The Free Press, Mankato, MN

Local News

July 2, 2009

United Way starting earlier

By Robb Murray

MANKATO — When it comes right down to it, Laura Bowman thinks the Mankato community will do whatever it takes to help the United Way make its goal.

But reality being what it is, she’s hoping a jump start can serve as a little insurance policy.

Bowman, director of the Mankato Area United Way, said the organization lately has been speaking to its 13 largest corporate donors, a part of the annual fundraising campaign that normally doesn’t take place until August.

By getting them going earlier she hopes she can fend off any negative impact the economy may have on the giving tendencies of locals.

“What we’re trying to do is get a commitment from them early so we can build momentum going into our campaign this year,” Bowman said.

The Mankato United Way typically has been a strong performer among cities its size. It has ranked as high as the fifth percentile in terms of fundraising and usually doesn’t dip below the 10th percentile.

But the economy is still struggling, and so are some local residents. Some of those residents may have been United Way donors in the past. And this year, some of them may be recipients of the United Way’s giant reach.

Last year, the Mankato United Way raised $1,851,000. This year they’re hoping for a 1 percent increase, or $1,869,510.

The group’s biggest dollar recipient is the Mankato Family YMCA, followed closely by VINE Faith in Action. Bowman says the toddlers-to-elders nature of its two biggest recipients says a lot about the mission of the Mankato United Way.

Requests are up 13 percent this year, Bowman said, which will mean the volunteers who review each request to make sure it is valid have an even more critical role.

“It doesn’t mean that if a program wasn’t performing and didn’t meet our needs that we wouldn’t cut them,” Bowman said.

The bottom line, she said, is that the community has needs, and the United Way has work to do to make sure they’re all met.

“I’m not closing my eyes to the economy and the challenges that are out there,” she said. “At the same time I have confidence in this community.”

The United Way campaign officially begins Sept. 11 and runs through October.

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