3 / LIVE UNITED
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Uniting workplaces in support of something bigger By: Lauri Schiffbauer, Director of Resource Development
U
nited Way Workplace Campaigns unite employees in all offices or branches of a company giving them an opportunity to donate, volunteer and contribute to causes that matter to them. It feels good to be a part of something bigger and join together to provide solutions. Employee Campaign Coordinators (ECCs) are the link between United Way and our partner companies. ECCs manage all aspects of a company’s employee giving campaign. From initial planning to gathering the last pledge form, they work with United Way staff to have the best campaign possible! ECCs volunteer their time to make sure all employees at their company have the opportunity to give. This year’s ECCs rocked the house with creative, fun, yummy and sometimes hysterical ways to participate in their company’s Workplace Campaign. Casual clothing days were a huge hit at several sites. Employees purchased United Way stickers in exchange for the opportunity to wear pajamas, shorts or jeans to work if they sported the United Way sticker. Several supervisors purchased stickers as holiday gifts for their teams! Chili cook-offs, bake sales and even an Enterprise Holdings Mac &
Cheese cook-off were some of the delicious ways our ECCs engaged their teams in supporting United Way. Ping-pong tournaments and virtual Bingo were favorites at Infinite Energy. Days of Action are a great team-building activity and a way to learn about United Way’s Impact Partners. In November, Nationwide employees volunteered at Boys & Girls Club of Alachua County to clear shrubs and downed trees from the Club’s fields. With more than 50 volunteers, Team Nationwide was able to repaint two baseball dugouts and complete a trash sweep of the entire area. Breakfasts, lunches, dinners and wine and cheese events were a popular way of developing and thanking those giving at the Leadership level. With such a wonderful variety of activities this year, we can’t wait to see what our ECCs dream up next year! Thank you to all our ECCs for working hard to create innovative and engaging Workplace Campaigns. You, your team members and your companies help United Way to win the fight for the health, education and financial stability of EVERY PERSON in our community! If you want to run a Workplace Campaign, please contact Lauri Schiffbauer at LSchiffbauer@unitedwayncfl.org.
CAMPAIGN ASSOCIATES HELP SHARE OUR MESSAGE During the campaign season, United Way employees visit between 50–100 workplaces in the area. During this busy time of year, we add some temporary staff to our Development Team. These campaign associates provide crucial help sharing United Way’s message with the community. They join the team for four months and their schedules are packed. In the past, United Way utilized executives who were “loaned” from other businesses for the campaign season. Recently there has been a shift to temporary campaign associates. These temporary United Way associates develop valuable leadership, public speaking and team building skills. They also have the opportunity to meet all of our Employee Campaign Coordinators and workplace employees across the region. This year, we had the pleasure of working with Renee Morrissette and Marcia Tilson, who played a major role in helping the Development Team with large Workplace Campaigns, organizing volunteer opportunities and representing United Way to the public.
Campaign associates provide crucial help with sharing United Way’s message with the community. They join the team for four months and their schedules are packed.