Waukesha - After raising 13% less in its most recent campaign from a year earlier, United Way in Waukesha County will use cash reserves to keep funding flat for 52 of 69 programs it supports this year, the United Way's board has decided. The other 17 programs will get less funding.
The board agreed to use $400,000 of the agency's reserves to offset the lower campaign results. The decision means 33 agencies serving more than 69,000 people will get help this year.
United Way board president Janet Schulz of ProHealth Care said the community's generosity in challenging economic times that will help so many people was a source of pride.
The United Way in Waukesha County campaign raised $4,236,159. While that is 13% less than the amount raised in the prior year's campaign, use of United Way reserves this year means the money granted to community agencies will be just 5% lower than funding last year resulting from the 2008 campaign.
Linda Wickstrom, spokeswoman for the agency, said the 2008 campaign raised $4.8 million. That included a one-time challenge grant from The Windhover Foundation and related donations of $440,000.
The 2008 fund raising was 4% more than 2007, but allocations for programs were kept flat that year so United Way could fund new initiatives to help parents and other caregivers become more effectively involved in their children's early lives.
Ken Riesch, the 2009 campaign chairman and president and CEO for R&R Insurance Services, said in a press release, "Like everybody else, we faced a storm of circumstances. Sure, that made our work more challenging, but it made our work more important than ever."
While using $400,000 of United Way reserves reduces its safety net, Wickstrom said the agency is meeting guidelines set by United Way of America that encourages a surplus on hand that covers 4 1/2 to six months of operations and allocations.
Just over half the organizations that supported United Way of Waukesha County in the past maintained or increased their giving levels in 2009, the organization reported.