140 volunteer teams are able to find a project that is both meaningful and fun.

Instead of playing out in a stadium, this game is played in my tucked-away nook at our United Way office downtown. The rules of the game are pretty simple: make sure that all of our teams walk away happy with their project and that the nonprofits and schools will have enough volunteers to fill their needs.

To ensure fairness in picking projects – and to make sure that 10 teams don’t all pick the same project, we have a lottery system. I use an app that randomly mixes up the volunteer teams and assigns them a number. The first day, I notify teams 1 – 25 that it is their day to pick their project. They are the lucky ones, as they have all 200+ projects to choose from. Each consecutive day, the next 25 teams on the list get their chance. From year to year, I do make sure that the last 50 or so teams do not get bottom spots again, but that is the extent of my manipulation of the numbers. And believe me, I have been bribed! But just like a referee, I must remain impartial.

My “playbook” is a notebook filled with spreadsheets, project lists and team rosters. The teams wait anxiously for their turn to see what projects will still be available to “draft”. I receive about 40 calls per day from team leaders, who fill a role similar to a coach. Our team leaders are responsible for encouraging their teams, making sure that everyone is where they need to be and maintaining communication with their players and also the nonprofit or school where they will be playing.

As each project is filled and each team walks away happy with their pick, I record a win on my score sheet. You see, this is the kind of game that everyone wins. The nonprofits and schools win, because they are getting volunteers to complete projects that have been on their wish lists for months or even years. The volunteers win because they’ll get to spend a day team-building with colleagues and making a real difference in the community.

Before we know it, our teams will don their Day of Caring t-shirt uniforms and head out to pre-game party at our State Farm sponsored Kick-Off Breakfast. After the breakfast, they’ll gear up to participate in our “Super Bowl” of volunteering – the United Way Laurence E. Richardson Day of Caring. That evening, people will watch the highlights of the event on the Charlottesville Newsplex or listen to a recap on WINA.

At the end of the day on September 19^th, I will breathe such a sigh of relief and take a moment to reflect on the whirlwind. All of the hours of preparation, hundreds of phone calls and thousands of emails will be so worth witnessing the biggest win of all - seeing thousands of smiling faces at the project sites while tackling some of our community’s biggest needs.

Why Participate in the United Way Day of Caring?

Each year on the day of our United Way Laurence E. Richardson Day of Caring, United Way staff and Board members team up and travel to visit the volunteers and nonprofits where projects are taking place. As soon as we stepped into the door of the Virginia Discovery Museum on my trip to local nonprofits that day, I knew that something special was taking place. All of the volunteers were smiling, laughing and busily working away. We were greeted by the wonderful staff at the museum and heard about the amazing work that had taken place with the volunteers.

As soon as I got back to the office that day, I wrote a letter to the museum staff asking for them to share what made the Day of Caring so special for them. I thought that highlighting the excitement at the Virginia Discovery Museum and showcasing the impact the volunteers made that day could help other nonprofits see the benefits in participating in such a special event.

Here is what the Virginia Discovery Museum staff shared:

"Every year, the Virginia Discovery Museum participates in Day of Caring. In fact, we purposely schedule our exhibit renovations around that day. This year, we welcomed volunteers from BB&T and CFA for an all-day, museum-wide renovation project. Starting at 9am, volunteers painted every room in the museum with new, exciting colors, helped us move furniture that otherwise would not have moved, and constructed new exhibits for the kids to play on. It is safe to say that without the hard work and enthusiasm of these volunteers, our recent new exhibits (Discovery Garage and Virginia Frontier) would not have opened on time to the public.

The most memorable part of Day of Caring is the camaraderie and the “willingness to do anything” of the volunteers. More than once, staff at the Virginia Discovery Museum was told that the volunteers come expecting to work hard and accomplish the tasks set before them. The staff started the day with several possible tasks for the volunteers, thinking that only a token few would be accomplished. By the end of the day, every single task was complete; and both the staff and volunteers left the museum exhilarated with a sense of accomplishment.

In the following week, staff members raved about the help we received from Day of Caring volunteers. We wish this event occurred multiple times throughout the year. We genuinely hope that the volunteers had a great time at the museum and we eagerly await the next Day of Caring."

Attention Local Businesses!

The United Way Laurence E. Richardson Day of Caring is only 11 weeks away and registration is in full swing! Don’t miss the chance to get out of the office for a morning, afternoon or full day of team building and making a difference in your community!

