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Today an article appeared on the front page of the Austin American Statesman entitled “Local United Way changing direction.” We were excited to see our new approach to community building get such attention. And I want to take this opportunity to expand upon some of the information from the article. I hope this brief overview gives you a clearer sense of what our new direction is, how it addresses the basic needs of our community, and helps close the growing “Opportunity Gap” between those who are getting ahead and those who are falling behind. While it’s true that we are interested in creating sustainable, long-term change in the Central Texas community, I’d like to reiterate we are not pulling away from helping people in crisis. Rather we are working to invest in programs that stabilize families and individuals. We are funding a number of basic needs services in our new approach, and are, in fact, expanding the spectrum of what constitutes “basic needs.” We see basic needs as a piece of the overall puzzle. We want to (a) empower people with the tools and knowledge to reduce their reliance on basic needs services, and (b) help move people from basic needs services into self-sustaining environments through affordable housing, meal delivery, workforce development, etc. Although we are in the middle of an open, volunteer-driven proposal (funding) process, in which a record number of organizations have applied for community dollars, I’d like to provide a few examples of basic needs services we […]

I attended the Capital City African-American Chamber’s 25th Anniversary Luncheon a few weeks ago. I wanted to write about it, not so much to tell you about the event but more about the experience. From the beginning, it made me feel good inside. They kicked it off with a great singer, Ms. Judy Arnold who blew everyone away with her rendition of the National Anthem & the African-American National Anthem and an invocation by Reverend Joseph C. Parker from David Chapel Baptist Church. What a great way to start the celebration of African-American contributions to the Greater Austin community! There was a feeling of community, of camaraderie and a true respect for the history of the chamber and those that helped build it. The program included founding board members, past executive directors and a transition to the future with the current President, Dr. Chiquita W. Eugene. My favorite parts were the history, stories and lessons, all combined together. I’m a strong believer that before we move forward, we must look back and learn from our past. And speaking of the next wave of leaders….I’ve had the opportunity to work with Arron Brooks, Membership & Tourism Manager at the Chamber. Arron is a great person to work with and I wanted get to know him a little more. I asked him a few questions about his work, the chamber and a glimpse into the importance of culture. Here’s what he had to say….. Tell me about yourself and what you do?I’m […]

United Way Capital Area has a team for the 2007 Komen Austin Race for the Cure®. We hope to see you at the race on Sunday! (Don’t forget to set your clocks back an hour.) Click here to support the United Way team. Click here to get involved with the race as a volunteer or participant.

A few weeks ago, Robert Egger, CEO of the DC Central Kitchen, founder of the Nonprofit Congress and winner of the 2007 Non Profit Times 50 Most Powerful and Influential Leaders was in town to give us his insights on the nonprofit sector in Austin. Here’s what he had to say….. We are working in a nonprofit sector that isn’t “rockin”, which is why minorities and young, energetic employees aren’t “knockin!” In order for our sector to grow and remain viable in the not-so distant baby-boomers-retired future, we need to not only create new ideas, but stand up for them and believe in them. We, as young people in the sector need to demand a voice at the table with our sector’s leaders, as well as our country’s leaders. We are 10% of the workforce with an economic share greater than the GNP of India – we deserve that voice, but aren’t given that respect by our nation’s leaders. We need to get past the notion of nonprofits as “charities that do random nice things” and see ourselves as a common movement. We need to shed the “make them come to us” model and start going to them – the volunteers and resources are out there and excited to work with us. Young Nonprofit Professional Network (YNPN) has the opportunity and obligation to work towards revolutionizing the state of nonprofits to work for us and future generations, because the current system has gotten bigger, but not better. Or better yet, […]

As part of their two week long campaign Engineering firm URS Austin has an event called “Kiss the Critter.” People vote with their contributions on who they want to kiss the critter. The “winner,” of course, has to kiss the animal. This time several people participated in the kissing of the critter.

UPS Supply Chain Solutions at the airport held a Pie in the Face fundraiser for United Way on Friday October 26th. A small operation of about 25 people participated in the fundraiser. The managers all agreed to be pied by the other staff. One manager, Sue Postelle, purchased four Marie Callender pies to throw at her co-workers.

The San Diego County 2-1-1 answered over 25,000 calls by Wednesday, October 24. They are being assisted by over 700 volunteers to provide the critical role of local/regional 2-1-1s in disaster response, before, during, and well after any event. Central Texas’ own 2-1-1 has received 2 calls from individuals who evacuated to Texas from California.How can our community can help those effected by the California fires? Click here or on the graphic to donate to United Way Southern California Wildfires Recovery Fund.

This makes for slightly grim reading, we have our work cut out!! What do you think we should do to change perceptions and attitudes? Only Eight Percent are Extremely Involved in Giving Time or Money It is easy to point the finger and say corporations should be more socially responsible, but when it comes to individual social responsibility, two-thirds of U.S. adults have “Good Intentions” and they believe that social responsibility is a good idea, and they do what they can in terms of volunteering, but they do not sacrifice huge amounts of time or money. At the top end of the spectrum, 8 percent of U.S. adults “Practice What They Preach” and for this group, individual, as well as corporate, social responsibility is extremely important. One-quarter of U.S. adults, however, follow a philosophy of “To Thine Own Self Be True” and, for this group, social responsibility has little consequence in their lives. These are just some of the results of a Harris Poll of 2,383 U.S. adults conducted online between May 8 and 14, 2007 by Harris Interactive�. …..full details here http://www.harrisinteractive.com/harris_poll/index.asp?PID=774

Hands On Central Texas Director Armando Rayo was featured in the latest issue of The Chronicle of Philanthropy. Check out what he has to say about minority managers at nonprofits. Some young managers who are members of minority groups say they already face doubts from supervisors and prospective employers about their abilities based on their age and level of experience. Ethnicity adds one more barrier for them. In some cases, they say, their own bosses or other nonprofit leaders have made them acutely aware of their physical differences. “I don’t look like a typical nonprofit director to them,” says Armando Rayo, the 33-year-old director of Hands On Central Texas, in Austin, a department within the local United Way that helps to raise money and bolster a corps of volunteers. Read the entire article here.

One of our 3 Focus Areas moving forward is Education. We feel, in order to close the “opportunity gap” that exists here in Central Texas, that it’s vital to provide world class education for our community, in order for all to prosper. Get involved at a series of upcoming town hall meetings. Mark your calenders now! Austin:6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 25 and Nov. 1; Reagan High School , 7104 Berkman Drive Bastrop: 6 to 8 p.m. Monday and Oct. 22 and 29; Mina Elementary School , 1203 Hill St . Eanes:6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 23 and 30; Hill Country Middle School , 1300 Walsh Tarlton Lane Manor:6 to 8:15 p.m. Tuesday and Oct. 23; New Tech High School , 10323 U.S. 290 East Round Rock:6:30 to 9 p.m. Tuesday; McNeil High School , 5720 McNeil Drive , Austin San Marcos:6 to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 22 and 29 and Nov. 15; San Marcos High School , 2601 E. McCarty Lane To RSVP, for more information or to volunteer to be a moderator, visit www.e3alliance.org.