February 1, 2019
On Wednesday, January 16, United Way of Larimer County celebrated its 60th Anniversary State of the Community presented by Eide Bailly at Lory Student Center at the Colorado State University. More than 600 local leaders and community members came to celebrate this momentous milestone for our organization. People were able to mingle, enjoy appetizers and cocktails and learn about the incredible work United Way has been doing this past year and throughout its history.
“It was truly an honor to serve as the presenting sponsor for this important event,” said Joe Monty, Tax Partner with Eide Bailly and 60th Anniversary Event Co-Chair. “For more than a century Eide Bailly has focused on change, innovation and client service, which is why we are proud to support an organization like United Way that uses these same focus areas to strengthen our community for generations to come.”
As part of the program, United Way highlighted three of its new Innovation Grants, which were launched in the summer of 2018.
Estes Valley in Estes Valley Investment in Childhood Success (EVICS) provides access to high-quality childhood care and education to parents. With the Innovation Grant from United Way, EVICS will become a Family Resource Center, the second in Larimer County, and will provide comprehensive, wrap-around support for families and connections to resources.
Homeward Alliance is another recipient of an Innovation Grant, and they will be implementing a comprehensive data system that will allow them to do more complex data analysis to better serve the community. The Loveland Housing Authority has created an additional nonprofit called Aspire 3D and has launched a new education and financial stability program for residents of the Orchard Place Community.
Members of the audience were invited to participate in a text-to-give campaign to raise $60,000 in honor of the 60th Anniversary to fund additional Innovation Grants. Thanks to the generous support of the event sponsors and attendees, United Way surpassed this fundraising goal.
Click here to see the Innovation Grants video from the 60th Annviersary event.
Additionally, as part of the program, United Way honored both an organization and a family with its Collaborator of the Year Awards. This award is given annually at the State of the Community to an individual or an organization that embodies the LIVE UNITED spirit of working together to solve problems and strengthen our community. In honor of United Way's Diamond Anniversary, it seemed only fitting to honor two award recipients:
The Community Foundation of Northern Colorado serves as a community think tank, a catalyst for community projects, a service provider to philanthropists and nonprofit organizations and a trusted steward of long-term and often complex gift arrangements. The Foundation manages and administers more than 500 charitable funds and over $110 million in assets.
With the mission to inspire and unify the communities it serves, partnering with United Way has become a natural part of the Foundation's work.
Some of the most critical partnerships between the Community Foundation and United Way have been in response to disasters both locally and nationally. The two groups collaborated extensively in 2005 to raise and distribute funds in response to Hurricane Katrina and to the floods and fires in Larimer County in 2012 and 2013.
Click here to see the Community Foundation video from the 60th Anniversary event.
Larry and Pat Kendall have been part of the Northern Colorado Community and involved with United Way of Larimer County for 45 years. They joined the Alexis de Tocqueville Society as some of its earliest members and helped grow the program to what it is today.
Additionally, as a founding partner of The Group, Inc. Real Estate, Larry and Pat helped set the tone for the company's support of United Way, helping them to achieve the status as the Top Contributor workplace campaign.
Pat is a Charter Member of United Way of Larimer County's WomenGive program and Larry has served on the Board of Directors and as a Campaign Chair for United Way.
Click here to see the Larry and Pat Kendall video from the 60th Anniversary event.
Throughout its history, United Way has relied on the generosity of the business community to further its mission, as each year, individuals at hundreds of local businesses come together to raise funds through workplace campaigns. Many of these companies have been partnering with United Way since the beginning. Annually United Way of Larimer County gives a number of awards as a small token of thanks to the business community, the CEOs and leaders who support our workplace campaigns and the campaign coordinators who do the heavy lifting to make these campaigns a success. The following organizations were recognized as part of the 60th Anniversary celebration:
The Top Contributor Award is given to the workplace campaign that raises the largest amount of money in support of United Way of Larimer County through employee giving, special events and corporate gifts. This award is the pinnacle of the Top 10 Campaign Awards, and in addition to bragging rights, the Top Contributor also receives the privilege of housing a traveling trophy for the following year.
The Group, Inc. Real Estate has been a long-time supporter of United Way of Larimer County and has truly done wonders to mobilize its employees to join our movement to change lives and strengthen the community. The Group, Inc. raised more than $300,000 in support of United Way this year, making them the Top Contributor for the fourth year in a row.
The Coordinator of the Year Award is given to a Campaign Coordinator who shows exemplary commitment and passion for United Way of Larimer County and our community. The recipient of this award typically goes above and beyond the Campaign Coordinator job description to ensure the success of his or her workplace campaign.
Jody Hutchinson with Xcel Energy has been coordinating its workplace campaign since 2005—only missing one year to give birth to her daughter. In addition to planning campaign activities like days of service, indoor putt putt contests and chili cook-offs, Jody plays an integral role in the coordination of the NoCo Golf Tournament, which has been hosted by Xcel Energy employees for the last four years. This past summer, the tournament netted more than $20,000 for United Way.
The Campaign of the Year program is designed to create friendly competition among workplace campaigns and encourage organizations to implement United Way of Larimer County best practices. The competition is based on a point structure designed to recognize the best overall workplace campaign and encourage successful and engaging campaign activities. The Campaign of the Year Award is a unique bronze sculpture that resides at the winning organization for one year, representing the effort it takes to achieve one’s goals and drive long-lasting change for children and families in Larimer County.
Nutrien exemplifies campaign best practices year over year by hosting multiple special events, volunteer opportunities and friendly fundraising competitions. As a Top 10 Campaign, Nutrien’s support of United Way of Larimer County has taken on a number of names over the years. First as Crop Production Services, then Agrium, and now as Nutrien, this group of employees has been strengthening our community for nearly a decade. Employee contributions, combined with Nutrien’s Cornerstone gift, resulted in a total of more than $100,000 for United Way this year.
Additional Campaign Award Winners:
Another highlight of the event was the Dellenbach family, who for more than 30 years have continued to help the community and support United Way by hosting a workplace campaign and by donating a vehicle for United Way’s annual Car Raffle. This year alone, the car raffle incentive has helped raise more than $2.5 million in workplace campaign fundraising.
Click here to see the Dellenbach video from the 60th Anniversary event.
Before the end of the program, our wonderful emcees, Justin Davis and Brandon Wells, raised a glass to 60 years - 60 years of making a difference. 60 years of going above and beyond to help others in Larimer County. They toasted to the next 60 years, the years where our mission remains our passion, our imprint on the community becomes much stronger and the impact on our residents becomes much greater.
Thank you to everyone who celebrated this momentous occasion with us and to our generous sponsors, as this event could not have happened without you.
Copyright 2015 United Way of Larimer County
