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| United Way Shares the Love! |
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United Way campaign volunteers and
supporters attended the 1960's inspired 2008 Campaign Awards
Party held Friday, February 29 in the Peace Hall at Saint Mary's
Roman Catholic Church. 
Smiley face balloons, tie-dye T-shirts, love
beads, flower power decorations and 60's inspired garb brightened up
the evening.
A dapper Mike Callen, United Way's trendy Tina
Zeff and Christian Help's lovely Cheryl
Stout, pictured above, pose for a
very far
out picture!
Local
rock band, Old School, featuring Campaign Chairman John
Forester on bass, provided music that helped those in attendance get
groovy!
Campaign Chair Forester recognized the efforts of
many volunteers and companies that helped raise $1,440,000 to
benefit 27 local health and human service agencies.
Highlights from the 2008 United Way Campaign
Awards:
The Big 3 - United Way's three
largest employee campaigns
West
Virginia
University
West
Virginia University
Hospital
Mylan
Pharmaceuticals
Partners
in Service - Given to recognize year-round support from a
company
University Health
Associates
The Most Improved - Given to the most
improved employee campaign
Bowles, Rice McDavid Graff and
Love
Best of the Best - Given to the
campaign that runs the best overall employee
campaign
Mylan
Pharmaceuticals
Click here for a COMPLETE list of
awards...
University Health Associates employees Becky Wright and Linda
Patterson, pictured below from left to right, accepted the
Partners in Service Award.  This award
recognizes one company whose partnership with the United Way goes
far beyond the annual giving campaign.
Among those recognized were the Corporate Community
Builders. Pictured below from left to right are volunteers
from BB&T, Centra Bank, Huntington Bank, Enterprise
Rent-A-Car, The Dominion Post, University Health Associates
and WVU Hospitals.
These companies were awarded for their outstanding corporate
gifts of $5,000 or more.
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| How Kind Can Thy Be? Let Us Count the
Ways |
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Under the direction of Lucy Rosati,
chairperson, Random Acts of Kindness Week 2008 was a huge
success! 
On Friday, February 8, the official RAK
kick-off was held at the American Red Cross. During that time, Mayor Ron
Justice and County Administrator Diane DeMedici made official
proclamations from the City and County declaring it a special week
of kindness. Heather
Garrison of WVU, and 2009 Campaign Chairman Steve Walker were also
on hand to share their ideas on kindness and to promote the week's
events.
At the end of the week, 11,058 kind
acts were recorded.
Click HERE to learn more about what Cheat Lake
Middle School, Monongalia General Hospital, and the WVU Center for
Civic Engagement and many others did to add to the impressive
total.
Random Acts of Kindness week is designed to focus on the
importance of performing simple kind acts, as well as volunteering
time to improve the lives of our friends and neighbors in need.
To find out who the extra kind honorees were during this
year's RAK celebration click HERE.
Other events highlighting the
week included:
Feb. 9th -WVU hosted
Community Appreciation Day at the
Mountainlair
Feb. 11th - Captain Kindness
(a.k.a. Wayne Weaver), pictured above, and friends
walked around downtown
Morgantown spreading acts of kindness
Feb. 13th - Volunteers wrote
thank you notes at the Morgantown Area Chamber of Commerce to
hundreds of local heroes
Feb. 14th - WVUH offered
free blood pressure screenings at Morgantown Mall
Feb. 15th - the Dominion Post
headed up a group of volunteers serving lunch at the Community
Kitchen
Feb. 17th - local Churches and the
Morgantown Board of Realtors collected underwear and socks for local
shelters and agencies
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| The Volunteer Connection Celebrates Martin Luther
King's Legacy |
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To honor Dr. Martin Luther King's ideals with a "Day
On, Not a Day Off", the United Way Volunteer Connection and the
Americorps' Healthy Together Network recently organized three
service projects.
A Peace and
Justice Luncheon was held at Rock Forge Neighborhood House. Guest speaker Dr. Michael
Belmear, Vice President of Student Affairs of Fairmont State
University, presented a heart-warming discussion of Dr. King's
ideals and the impact that simple kindness and encouragement can
make in a person's life.
(Pictured with Dr. Michael Belmear are Americorps Members Denise
Rush and Heather Groggs)
Also organized was a "Be Red Cross Ready" event. Workshop
participants learned how to prepare for emergencies and were given
hands-on experience in making disaster kits to keep in their homes
and vehicles.
In addition, local nursing home residents were treated
to an International Arts Festival, complete with music and
hands-on art projects at Sundale Nursing
Home.
All three projects were made possible through grants
from the City of Morgantown and the West Virginia Commission for
National and Community
Service.
