Fundraising
Chances are you’ve heard of Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday. These infamous days kickoff the holiday shopping season for so many individuals across America, but isn’t something missing? After all… we’re entering the season of giving.
United Way of Southeast Missouri has joined #GivingTuesday, a global movement that harnesses the collective power of individuals, communities and organizations to encourage philanthropy. This year, #GivingTuesday occurs on November 28th to kick off the holiday giving season and inspire people to collaborate in improving their community and to give back in impactful ways to the charities and causes they support.
A small yet impactful piece of the United Way puzzle here in our region is our Student Emergency Funds, established in 5 public school districts and at Southeast Missouri State University. These funds have been vital in providing assistance with basic needs to help keep students focused on learning.
The following story was provided by one of our local Children’s Fund Coordinators:
“Upon returning to school on a Monday, I was made aware of a local family that suffered a house fire over the weekend. This family was a blended family with 6 children in the home and 4 of them attended school in our district. They had lost everything and had nothing but the clothes on their backs. They received funding from the Red Cross that they used to pay rent on a neighboring home until they could secure permanent housing. Our school staff was very generous in donating household items and food for this family, but there were so many things that were lost and the need was great.
Thanks to our Children’s Fund we were able to purchase clothing for all 6 of the children in the family as well as school supplies for the school-aged children. With this funding we were able to get the children back in school so that they could start returning to a normal routine, which helped to reduce their anxiety and stress.”
In addition to household items and food, student emergency funds have provided the following across our four-county service area:
- Shoes
- Winter clothes and coats
- Eyeglasses
- Dental care
- Utility assistance
- Food and school supplies
- Testing fees
This #GivingTuesday, we’re asking our community to give a special gift to area children who need a small hand-up. It’s very hard for students to focus on learning when they are not dressed for cold weather, haven’t eaten all weekend or need glasses or dental care. All gifts made under this link will be designated to our Children’s Funds in five public school districts. The fund is managed by a nurse or counselor at each school with input from faculty and staff. Please consider making a contribution to help our students reach their full potential.
How can you get involved and help #SaveOurStudents?!
• Donate! All donations made through this link will be designated to our student emergency funds. Home State Health has also agreed to match all donations made on #GivingTuesday to support our students even further.
• Dine! On Tuesday’s in November, you have the opportunity to donate to United Way anytime you place an order through Cargo Carryout. Be sure to use code: liveunited upon checkout. Also, on Tuesday, November 28th, IMO’s in Jackson and Perryville is donating 10% of sales to our cause!
