Albemarle Area United Way’s record-setting 2020 campaign allowed the nonprofit to nearly double the amount of money it will share with its community partners.
The AAUW announced Thursday that it raised enough money this year to disperse a total of $401,106 to its more than 20 partnering agencies and other organizations. Last year’s amount — $236,000 — was nearly half of this year’s total.
AAUW made the announcement on Thursday, the final day of the agency’s virtual Spirit Week. Bill Blake, the AAUW’s executive director, also presented Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast an award for Partner Agency of the Year. It marked the second year in a row the Girls Scouts received the award.
Representing the local Girl Scouts organization was Tracy Keller, its CEO and president.
“It is an honor to receive this award for the second year,” Keller said, during an event broadcast on Facebook. “It is incredibly important for the Girl Scouts to be associated with the United Way. You really do so much for our community.”
Julie Stamper-Phelps, who chairs AAUW’s board of directors, thanked Blake for increasing annual campaign donations since taking over in 2017.“We really have him to thank for bringing our fundraising up,” she said. Stamper-Phelps and Blake together held up a large facsimile of a check for $401,106.
“This is how much money we are putting back into our community from donations,” said Stamper-Phelps, who also said this would be her last year serving on the board. “This broke the record from last year substantially.”
Blake noted the significance of this year’s record amount of money raised.
“What’s eye-opening to me is that this amount of money we are putting back through all of our partner agencies is actually more than most prior years’ full fundraising campaigns,” he said.
On Wednesday, the AAUW announced this year’s campaign raised a total of $640,512, and of that $401,106 will be given back to the community. The difference of nearly $240,000 represents uncollected pledges, staff salaries and other overhead costs, Blake said.
The AAUW staff includes Blake and two part-time personnel.
Since 2017 the AAUW has bested the amount raised from the previous year, Blake said. That year more than $250,000 was raised, of which $127,000 was shared locally. The total for 2018 was $305,000, of which $187,000 was given back to the community, Blake said.
Last year’s total was $486,283, of which about $236,000 was shared with local agencies.
In the last year the AAUW provided relief funding to approximately 50 organizations. Most recently that funding supported groups responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and Tropical Storm Isaias disaster relief, Blake said.
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