  Any business, church group or community group is welcome to sign up to participate. As long as you have two or more people committed to volunteering in our community on September 19, 2012, we encourage you to join us.

  The United Way Laurence E. Richardson Day of Caring makes a huge impact in Charlottesville, Albemarle, Greene, Nelson, Fluvanna, Louisa and Nelson each year. On just one day, over 2,000 volunteers in our local community will complete over $290,000 worth of projects at more than 200 nonprofits.

  Once your team signs up, you’ll get regular updates on the event from our office and will be invited to select a project to complete when we complete our project selection process in mid-August. We’ll have tons of projects to select from including working with children, landscaping, data entry, painting and hosting activities at local nursing homes. You’ll have the opportunity to find something to suite your skills and make a huge impact in your community!

  All of the information on how to register can be found here. You can also visit our Day of Caring website for much more information on forming teams. To see pictures from last year’s event, click here.

Help us find more volunteer teams in Louisa, Greene, Nelson and Fluvanna counties by passing  this sign up information along to businesses and churches there. We have projects in those counties each year and would love to have more volunteer teams to help cover those projects!

 

Posted by: Jessica Snyder, United Way Volunteer Center Director

Winery Tours or Golf at Keswick? You Choose.

There is something for everyone on One Fine Day for the United Way on July 23, 2012. For golfers, the United Way Golf Classic offers the opportunity to play on the private Keswick golf course amid specatular scenery. As an extra, fun twist on the usual tournament, craft beer tastings are offered at select holes on the course. The day starts with a box lunch and ends with a sumptious casual buffet dinner as only Keswick can offer. In addition, dinner guests can participate in a diverse raffle as well as a small live auction for unique opportunities and items.

Don't golf, and wish you had the opportunity to spend the day with friends or clients like the golfers do? An Afternoon in the Country was designed for you. Start the day with a box lunch and a talk by Dr. M. Mala Cunningham: "Be Good to Yourself through Mindfulness and Yoga".

Then board the bus for "One Vine Day" of tours and tastings at three local wineries: Jefferson, Trump and Blenheim. Savor the afternoon with friends while sampling wine and enjoying the breathtaking scenery. We will finish up at Blenheim, where you can play a round of croquet if you desire.

Upon your return, you can join our golfers for the special buffet, raffle and auction. One Fine Day for the United Way serves to support our United Way's priority areas of School Readiness, Self-Sufficiency and Community Health. Help your community while having a wonderful day.

The United Way Golf Classic:

• An afternoon of golf, including a box lunch, craft beer tastings, hole contests and a buffet dinner: $150 per golfer

An Afternoon in the Country. Choose all of some of these activities:

• "Be Good to Yourself" lunch:   $20
• "One Vine Day" winery tour:  $60
• Buffet Dinner at Keswick Hall: $65

Or all three events for $140.

CLICK HERE FOR A BROCHURE

And, of course, there are plenty of sponsorship opportunities available.

To register, please call Caroline Emerson at 434-972-1701 or [email protected].

 

 

 

University of Virginia Baseball, Rain, Home Runs and Tailgate Parties

The local businesses who are members of the United Way-Thomas Jefferson Area's Home Run Club pledge $10 to our United Way for each home run the University of Virginia baseball team hits from April 1 through the end of the post season. As one way of saying "Thank You" for their support, our Team Captain, CenturyLink, hosts a pre-game tailgate party for the team members using CavOne, UVA's sports promotion trailer.

Last year's tailgate was on a Sunday, and the game was moved earlier in the day due to forecasted thunderstorms in the afternoon of a brutally hot day. So our lunch tailgate morphed into a brunch tailgate.

This year, rain had been forecast for game day well in advance, but "scattered showers" meant that the weeknight game time did not change in advance. We set up our food and drink and tents, and just as our party start time came, so did light rain, which morphed into steady rain. However, our attendees took it all in stride, and the clustered tents made for an intimate gathering in which everyone got to meet new people and get caught up with old friends, too.

Once again, we had amazing food, thanks to Fry's Spring Station, Raising Canes and Beer Run. Our friends at Specialty Beverage also helped out with an assortment of craft beers.

Too bad the delayed game did not add to our home run tally, but we DID add to our friend tally.

This weekend's home series against Georgia Tech promises great baseball weather, and our fingers are crossed for a home run or two.

Posted by: Kim Connolly

Interning for the United Way a Valuable, Wide-Ranging Experience

In my third year at the University of Virginia I decided to enroll in the internship program (UIP) for the entirety of my fourth year. I had extra space in my schedule and thought it would be fun to get out of the classroom for ten hours a week and do something a little more practical.