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Mountaineer Mall Chili Cook-off Raises
Money For the Youth Connection
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The 4th
Annual Mountaineer Mall / Youth Volunteer Connection Chili Cook-off
was spicier than ever. Motorcycles and craft vendors
surrounded the chili vendors. Live entertainment was provided
throughout the event by Jenny McGee, The Great Lakers and B and T DJ
and Karaoke Services. During performance breaks there were cake
walks, and children got their faces painted by local artists.
Prize drawings were made every 15 minutes. Prizing
ranged from dinner at Longhorn Steak House to an overnight stay at
Euro Suites.
Winners of
the Judges Choice award were:
1st
place - C.A. Hickman
2nd place -
Tracy Hetrick
3rd
place - Brooks Bistro
Winners of
the People's Choice award were:
1st
place - Fat Cousins
2nd
place - C.A. Hickman
3rd
place - Spice Girls
This event
raised over $2,388.00 for United Way's Youth Volunteer Connection
program.
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| Bounce Back With Earned Income Tax
Credit |
| Did you make less than $40,000 last year? Did you know
you can claim EITC for three years back? Did you know you
could receive up to $4,716 from the IRS? Did you know FREE tax
help is available? Did you know that volunteers can come to
your business to help your employees file their taxes?
United Way is part of the local EITC
Coalition. Help us spread the word.
 For more
information about Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or to see if you
qualify, please click HERE.
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At
United Way, we think it's time to start planning for
summer!
We're gearing up for The
10th
Annual United Way Corporate
Cup Challenge. The Corporate
Cup is a friendly competitive sports event between
companies, and a great team-building exercise for
employees. The event's
goal is for participants to have fun and raise money for United
Way. The entrance fee
is $400 per team.
Registration is due by May 2. Teams can have a maximum of
32 players, including 5 alternates. Teams compete in one of two
divisions, based on company size. This year's featured events include
horseshoes, volleyball, bowling, softball, running relay, 3
point shot and table tennis. Contact the United Way office for your registration form
today or click HERE.
Don't delay! Send in your
Corporate Cup team registration
today!
2008 Corporate Cup Sponsors are:
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| The Volunteer Connection
Corner |
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For information about
volunteer opportunities in our community, call the United Way at
304-296-7525, or visit www.teamunitedway.org,
For a quick list of upcoming community events, click here.
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Day of Caring Volunteers Will Unite for Heartfelt Community
Effort
United Way's
annual Day of
Caring is scheduled for Wednesday,
May 21.
"The day is an opportunity for area companies and
organizations to work together to make the community a better place
to live," Kisinger said. "Our theme 'The Heart of the Community'
will showcase the heart of each of our truly caring
volunteers."
To participate
in Day of Caring, contact the United Way at 296-7525 or
or email
unitedway@teamunitedway.org. |
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Ticket Sales
Support United Way
Don't miss any of the exciting action at the
Nationwide Tour Players
Cup, July 7-13, 2008, at the Pete Dye Golf Club.Get a chance
to see the PGA Tour stars of tomorrow, today!
The Nationwide Tour Players Cup has announced their
Tickets Fore Charity program. Through this generous
program 100% of all ticket sales will be
donated to charitable organizations working in our state to improve
their communities and the lives of West Virginia's
children.
This is an incredible opportunity to support the
United Way of Monongalia and Preston
Counties. All you have to do is purchase tickets! For just $25 you receive a
weekly grounds ticket. For only $50, you receive a
weekly clubhouse ticket. Discounts are offered for quantity
purchases. Be sure to order enough tickets for your family, friends
and associates!
To download the printable order form,
click HERE. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on
"Printable Ticket Order Form".
Tickets are also available on line at
www.playerscup.net.
When purchasing tickets on-line, use the drop
box and select United Way of Monongalia & Preston Counties. 100%
of your money will be sent directly to our
organization. |
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The Alzheimer's
Association is now forming teams for their 2008 Memory Walk, which
is held at the WVU Coliseum on April 19, 2008. For more
information or to participate, visit the website at www.alz.org\wv\ and click on Memory
Walk. |
| Big Brothers
Big Sisters of NCWV has scheduled a Geo-caching activity on March 29
from 11am-1pm in Marion County at the East Marion Park. Geo-caching is much like a
treasure hunt and lots of fun!
Anyone interested in attending this event and being a "Big
for the day" should contact their office at 304-983-2383, ext. 104
or 110.
For more information on the Big Brothers Big Sisters
program you can visit our website at www.bbbs-ncwv.org.
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CASA
is
collecting "Suitcases for Kids". Soft-side type
suitcases are particularly needed. For more information: Kathy Kinsley at (304)
599-1087.
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Rock
Forge Neighborhood House is offering free tax preparation through the VITA program for
eligible families. Call
292-3286 for more information. |
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Click HERE for more
info. | |
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