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It’s timely that I’ve been asked to blog about our community and United Way at this particular moment.  It’s a moment two weeks from the end of the annual United Way campaign.  This same moment represents the interaction of a series of economic problems that makes this one of the most challenging times in our region’s memory – at least our recent memory.

United Way – and the human services initiatives and agencies it supports – have faced economic ups and downs before.  This one feels different.  Challenges in past years have affected specific industries, companies and the employees of those companies.  Today’s issues – gas and food prices, home foreclosures, real estate downturn, pensions, banks and financial institutions – cut across a very wide spectrum of our community’s individuals, families, companies, even neighborhoods.  They have the potential to affect everyone from the struggling family in the inner city to the residents of Indian Hill – in much the same way that the dramatic windstorm of weeks ago played no favorites in determining which families lost their power.

As a result, United Way’s “business is booming” in ways we never want.  Calls to United Way 211, our 24-hour helpline, are up 25% year-to-year, and 38% in the past two months.  In September we received more calls for help than in any month in our history.  The Freestore Foodbank and many other United Way agencies are experiencing similar increases, many from individuals and families that have never asked for help before.  In difficult times, needs increase.

In the campaign, we’ve been astounded by the number of wonderful individuals, companies and organizations that have increased their giving this year.  They’ve said, ”I may be hurting some, but I know others are hurting more.  I can do more, so I will.”

Truly amazing – but knowing our community, not surprising.

But the reality is that many of our supporting organizations, and individual donors, can’t do more.  The simplest way to put this is that if you’re no longer working, you can’t give.  So we have a big gap between what we think we’ll raise and our goal of $63,000,000, which is a modest $200,000 above last year’s result.

Some facts you may know.  This campaign helps parents help their children become prepared for kindergarten, helps connect a child with a big brother or big sister, helps a family with a child with cerebral palsy, helps a woman deal with breast cancer, helps a senior stay in her home by providing a visiting nurse.

What you don’t know:  in some modest ways our community’s United Way sets the pace for United Ways across the country.  We’re the ninth largest United Way, the fourth highest per capita giving community, in the country.  And each year we’re the first campaign in the country to finish.  So others will be watching what Cincinnati does this year.  My Dallas United Way colleague last week asked me, “How’s Cincinnati doing?  We look to you as an indicator of where we may be headed.”

So we have a very visible opportunity to set a positive example for our community – and even the nation – if we can achieve success this year.  We can say, “let’s continue our positive community momentum – let’s not take a step backward.”

Much more importantly:  we can at least maintain current services to so many who are needing support.  We can continue to connect that big brother and little brother, continue to support the child with cerebral palsy, and the woman with cancer.

If you can support this effort with a little more – start a campaign at your company, make a personal gift yourself, help your organization’s campaign achieve success – please call 762-7100 today and we’ll help you make a difference.

This is a wonderful community.  Let’s move forward together.  LIVE UNITED.