Many of you have either participated in or supported United Way of Larimer County's Make A Difference Day. What you may not know, is what it looks like behind the scenes! Although Make A Difference Day indicates a “Day” of service, it actually lasts a week in Larimer County due to the overwhelming support of our community! In 2013, more than 3,000 local residents volunteered to complete over 100 projects throughout the community. In fact, United Way of Larimer County's Make A Difference Day is a nationally recognized event, named one of the top ten in the nation by USA Weekend magazine in 2009 and runner up for the national All-Star award in 2012!

There are many months of planning and organizing that go into making it the great event that Larimer County has participated in for the last 15 years. United Way Staff are working like Santa's elves right now preparing for the kick-off event, registration process, volunteer engagement, sponsorship, finance, and marketing! The common goal being to improve wherever we can and ensure that volunteers are able to engage in impactful projects that benefit both the community and the volunteers themselves during that week in October. I have been affiliated with United Way for 8 years but have never really understood how the “sleigh” gets off the ground. This year, I am fortunate to play a larger role in the event, which has brought a little anxiety and a lot of excitement. I can't help but feel grateful to be part of an organization that is so dedicated to making a difference. I am also feeling compelled to say thank you to all of the staff, volunteers, agencies, churches, businesses, and sponsors in the past that have helped make MDD successful and for putting how Larimer County does it on the map!

If you are interested in finding out more about how to participate in this year's Make A Difference Day, which takes place October 20^th through October 26th this year, please dial 2-1-1 or 970.407.7066. You can also email me at mwatson@uwaylc.org or Jamie Suess at jsuess@uwaylc.org. Online registration for Make a Difference Day opens September 9^th at www.UnitedWayofLarimerCounty.org. I hope you can join us in making a difference in our community!