Lincoln County was fortunate last week to have the Lincoln County Annual Summit, organized by the relatively new Executive Director, Elsa Duranceau, Lincoln County Economic Development Corporation. The two-day event brought together key players important to the future direction of our county, Tomahawk and Merrill. The event was a large undertaking but produced a broad array of important subject matters and discussion opportunities. While United Way’s role dealt with the significance of volunteerism, it was only one of many larger threads. More than twenty speakers shared knowledge, insights, experiences, and key conversations to help work on continuous improvement. It was noted “Change is Hard; Understanding the process and the need is Critical.” There seemed to be a keen sense that the County/community is willing to embrace change. It would be our hope that a future Summit would be on the horizon.
March is National Fatherhood Initiative Month. While we recognize both parents are equally important in a child’s life, we also know that statistically more fathers are not as present or active in their child’s life as they could be. Fathers do not have to be superheroes. Just be a dad who is present and supportive. United Way helps support children and families by funding programs for Family Resource Center, Parkside Preschool Center, Safety Patrol, Boy Scouts, Girls Scouts, Big Brother-Big Sisters and several more.
The United Way annual Planning and Goal Setting meeting will be held on April 17th. Again, our facilitator for this session is Laura Huggins, a marketing specialist with Connexus Credit Union. While the focus will be to set goals that will continue to drive United Way forward. It is also a time for us to plan the implementation of our new website and the forthcoming changes to be set forth by United Way Worldwide with their new “Brand Refresh” initiative. Although we are a small United Way, we favor keeping pace with the changing trends that will help us further develop our organization.
It is important that our donors know their dollars do reach the people who need help. March 4th the first round of agency allocation checks were sent to United Way funded agencies and program. The funds to agencies totaled $108,945.00. The second half of allocations will be sent August 31st, as pledged dollars are received. Additionally, donor direct designations will be sent to some of the agencies. At the heart of all our efforts are the help given to people and the incredible stories on how these funds have helped.
Remember to keep our community healthy by Living United, helping others, volunteering, and giving financial support. Donations can be mailed to Merrill Area United Way, P O Box 813, Merrill, WI 54452. Dollars stay local!