This year’s pledge campaign is about to end, and United Way has achieved only 65 percent of its goal, Ann Thompson said.
“This is not about United Way making its goal,” she said. “It is about our Central Texas neighbors in need, who desperately rely on agency services that are losing funding from so many other sources. They simply cannot afford to lose funding from us. The bottom line is: It is about the need, not about the number, and I am hoping that everyone will focus on that and not fear of the economy.”
Officials at several agencies that receive funding from United Way, as well as from other sources, confirmed they are seeing fewer dollars from fewer people this year.
But, they said, they are not seeing fewer people who need their help.
“We are facing the conundrum of more people needing assistance,” Ms. Thompson said, “but fewer people reaching out a hand to give it.”
This year’s shortfall is a reversal of fortunes for United Way.
“We have overcome new challenges every year that I have been here, and have actually more that doubled our numbers in the last five years,” she said. “But this year is different. It is more than just a struggling economy. It is the fear and uncertainty for what the future holds because of it. And because of that fear, people are forgetting the importance of giving.”
Judy Morales, executive director of the Bell County Help Center, said United Way’s annual allocation is essential to the financial stability of the organization.
Last year, the Help Center, like all other United Way-supported agencies, received every dollar it requested.
The total was more than $1.5 million, a record.
Ms. Thompson said Communities in Schools, also a United Way agency, has lost nearly $500,000 in funding this year from government and private sources. Those seeking help, though, have increased in number.
Charlie Kimmey, executive director of Ralph Wilson Youth Clubs, said his organization is in a real bind this year.
“We’re very concerned,” he said. “Even if United Way is able to give us every dollar we asked for, we’re still going to be down 20 percent of what we budget for because investments are down from the private foundation. Because of the way the economy is right now, we are not able to go up on our fees to help dispel the deficit, because families can’t afford it. We’re already giving scholarships to children when we don’t have the money to do so.”
Anticipating an increase in demand for services, the Belton Christian Youth Center is opening a new building next year. But with the new building comes higher operational costs.
“United Way funds are critical to us,” said Melissa Parker, executive director of BCYC. The money “keeps our lights on, keeps water running, keeps fuel in the tanks of our buses and vans, and enables us to provide scholarships to the severely needy in our area.”
Scott Simmonds, executive director of Peaceable Kingdom Retreat for Children, lamented any possible loss in United Way support.
“If Peaceable Kingdom funding from United Way is cut due to the campaign’s shortfall, it is likely that the retreat will have to tell the families of chronically ill and special-needs children that they are not able to provide the accustomed resources to them in 2009,” he said. “And that is something this community would agree should never come to reality.”
Thompson said she’s an optimist, but she and her board are also worried.
“One thing I have always known about this community is that when the going gets tough, the tough get going,” she said. “The leadership we have here, the sense of community, the benevolence and caring for others is part of who we are.”
