Building on Success in 2012

The last of the holiday music lingers as we gear up for the New Year, formulating our resolutions and planning new initiatives.  But the New Year also offers an opportunity to reflect on the past before we leap forward.

Recently, a group of past and present United Way Monterey County board members, volunteers and staff surprised me with an event to celebrate my serving as President and CEO for 10 years. Seeing the talented mix of people in the room, I was reminded of the role each one played in contributing to the success of United Way and the lives of the people who live here.

The list of things accomplished by the generosity of our community is amazing.  United Way conducted a needs assessment and applied the results to add three new agencies that serve at-risk youth.  These agencies are now part of the 37 Certified Partner agencies whose work strengthens our community daily, providing services to the most vulnerable folks among us.

We realized there was no dearth of services but recognized there was no easy way to connect people with the services they needed. So we pulled together a collaboration of private and public sectors partners to bring 2-1-1 to Monterey County. 2-1-1 is now part of our local fabric and usage has surpassed all expectation.

The FamilyWize drug discount program has saved county residents $3,415,361.18 in prescription costs since we introduced it in July 2007.  

We now have an office in Salinas, where The Volunteer Center is based.  Connecting more than 400 agencies with more than 1400 volunteers annually keeps our community alive and thriving. An additional 12,000 visits to the volunteermontereycounty.org website is impressive.

Three years ago, United Way took on the management of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program at the request of longtime partner, the County of Monterey.  This program provides free tax assistance to low-wage workers. To date, VITA has helped local workers claim more than $2.9 million in refunds and credits translating to a stimulus to our local economy of more than $4 million.

Last summer we conducted a drive to collect school supplies for homeless children. There are 3000 homeless children in our school districts and more than 26 percent of our children live in poverty.

We also raised and leveraged more than $ 50,000,000. That is a lofty achievement for a county where the unemployment rate in some parts soars as high as 28 percent. The generosity of our area far surpasses the beautiful vistas, majestic coastline and fertile valleys and fields. The true value of our county is the people who live here.

It would be easy to continue to wax on about our accomplishments, but many of us realize that 2012 will be another year of struggle for people. Last year, 71% of the people served by United Way agencies were classified as very low income. In difficult economic times, they are affected first and relieved last. 

You may have heard our message on radio or television – “If you’re doing OK, dig a little deeper this year.  Give Courageously.”  Last year, we conducted presentations to more than 8400 workers in groups as large as several hundred and as small as five. Each one of these presentations told residents about the services available. It is not surprising that one in three county residents benefited from the services of a United Way-funded agency. Together we made a difference in many people’s lives.

I am honored to have served these past 10 years as the staff leader for United Way. We are grateful for the trust you have placed in us these many years and hope we can continue to count on your financial support to continue the good work we’ve been doing. 

Mary Adams, President and CEO
United Way Monterey County