United Way of the Brown County Area
awards $227,000 to 32 social service agencies
Five committees comprised of board members and area volunteers completed the funding process to divide funds raised during the annual United Way campaign. Interviews were held with all requesting agencies and a scoring matrix that measured impact and financial accountability was reviewed by the full United Way board.
"It's always a challenge to be good stewards of the donors' money and prioritize where those funds should go when so many agencies are doing good work, particularly when we have not been able to provide all the funding an agency requests," says Barb Dietz, a Brown County Family Services employee and a United Way community investment volunteer.
Such was the case this year when funding requests were $38,000 more than our funding budget. After all the interviews were conducted, the board felt confident that the funding decisions still guaranteed excellent delivery of programs. Some decisions meant that a program within an agency would not be able to expand but would be able to maintain the level of service previously provided. The final decision meant that 14 agencies were granted their full request, 7 agencies received the same amount as the prior funding cycle and 5 agencies received more than the prior funding cycle but less than their request. A full list of funding decisions can be found on our website.
It is the mission of United Way of Brown County to facilitate successful agency relationships that provide for safe, healthy and caring communities. More than just a fundraiser, United Way collaborates with businesses, non-profits and community organizations to identify and address the social service needs of Brown County.
Tax Preparation Program Huge Success United Way of Brown County partnered with the NU Library and Tax Aide to provide free tax preparation for over 350 clients this past tax season. Eight volunteers spent a week being trained and tested to reach certification as a tax preparer. Many thanks go out to Steve Schneider (who also served as the local coordinator), Mary Loetscher, Jim Sprenger, Archie Delaiden, Cathy Trautmiller, Jon Olson, Julie VanName and Vicki Sieve who served clients from the beginning of February to the middle of April. Also thanks to Becky Schneider and Peg Sundell who served as greeters/intake staff. We look forward to next year as these 8 volunteers have agreed to serve again. Even though they were a bit uncertain as to what they were getting into, they enjoyed the challenge, were gratified to help those who needed it and appreciated the flexible schedule so that their volunteer schedule didn't interfere with any prior plans. We are hoping to find even more volunteers next year so that more clients can be served. Many newly retired people in our community would find this a great opportunity to stay engaged while giving back to their community in a meaningful way. If you would like to hear more about this opportunity, please contact the United Way office at 354-6512 and we will fill you in on all the details.
| 