My first day at the United Way was both wonderful and overwhelming. Jessica, my sponsor, showed me my desk and then introduced me to everybody in the office. They were all incredibly nice and excited to meet me and they all wanted to tell me all about what they did. I of course promptly forgot everything that they said and spend the next few months learning everything I could about the office and remembering what they had told me earlier.

At my internship seminar I heard horror stories of other interns’ experiences; they would vacuum for ten hours a week, didn’t have a desk to sit at, or would have to deal with highly erratic sponsors and schedules. At the United Way, however, everybody went out of their way to accommodate my schedule and they did their best to involve me with everything that went on in the office. As the intern I expected to do a lot of the busy work in the office, but people would hesitate to ask me to do certain things; everybody really wanted me to have a valuable experience and not just envelope-stuffing experience. I helped organized a School Supply Drive, participated in the Day of Caring (I have never blown up that many balloons), went to a Board Meeting, did research for Impact Area meetings, worked on the Better Business Challenge to make the office more sustainable, and accompanied people to the radio station.

From January until April, I devoted most of my time to doing taxes through the EITC tax coalition. While taxes might not sound very exciting, I really enjoyed this portion of the internship! It meant I got to interact with clients, problem solve if a return got rejected, and really feel like I was making a difference in the community.

By interning at the United Way, I now have a much better understanding of how organizations, and particularly non-profits, function. I feel a lot more confident that I will be capable of holding an actual job. I gained great work experience and also started really connecting to Charlottesville (the University tends to be a little bit of a bubble at times). It felt great to be a part of an organization that works so hard to improve the community. I know that when I visit Charlottesville in the future, I will definitely drop by the office and say hi to everyone!

Posted by: Ellen Janssen, University of Virginia Class of 2012

Save the Date for "One Fine Day for the United Way"

Circle Monday, July 23rd on your calendar for an amazing day at Keswick Hall at Monticello.

For golfers, the United Way Golf Classic, which normally sells out, will be played on the club's Arnold Palmer designed course. Last year's beer tasting tents on the course were a big hit, and will be back again this year. The tournament includes a box lunch and delicious dinner on the patio.

Don't golf? We have you covered. "An Afternoon in the Country" offers a wine tasting tour of three wineries, a box lunch with a speaker, and the opportunity to join the golfers for dinner in the evening.

Both events benefit the United Way-Thomas Jefferson Area. We are invested in: School Readiness, Self-Sufficiency and Community Health. Spend "One Fine Day" with us and help us invest in our community.

More detailed information will be posted soon. If you can't wait and have questions, please contact Caroline Emerson at [email protected] or 434-972-1701. Sponsorship opportunities are also available.

Beer Run Knows A Good Cause Can Also Be Good Fun!

Beer Run is a family owned and operated neighborhood restaurant with a focus on local and organic ingredients.  Beer Run offers the best retail craft beer selection in Virginia and a large selection of biodynamic and organic retail wines.

Beer Run joined the United Way Home Run Club because United Way-Thomas Jefferson Area is our leading community non-profit advocate for those in need.

 

Cajun Voodoo Mama Blog Adds Some Spice to our Team

Cajun Voodoo Mama is a lifestyle blog about all things New Orleans and Mississippi Gulf Coast.  Blog partners Laura Knox and Vanessa Bourgeois are Cajunizing Charlottesvillians – you’ll never be the same! Our mission is to add a little spice to everyday life.

We are proud to support the United Way Home Run Club because we believe that everyone deserves a chance to achieve their very best.  United Way is the voice for those with the greatest needs in the Charlottesville community and the United Way makes a difference everyday…today is our day to help make that happen.  Live United!

Woodard Properties Joins the Home Run Club!

Woodard Properties has been serving Charlottesville Businesses, Students, and the Community since 1981. Woodard Properties offers friendly service and a variety of housing and commercial space options near The University of Virginia and Downtown. Woodard Properties values the Community and thinks the Home Run Club is an excellent opportunity to show their support of The United Way.

Evergreen Real Estate and Construction is a Team Player!

Evergreen Real Estate and Construction is a full service construction firm specializing in new residential construction and remodeling. Our business is built on personal relationships with our clients whether it’s creating a new home or improving one you already own.

The United Way Home Run Club fits our philosophy of working to build a strong community.  We root for the home team and we strive for the common good.