It was a message she had dreaded having to relay, yet one Ronda Ison knew would one day come.
“We were having a meeting with the agencies we serve,” said Ison, campaign director for the United Way of Crawford County. “We were discussing the fact that we were short on funds and we were telling the agencies that we might have to cut their budgets.”
Sitting in on that recent meeting was Steve Lohr, executive director of the Southeast Kansas Community Action Program, an organization that provides services and funding to several area counties. Armed with funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Lohr had an idea as to how SEK-CAP could prevent the United Way from cutting its agencies’ budgets.
“For any nonprofit or community group in the 12-county area we serve,” Lohr said, “we have funds designated for what we call community capacity building. That money can go to any number of uses, including to support the low-income population, to stimulate the economy or to create jobs. As the United Way serves 19 agencies, we felt they were a perfect fit for what we’re trying to do with that money.”
Ison jumped on the opportunity, and on Friday, the United Way board was presented a check for $24,999 to put toward the United Way’s fundraising campaign. The money shot this year’s fundraising totals near the overall goal of $234,000, Ison said – and prevented drastic cuts from the agencies the United Way serves.
“This is a huge blessing,” Ison said, “and it’s a huge relief for myself and the board that we are not going to have to cut the budgets of what we had intended to give these agencies. This money is a godsend.”
Just a couple of weeks ago, Ison said this year’s campaign would fall nearly $30,000 short of its goal due to a shortfall in donations, likely caused by the weak economy. She said the United Way board was in the process of exploring additional fundraising options.
“We were still planning another push and looking at more ways we could raise money,” she said. “We were telling our agencies that they may need to help us with a few different options.”
SEK-CAP has received nearly $1.3 million in ARRA funds as part of its Community Services Block Grant, and has already committed approximately $200,000 for area projects. Lohr said the organization had so far “held back” from spending a significant amount in Crawford County, as it “typically has a lot more resources than other counties we serve.”
“But when I heard that the United Way had fallen short of its goal, our leadership team had a discussion about it and we decided this (grant) would be the best way to reach the most agencies and the most people.”
Ison said she believes the grant is a “perfect example” of what the federal government had in mind when it passed the recovery act earlier this year.
“The government has provided this money to help communities just like this,” she said.
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It was a message she had dreaded having to relay, yet one Ronda Ison knew would one day come.
“We were having a meeting with the agencies we serve,” said Ison, campaign director for the United Way of Crawford County. “We were discussing the fact that we were short on funds and we were telling the agencies that we might have to cut their budgets.”
Sitting in on that recent meeting was Steve Lohr, executive director of the Southeast Kansas Community Action Program, an organization that provides services and funding to several area counties. Armed with funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Lohr had an idea as to how SEK-CAP could prevent the United Way from cutting its agencies’ budgets.
“For any nonprofit or community group in the 12-county area we serve,” Lohr said, “we have funds designated for what we call community capacity building. That money can go to any number of uses, including to support the low-income population, to stimulate the economy or to create jobs. As the United Way serves 19 agencies, we felt they were a perfect fit for what we’re trying to do with that money.”
Ison jumped on the opportunity, and on Friday, the United Way board was presented a check for $24,999 to put toward the United Way’s fundraising campaign. The money shot this year’s fundraising totals near the overall goal of $234,000, Ison said – and prevented drastic cuts from the agencies the United Way serves.
“This is a huge blessing,” Ison said, “and it’s a huge relief for myself and the board that we are not going to have to cut the budgets of what we had intended to give these agencies. This money is a godsend.”
Just a couple of weeks ago, Ison said this year’s campaign would fall nearly $30,000 short of its goal due to a shortfall in donations, likely caused by the weak economy. She said the United Way board was in the process of exploring additional fundraising options.
“We were still planning another push and looking at more ways we could raise money,” she said. “We were telling our agencies that they may need to help us with a few different options.”
SEK-CAP has received nearly $1.3 million in ARRA funds as part of its Community Services Block Grant, and has already committed approximately $200,000 for area projects. Lohr said the organization had so far “held back” from spending a significant amount in Crawford County, as it “typically has a lot more resources than other counties we serve.”
“But when I heard that the United Way had fallen short of its goal, our leadership team had a discussion about it and we decided this (grant) would be the best way to reach the most agencies and the most people.”
Ison said she believes the grant is a “perfect example” of what the federal government had in mind when it passed the recovery act earlier this year.
“The government has provided this money to help communities just like this,” she said.
