Campaign chairs Jim Happel, APL; Stephanie Reel, for the university; and Patricia Brown, for JHM, at Apostolado Hispano, a United Way agency in Spanishtown PHOTO BY HIPS / WILL KIRK

Chairs strive to increase participation by raising awareness

By Greg Rienzi
The Gazette

Jim Happel of APL, one of the three chairs of this year's United Way campaign, said that his goal is to "encourage a willingness to give" and increase participation by at least 5 percent. To accomplish this, the Lab has chosen to focus on the "learn" part of the United Way of Central Maryland's 2005 campaign theme, "Learn, Give, Help."

"I want to provide the means for all staff to learn what United Way is all about and, more importantly, learn about the community agencies that benefit from it," said Happel, a member of APL's principal professional staff. "The community agencies could help any of us, not just the destitute, homeless or the poor population. We have people employed right here at APL who have benefited from a United Way-sponsored agency. My hope is that more APL staff develop a willingness to participate in some way because we reached out to them with a more personal touch."

The university will officially begin its 2005 drive for the United Way of Central Maryland with a kickoff event on the Homewood campus at noon on Thursday, Sept. 22, in Shriver Hall. Separate launches will be held on other campuses in September and October.

This year's three campaign chairs — for the university, Stephanie Reel, vice provost for information technology and chief information officer; Happel, for APL; and for Johns Hopkins Medicine, Patricia Brown, president of Johns Hopkins Health Care — have set a combined goal of $2,568,000. The money raised will support more than 250 affiliated human service programs that seek to improve people's lives in Baltimore City and the five surrounding counties.

This figure represents a total for contributions from JHM and all university divisions except SAIS, whose donations are reported to the Washington capital area campaign. The 2004 combined Johns Hopkins gifts to the United Way of Central Maryland totaled $2,525,223, a figure that represented 103 percent of the campaign goal.

The Johns Hopkins Medicine campaign will also focus on education and increased participation.

Brown said that while last year's campaign was overall a successful one, more can be done to get the message across that the United Way is a good investment.

"We want to talk about outcomes for the people who benefit from the United Way and how just a few dollars out of a person's pay can help improve the community," Brown said. "We have spent a lot of time here talking about improving our campus and building new buildings, but we can't lose sight of the fact that every community needs a safety net — nonprofit agencies that support the needs of the people who live there. There are numerous United Way agencies around our campus, and one way to ensure that East Baltimore's safety net is both available and thriving is to invest in the United Way."

JHM will run a focused, two-week campaign, beginning on Oct. 10, which will feature hot dog lunches for those who present a pledge card.

In an effort to refocus on its primary mission, the United Way of Central Maryland last year instituted a policy that removes from the list of agencies that can be designated those that don't provide a health and human service, such as arts councils and some schools and churches. The organization felt it needed to refocus on what it calls its Community Safety Net, a network of agencies expert at addressing human needs that receive funding from the organization.

A new policy for the United Way in 2005 is that designated gifts to an agency have to be at least $50.

Events scheduled for the Johns Hopkins campaign include a universitywide Day of Caring, to be held Oct. 27; the third annual Hopkins Chili Cook-Off, Nov. 29 on the Homewood campus; and a lottery drawing for employees returning pledges or contributions of $50 or more by Nov. 11.

New this year will be Octoberfest, to be held Oct. 7 at Johns Hopkins at Eastern. The event will feature games, foods, raffles and a car wash, with the proceeds going to the United Way campaign. (Rain date for the event is Oct. 14.)

The Day of Caring is an event in which staff and faculty can get directly involved with a local community service. Employees have fed the homeless, refurbished shelters, held bake drives and volunteered their time with disadvantaged or disabled children, to name just a few. This year, volunteers will head to Marian House, a transitional housing agency located near Johns Hopkins at Eastern.

The theme for this year's Johns Hopkins campaign is "Help People in Need," and Stephanie Reel said that literally thousands of people — including friends, neighbors and family members — have been helped in some way from the network of human service agencies that receive funding for programs.

"Giving to the United Way is a painless way to make a real difference," Reel said. "And who knows when someone we know, or even ourselves, will need the services that United Way agencies provide?"

The university will also seek an increase in leadership donors — those who give $1,000 or more — and will ask past leadership donors to give more if they can, whether it be at the bronze ($1,000), silver ($2,500), gold ($5,000) or Alexis de Tocqueville ($10,000 or more) level.

For more information on Hopkins' United Way campaign, go to www.jhu.edu/unitedway.

 

United Way Responds to Gulf Coast Disaster

Hurricane Katrina has caused unprecedented destruction throughout the Gulf Coast and up into the Ohio Valley, with the ripple effect being felt nationwide. Tens of thousands are displaced, and the death toll is expected climb, even as government and relief agencies rush relief to the area.

In light of the massive aid campaign, university United Way campaign chair Stephanie Reel would like to inform faculty and staff that donations to the United Way's Hurricane Katrina Response Fund are being routed through the upcoming Johns Hopkins University United Way of Central Maryland campaign.

The United Way of America has established this emergency response fund to provide humanitarian relief and to help affected communities begin rebuilding. Funds will be allocated for both frontline disaster relief and long-term recovery needs as determined by the United Ways in affected areas, in coordination with other human services agencies, such as the American Red Cross, and coordinated through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

All contributions will be passed along dollar for dollar with no overhead cost deducted. "Though you will be receiving your personalized pledge form between Sept. 26 and Oct. 7," Reel said, "if you would like to contribute before Sept. 26, log on to www.jhu.edu/unitedway to donate online." This Web site will be available starting Monday, Sept. 12.

If you have additional questions or concerns, contact Lesley Giles, United Way administrator, at lgiles2@jhu.edu or 410-516-0373.

GO TO SEPTEMBER 6, 2005 TABLE OF CONTENTS.
GO TO THE GAZETTE FRONT PAGE.