At the conclusion of the fourth week of the 2018 Campaign, United Way of Midland County is reporting pledges of $1,940,001. These pledges represent 41% of the overall $4,700,000 campaign goal.
As the 2018 Campaign nears the halfway point, the Live United message can be seen throughout the community in posters, t-shirts and innovative employee gatherings and events. Live United is more than just a tagline—it’s a rally cry that encourages everyone to Give, Advocate and Volunteer to make a difference in their community.
The Great Lakes Loons’ ongoing support of the nonprofit community continues to make Midland County a more vibrant community overall. In addition to their generous Campaign contributions, the Loons have been very active in the community this year. Over the summer, the Loons donated a variety of prizes to the Story Adventurers Summer Reading Program at Joseph’s Run Apartment Complex to reward participants for attending on a regular basis. More recently, the Loons staff and players transformed two baseball fields at the West Midland Family Center, making them playable once again.
“United Way of Midland County possesses and practices an uplifting vision founded upon the tried and true: Creativity, passion, teamwork and determination,” stated Thom Pepe, Great Lakes Loons Assistant GM of Ticket Sales. “Their collective voice for which they are nationally recognized provides hope, counsel and immediate assistance to both individuals and families within the greater Midland community who may acutely find themselves in a confusing and difficult place along their life’s journey.”
The City of Midland and Midland County employees are also getting into the action of this year’s Campaign through a variety of fun activities. Midland County employees can send a $5 “Emoji-gram” to their colleagues, wear jeans any day for $2 and enter a drawing for a prize when they turn in their pledges early. They’ll also be hosting a “Cornhole for a Cause” City vs. County cornhole tournament. City of Midland employees will be hosting a chili cook-off, taco bar lunch and other lunchtime activities that employees all throughout the city will have the opportunity to participate in. All proceeds from these activities benefit the 2018 United Way Campaign. Cliff Block, Midland’s Chief of Police, has been instrumental in inspiring fellow local law enforcement officials to get involved and give back as well.
“As the Chief of Police I have the opportunity to collaborate with many of the United Way of Midland County funded agencies, providing me a fuller understanding of the true impact these agencies have on our community,” shared Block. “As a law enforcement agency, we often times rely on our partnerships with these organizations to assist us in our ability of providing the highest level of customer service possible to their clients and our community. The need to maintain and enhance these resources becomes more and more critical each passing year. I am a proud Midland resident and I proudly give to United Way.”
Education remains a key area of focus for United Way’s work. United Way of Midland County invests in programs that help kids from birth all the way through to their careers. During the Campaign and throughout the year, many local educational organizations get involved and give back to United Way. Throughout the year, United Way collaborates with the Midland Public Schools on a number of initiatives, including United for Success—the collaborative program in which United Way manages volunteer engagement throughout the MPS school district. Since the program’s inception at the beginning of the 2017 school year, 3,908 active participants have been registered to volunteer within the Midland Public Schools. In the 2017 school year, this accounted for over 27,000 volunteer hours. Midland Public Schools also runs a generous employee campaign benefiting United Way’s annual fundraising efforts.
The 2018 United Way Campaign will continue until October 31. For more information about how you can help create a thriving community, visit unitedwaymidland.org.
