United Way distributes 40,900 pounds of food on Tuesday

United Way of Lake County distributed 40,900 pounds of food Tuesday to 52 local food pantries as part of the nonprofit organization's Feed Lake County campaign.

Feed Lake County kicked off on March 2 and more than 60 businesses and organizations, as well as individuals from the county, donated food and money to the annual food drive.

Feed Lake County also raised about $59,000 in cash, which will be used throughout the year to make additional food purchases for the food pantries.

Volunteers from Winter Equipment helped United Way distribute the food on Tuesday at the old Ethan Allen building at the Great Lakes Mall in Mentor, where all the food was stored. Check out our Facebook page to view all the pictures from Tuesday's distribution.
       

United Way of Lake County would like to thank everyone who donated food, money or their time to Feed Lake County, making it another successful food drive for those in need.

The need for food across Lake County continues to grow as more than 6,000 residents used the 52 food pantries in our area with at least 700 residents using them on a weekly basis. Food pantries are also seeing 10 to 20 new visitors each week with many of them being individuals in their 40s who have lost their jobs, exhausted their benefits and are looking desperately for somewhere to turn.

Food and money can still be donated to United Way of Lake County by sending it to 9285 Progress Parkway, Mentor, OH 44060. Checks can be made payable to United Way of Lake County. 

Distributing 40,000 pounds of food

Tomorrow, we will distribute more than 40,000 pounds of food to more than 50 local food pantries.

The distribution will take place at the old Ethan Allen building at the Great Lakes Mall from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Thank you to everyone who donated food or money to this year's Feed Lake County!

Day of Caring will be June 20

United Way of Lake County has announced that its 20th Annual Day of Caring will be Wednesday, June 20.

How does Day of Caring work?

o    Non-profit organizations submit one-day projects on behalf of clients, people in need and/or organizations with limited resources.

o    Area companies, schools, service clubs and other interested individuals volunteer to "adopt" a project.

o    Agencies and organizations collaborate to procure supplies needed for successful completion of the project. United Way of Lake County is not responsible for supplying materials or supplies for projects.

AGENCIES (submitting projects)

Projects may be large or small in scale and may involve activities such as landscaping, painting or cleaning. Others may involve social activities such as an outing for nursing home residents, an ice cream social with seniors or a picnic for members of a parenting support group.

Agencies can submit as many projects as they like, however we cannot guarantee that each project will be adopted. We do encourage multiple submissions.

Agencies who would like to submit a project need to contact Nick Carrabine at 440.639.1131 or NCarrabine@UWLC.org. Project applications are due on or before Friday, May 18.

BUSINESSES/ORGANIZATIONS/INDIVIDUALS (volunteering)

Day of Caring offers great benefits for companies and individuals and provides corporate team-building opportunities where you'll see immediate results, develop group work skills, develop camaraderie and friendly competition but more importantly, Day of Caring offers the chance to give back to the community in a tangible way.

If you or your business/organization would like to volunteer for Day of Caring, please contact Rich Thiedemann at 440.639.1153 or Rthiedemann@uwlc.org. The deadline for businesses to volunteer is Friday, May 25.

Once we receive the full list of projects (which will not be until late May), we will allow businesses to pick and choose which projects they'd like to adopt (First come, First served). It's encouraged that businesses visit the project sites they adopt before hand to make sure your group is capable of completing the project and to know what materials are needed.

A Call for Food: We Need YOUR help!

United Way of Lake County is in desperate need of food for its Feed Lake County drive, including canned meats, tuna, peanut butter, spaghetti sauce, cereal and paper products.

Feed Lake County kicked off on March 2 and United Way of Lake County is doing one final push this week before the nonprofit organization distributes all the food to more than 50 food pantries across the county on Tuesday, April 24. 

Food can be dropped off Thursday, April 19 between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. or Saturday, April 21 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. at the old Ethan Allen building at the Great Lakes Mall in Mentor.

So far during Feed Lake County, more than 60 local businesses and organizations have run food drives for United Way of Lake County, who then distributes all the food to the food pantries.

Last year, Feed Lake County raised 45,000 pounds of food and $60,000, which is used to purchase food throughout the year to distribute to food pantries. So far in 2012, more than 33,000 pounds of food and more than $32,000 has been raised.

The most requested donations include: soups, canned fruits and vegetables, tuna fish and other canned meats, Macaroni and Cheese and other boxed meals, beef stew, ravioli and other canned ready meals, peanut butter and jelly, pasta and sauce, cereals and breakfast foods and toilet tissue and other personal care items.

Monetary donations are also welcome. Checks can be made payable to: United Way of Lake County by designating Feed Lake County in the memo section.

All food must be dropped off from the outside of the mall as there is no entrance from the inside. The old Ethan Allen building is located on the west side of the mall facing Plaza Boulevard

For more information, contact Gayle Sikula at 440.639.1082 or GSikula@uwlc.org or Rich Thiedemann at 440.639.1153 or rthiedemann.org

United Way raises $3.67 million during 2011 Campaign

For just the third time in the past 11 years, United Way of Lake County announced an increase of more than $100,000 from the previous year’s campaign. The organization raised $3,671,388 during its 2011 campaign, which is a $105,846 – or 3 percent - increase from its 2010 campaign, marking the second largest increase in the past 11 years.

This also marks the 12^th time out of the past 13 years where United Way of Lake County has raised more money than the previous year’s campaign. 

Other campaign highlights include:

·         Employees from four companies contributed more than $100,000 each. (Lubrizol, Eaton, First Energy, Avery Dennison).

·         Special events raised a record high $100,000.

·         A Lake County family, whose wishes are to remain anonymous, raised $30,000 for food and a 5-year dollar pledge for needy families.

The campaign, which kicked off on August 18, generated donations through employee campaigns, corporate contributions, individual donors and special events. The campaign was co-chaired by Dr. Jacqueline Hoynes, superintendent of Mentor Public Schools and Kevin Lynch of AT&T.

“Once again businesses, organizations and individuals stepped up to the plate to support those who are in need.” Hoynes said. “We couldn’t have had a successful campaign without all those who care so much to make their community a better place to live in.”

 “I feel blessed that we have a community where everyone looks out for their neighbor and at the drop of a hat are willing to give their time, money or voice to helping those who need it the most,” Lynch said. “We want to thank the community for another great United Way of Lake County campaign and we urge everyone to keep supporting because the need continues to grow each and every year.”

RSVP to United Way's Annual Meeting

United Way of Lake County will host its Annual Meeting at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 12 at LaMalfa Center in Mentor.

Please join us as we recognize those who made our campaign successful and celebrate a year where we LIVE UNITED.

This year, we're proud to have Chris Tye and Erin Kennedy, the WKYC-TV Morning News Team, as our guest speakers. In light of the recent tragedy in Chardon, the trials of Cleveland politicians, and the outpouring of community spirit, Chris and Erin will speak first-hand of the news in our area and of the community coming together.

To reserve your spot at Annual Meeting, contact Makella Slavick at 440.639.4583 or MSlavick@uwlc.org. The cost is $20 per person.