Late gift fuels Weld United Way drive

GREELEY — Jeannine Truswell was sitting on pins and needles heading into February.

As the executive director of United Way of Weld County, Truswell was facing the final weeks of the organization’s annual community campaign, and proceeds were nearly 25 percent shy of the goal.

Then she got a phone call.

It was a representative from the Monfort Family Foundation, and he had some good news. The Foundation’s donations usually account for about 10 percent of the entire county’s contributions, and this year they would be able to give $400,000.

The generous contribution hoisted the running tally to 91 percent of a $2.7 million goal.

“I’m just ecstatic,” Truswell said. “I said I believe in miracles, and here’s my miracle.”

Truswell’s imminent success may well mirror trends in charitable donations across the county.

The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University reported in December that its Philanthropic Giving Index has gone from an all-time low this past summer to the greatest six-month increase since the first survey was conducted in 1998. The center describes the giving index as similar to a Consumer Confidence Index for charitable giving.

December’s giving index jumped more than 15 percent from last summer to a reported score of 83.3. While it shows marked improvement, the levels are still below pre-2001 numbers, and a majority of respondents still said the economy is having a negative or very negative impact on giving.

“Very simply put, it’s been a tough campaign year,” Truswell said.

With Hewlett-Packard’s departure from the community, Weld County’s United Way lost what’s usually a $200,000 campaign, Truswell said.

In late January, Eastman Kodak Co. announced plans to cut between 12,000 and 15,000 jobs worldwide. It’s still unclear how the 1,700 employees in Windsor will be affected.

“Kodak certainly has always been a very supportive company,” Truswell said, “but in light of what’s happening with them, it certainly has an impact on what employees can afford to give.”

Tack on the recent demise of long-time local grocer Toddy’s and a depressed trend emerges.

“Toddy’s closing really affects us this year,” Truswell said. “It’s sad. They’ve always been a strong community-minded family and company.”

But it’s not all doom and gloom either, and Truswell said she is ever the optimist.

“It has been a difficult year, but we’ve also seen some fantastic things happen,” she said.

For example, Swift & Co.’s recent expansion in Greeley spurred a 10 percent increase in the company’s United Way contributions; Cache Bank & Trust’s $5,000 donation funded a raffle; and a $20,000 joint effort between Ehrlich Motors, Ghent Motor Co., Garnsey Wheeler Ford and Weld County Garage provided an opportunity for donors to win a new car.

“I can’t imagine where we’d be without things like that,” Truswell said. “It really helped us out this year.”

In Larimer County the car raffle has proved to be a popular incentive to giving. For the past 16 years Dellenbach Motors has donated a vehicle to be raffled off to one lucky donor.

But United Way of Larimer County expects to fall short of a $3.9 million goal for its community campaign.

“The good news is, and the important thing is, that we raised $47,000 more than last year,´ said campaign director Dawn Paepke.

In light of the current economic climate, Paepke said this year’s campaign can be viewed as a success. “2003 was a difficult fundraising year, no doubt,” she said. “But the business community has always been very supportive of United Way and continues to do that every year.”

Paepke said the organization is focusing on developing key partnerships to raise its visibility in the community. Two successful examples, Paepke said, include the Easy Street Marathon in Fort Collins and the Valley 5000 5K in Loveland. Proceeds of both races go to United Way.

While the community campaign generally wraps up in the middle of February, Paepke said the United Way is always looking to start new campaigns.

All totaled, the United Way of Larimer County hopes to raise $5 million by the end of June. Combining the expected $3.8 million raised within the community with funds acquired through government programs and foundations, Paepke said, they are well on their way to meeting that goal.

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