Editorial: United Way needs your help to meet $5.5M goal

As urban areas grew in the U.S. during the latter part of the 19th century a huge problem developed: Organizations within those communities formed by donations to help people in a variety of ways found it more difficult to support themselves.There were too many hands out, and confused residents began to refuse all of them.That's why United Way was founded. In Denver in 1887, a group of people believed there was a better way. It included a priest, two ministers and a rabbi who recognized that people were moving from rural areas into the cities and that urban areas had less of a sense of community and economic safety net than small towns.They created the Charity Organization Society to collect funds from local business employees and distribute them to local charities.The movement spread throughout the country and eventually became United Way, which is now one of the world's largest privately funded charities. United Way serves 95% of U.S. communities and 37 countries and territories, and its humanitarian aid supports 48 million people every year.United Way's mission is to fight for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in every community, and that effort occurs annually at this time of year and is now underway in the eight counties of Northeast Tennessee. United Way needs your help to meet a combined $5.5 million fundraising goal.Leslie Dalton, president and CEO of the United Way of East Tennessee Highlands, said the theme of this year's regional kickoff is "Thrive.""We want to make sure that people are not just surviving, but thriving," Dalton said. "We are seeing an increase in the number of nonprofit programs seeking support from United Way, as well as an uptick in local residents seeking assistance from those programs."United Way campaigns helped to fund more than 112 nonprofit programs last year that served more than 175,000 people in eight counties of the region. Ramona Jackson, United Way of Greater Kingsport's (UWGK) resource development vice chair, said that unit aims to raise $2.8 million to support local agencies and organizations."While we have a tall goal, I know that all of us together will be able to reach that," Jackson said. "But it's going to take all of us."Jackson said some initiatives United Way is focusing on this year are early grade reading, homelessness, youth drug prevention and racial equity.Danelle Glasscock, executive director for UWGK, said the unit supports 1,4000 lives on any given day.A 90th birthday party event for UWGK will be held on Sept. 26 at the Kingsport Farmers Market. There will be free kids activities, entertainment, dinner, program and a special performance between the hours of 4 and 9 p.m.Your contribution to the United Way helps improve the lives of thousands of local residents every day by tackling early grade literacy, breaking the cycle of poverty, confronting access to effective health care, supporting the needs of our senior citizens, and battling addiction in our region.The work of dozens of organizations supported by the United Way would stop except for you and the thousands of others who give to the United Way.For more information about the Kingsport unit, visit uwaykpt.org. To find your local unit, visit unitedway.org.United Way campaigns helped to fund more than 112 nonprofit programs last year that served more than 175,000 people in eight counties of the region.