United Way of the River Cities Focused on Building a Better Community

By Justin Prince

The United Way of the River Cities has entered the final days of its annual fundraising campaign, which supports 32 local agencies and the programs they operate on behalf of the Tri-State community.

Laura Gilliam, United Way of the River Cities executive director, said United ‘s goal is $1.4 million by Dec. 31, the same as last year’s.

What happens if United Way of the River Cities falls short of its fundraising goals as an organization, which has occurred more than once over the past several years?

“If a goal isn’t met,” Gilliam said, “we look at what the goal was, how far away we were from meeting it (and) try to establish why it wasn’t met, if there were any aspects that were met, and utilize that information to improve our performance.”

The United Way of the River Cities, one of the Tri-State’s best known organizations, uses the fundraising to help build better and stronger communities.

The 32 agencies focus on a variety of issues, ranging from youth programs like the Boy Scouts, to the problems of domestic violence and homelessness. Each has its own mission but, according to www.unitedwayrivercities.org, they sometimes form coalitions to tackle the tougher issues, such as the local drug problem.

One of these collaborative works involves the Cabell County Substance Abuse Prevention Partnership, whose focus is reducing substance abuse through raising community awareness, and providing and information to educate and promote a reduction in substance abuse.

In a recent interview, Elaine Darling, CCSAPP project coordinator, talked about the importance of the program.

“This program, and others like it, is extremely vital to the area of Cabell County,” Darling said. “People sometimes don’t see the harm drugs can cause, so if we can educate the community on the harm of these substances, then, maybe we can decrease the rate of substance abuse.”

The United Way of the River Cities supports other initiatives, such as “Success by Six.” The initiative helps area children be ready physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially to begin Kindergarten by the age of 6.

Such initiatives and collaborative efforts are instrumental in tackling the most persistent problems within a community. 

“It’s an ongoing process,” Darling said. “These problems never go away, so we are constantly working to make this community the best it can be, and these programs are the foundations for building that community.”

Gilliam agreed, while also stating the importance of the United Way of the River Cities as a whole.

“I believe that a lot of collaborative work that is ongoing in the community would not take place if our organization didn’t exist,” Gilliam said.

 “United Way has done an excellent job of identifying key community issues that need to be resolved and is focusing funding on strategies that will create long-term solutions to those problems, and that will create the greatest impact.  In addition, United Way has been able to bring in outside sources of funding to support local effort.