A BIG welcome to our WCCs, and a HUGE thanks to their sponsors!

It’s that time of year again when our annual Fall Workplace Campaign ramps up. This campaign wouldn’t be nearly as successful each year without the addition of Workplace Campaign Coordinators (WCCs) to our staff roster. These individuals come to us through the generosity of local organizations and individuals participating in our sponsored employee program.

With salary and benefits paid by their sponsors, WCCs join forces with our staff to support and inspire hundreds of workplace campaigns in our community. They assist these workplaces in planning, implementing and monitoring their United Way campaigns, while honing and refining their skills in sales, customer service, public speaking, leadership, project management, networking and strategic analysis.

Many of our WCCs come from post-secondary institutions. Some are sponsored by the schools themselves, while others come to us through the generosity of local individuals.

Please join me in giving a BIG welcome to our new WCCs, and a HUGE thanks to their sponsors:

Esther Song  -  University of Waterloo

Matthew Wong  -  University of Waterloo

Renee Walkom  -  Wilfrid Laurier University

Annette Walker  -  Region of Waterloo

Carrie Bergen-Geisel  -  Manulife Financial


To learn more about our sponsored employee program, please visit our web site or contact Rene Porritt at rporritt@uwaykw.org or 519-888-6100 ext. 287.

Jan

Lisa LaFlamme to headline our 2011 Celebrity Event

Reporter Joel Rubinoff wrote a great feature in The Waterloo Region Record last Saturday about Lisa LaFlamme, the Kitchener native who rose through the ranks of television news and broke through the proverbial glass ceiling to recently take over from Lloyd Robertson as chief anchor of the CTV evening news.

Here’s how Joel describes Lisa in the article:
“She’s a doer, not a whiner, an optimist, not a cynic, a passionate, committed trailblazer who rises to challenges, grabs opportunities and, confronted with opposition, pushes beyond it.”
 
She sounds like someone just as worthy of being the news as she is worthy of delivering it, doesn’t she? Which is why I’m so thrilled that it’s Lisa we’re honouring at this year’s United Way Kitchener Waterloo and Area Annual Celebrity Event on Friday November 25th at Federation Hall.
  
Tickets go on sale later this month, and you’ll find more details about the event at http://www.uwaykw.org/.
 
Hope to see you there!

Jan

Text-to-Give campaign for Goderich raises much-needed support

I’m pleased to report that our text-to-give campaign in support of those affected by the recent tornado in Goderich raised $2855. These funds, along with some additional donations from individuals without texting capabilities, are being passed on to United Way Perth-Huron, which serves the Goderich area.

I was so pleased to see the support from the community, media partners and social media outlets. We’ve never seen so many retweets! Our community put caring into action by texting their financial support and sharing it with their networks. As our Communications Officer, Meg Lagrotta, wrote in her recent Community Heroes blog on the subject, “that’s a whole lot of texting going on!”

Thanks to Libro Financial Group for making this campaign possible. With their support, we became one of the first United Ways in Canada to launch mobile giving.

Our mobile giving campaign continues throughout our fall workplace campaign season in support of those in need here in the KW area. Up to 6 times per month, you can text “UWAY” to 45678 to donate $5 to United Way KW. The amount gets added your phone bill.

Thanks for caring,

Jan

The Value of our Sponsored Employee Program

I’ve been discussing corporate social responsibility a lot lately, so it seems only fitting to tell you about our sponsored employee program. It’s a unique opportunity for local organizations to practice corporate social responsibility in a way that benefits them, their chosen employee and our community.

Essentially, our sponsored employee program sees potential leaders from a variety of workplaces join forces with United Way KW staff for about four months, often during our fall workplace campaign. These individuals hone and refine valuable business skills - including public speaking, customer service, strategic planning, leadership, project management and networking - while helping workplaces plan, implement and monitor their United Way campaigns. They then return to their workplace feeling refreshed, rejuvenated, and ready to go - not to mention brimming with new skills and ideas.

Of course, not every organization has an employee to loan. Another option is to donate funding for a sponsored employee, allowing United Way KW the flexibility to hire an individual with the specific skills we need.

Many sponsored employees are students from post-secondary institutions. While some are sponsored by their schools, others come to us through the generosity of local businesses and organizations. Be sure to read my August 2nd blog to learn about a unique sponsored employee arrangement that’s benefitting United Way KW, Teledyne Dalsa and co-op student James Saliba alike.

For more information about our sponsored employee program, be sure to visit www.uwaykw.org.

Jan

Please Join United Way KW in Supporting the Citizens of Goderich

The town of Goderich lies disaster-stricken in the wake of an F3 Tornado that hit the community last Sunday. I find it hard to believe that the photos I see online and in the newspapers depict a once-idyllic location so near to my own home. The overwhelming personal and emotional loss suffered by the residents of Goderich extends far beyond the physical damage these images reveal. Like the buildings, their lives, too, need to be rebuilt.

In times such as this, with so many lives uprooted so close to home, we must step up and help each other. Please, put your caring into action. Text "UCARE" to 45678 to donate $5.00 to United Way Perth-Huron and let the citizens of Goderich know we're here to help them thorough this tumultuous time.

For more information, please refer to the media release on the our web site. 

Jan

Corporate Social Responsibility: No Longer Just a Buzzword

Corporate social responsibility. You hear this phrase everywhere, and I, for one, couldn’t be happier that it has passed the mere buzzword phase to now represent a key consideration – an expectation, in fact - for those thinking about doing business with or working for an organization.

I firmly believe that what’s good for the community is also good for business. Working with United Way KW can strengthen your reputation as a caring organization while setting a positive example for employees. No matter what size your business, no matter how many employees, your support can make a difference in our community.

Here are two great ideas for getting involved:

• Make a corporate gift to show that you care about more than just the bottom line - you also care about your employees and your community. Encourage employees to get involved by offering to match their contributions with an equal corporate gift.
• Grow leadership within your organization and foster team spirit by holding an annual United Way workplace campaign. Combine fundraising efforts with other initiatives such as a staff BBQ to make giving fun while bringing awareness to social issues in our community.

For more great ideas for engaging in corporate social responsibility, click here.


Jan

Teledyne Dalsa Donates Social Media Student

“You’re pursuing a master’s degree in what?”

This was my first thought when introduced to University of Waterloo student James Saliba, who’s currently working on a master of arts degree in experimental digital media. It probably also explains why James is such a valuable asset to United Way KW.

James comes to us as a gift from Teledyne Dalsa, where he is currently employed on a co-op work term. From now until his work term ends in December, James will spend one day a week using his technical and academic experience to evaluate the way United Way KW engages with community stakeholders via electronic means. He’ll conduct a comprehensive review of our digital social media engagement practices and will work to build a consistent, simple means for us to utilize social media to its full extent.

We were told James has a knack for thinking outside the box and identifying opportunities we didn’t even know existed, and he’s already proven this to be true. I can’t wait to see what additional opportunities he’ll find as we look at expanding our use of digital media for connecting with the community.

You’ve heard of a win-win situation, I know, but this one is win-win-win. James benefits from experience gained through two work terms in one, we at United Way KW benefit from James’ valuable knowledge and skills, and Teledyne Dalsa benefits from providing further support to United Way while offering an enhanced experience for co-op students.

Special thanks to Patrick Myles, Vice President of Business Development and Communications at Teledyne DALSA (also a member of our Board of Directors), and to Neil Humphrey, Manager of Corporate Communications at Teledyne Dalsa, for spearheading this unique opportunity.

Jan