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 FAQs
1. Why should I give to United Way? Why not give directly to one or two other nonprofits and cut out United Way’s overhead? No agency can operate in a vacuum – we partner with 90 different agencies because no single nonprofit has the skill-set to address all this community’s needs, any more than a brain surgeon can do the work of a heart surgeon. Without the support of other agencies working on parallel issues, even the best individual agency is far less effective at providing solutions that will have a lasting impact. If there is a cause that you feel passionate about, by all means, give directly to that agency. But if you wish to have a broader impact and help uplift the Charlotte region as a whole, you can do so via United Way’s Community Care Fund. If you feel that United Way is “overhead,” please speak with the executive director of one of these 90 agencies whom you trust. While they’ll gladly accept a direct contribution, they will also tell you that without United Way leading the charge, not only would their fundraising be less effective, but they would incur much greater overhead of their own. They will also likely point out that partnering with United Way vastly increases their reach, and in some cases, provides them access to grants that they could not apply for without the stamp of approval that comes from being a United Way agency. In short, without United Way, their ability to provide valuable services to our community would be compromised. 2. What is your overhead? Our overhead rate for fiscal year June 30, 2010 was 13.3% Volunteers are essential – they enable us to operate efficiently and to have constant community input. But the historical or small-town model where United Ways are run largely by volunteers is insufficient in a large metropolitan area with vast, complex challenges. Producing true change, both short-term and long-term, is a full-time mission. 4. How do you decide where the money goes? When is it distributed? Through our Citizen Review Process, which includes volunteers like you, we determine where the greatest needs are and which agencies/programs are best-positioned to address those needs. For more detail regarding that process, please click here. Money raised through our 2009 campaign is distributed at the beginning of our fiscal year (July 1), immediately following our Citizen Review Process. Funds are distributed to the agencies semimonthly throughout the year. For a complete agency-by-agency and county-by-county breakdown of where the 2009 campaign funds are being distributed, please click here for the 2010-2011 Regional Fund Distribution Report. 5. How do you choose those agencies? How does an agency become a United Way partner? The agencies that we partner with were vetted through an application and review process. The agencies have all demonstrated that they’re performing an essential service to the community. Each must be a tax-exempt, nonprofit corporation governed by a volunteer board whose members are elected and supported by trained, professional staff. Additionally, they must have an annual, independent financial review and meet reasonable standards of financial responsibility and efficiency. We are currently in the midst of an 18-month reinvention process that evaluates everything we do and how we do it. We do not anticipate considering any changes to the make-up of the agencies that we partner with until this process is finished. 6. How do you determine what amount goes to which county? I live in one county and work in another one – where does my money go? Health and human services needs are not confined by political borders. This current recession was a painful demonstration of how dependent we all are on one another, as we saw that jobs lost in one county will drag down surrounding counties. That is why we focus on distributing funds where they are needed most. At its core, United Way is about neighbors helping neighbors – not only at the street level aiding those we personally know, but also at the town, city, and county level. The 2009 Community Care Fund was a demonstration of our collective resolve – over $2.8 million more than the prior year’s CCF total is being distributed throughout the five-county region that we serve, because donors like you chose to give to the Community Care Fund. Had each county focused inwardly on its own needs, the ability to create lasting change would be significantly diminished. |
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