Pulse of Philanthropy: An Extraordinary Response to an Unusual Request

In December, I did something I rarely do. Rather than talk about charity generally, I asked you to join me in making a gift to a specific charity: United Way of Door County. As I noted in my column titled “An Unusual Request in an Extraordinary Year,” United Way Executive Director Amy Kohnle shared with me that the early contributions to United Way’s annual campaign were lagging. Even more troubling, similar reports were coming from United Ways across the state. 

My concern was that Door County had already been remarkably generous to the Door County Community Foundation’s Emergency Response Fund, which we activated in March in partnership with United Way as a response to the COVID-19 health and economic crisis. At the time when I wrote December’s column, more than $1 million had been contributed to the Emergency Response Fund and our other relief efforts. That number has grown to $1,150,458 as of the end of January.

The Emergency Response Fund is well positioned to continue to help families through the off-season, but it cannot also cover for a hobbled United Way campaign. Remember that your United Way gift is a contribution to 30 local charities because it’s shared with programs to assist victims of domestic violence, offer loans of free medical equipment, orchestrate activities for young people and support many other forms of charitable work.

Although United Way always plays a critical role in supporting human-service programming in our community, it’s important that the organization is successful now more than ever before because of the COVID-19 health and economic crisis. 

I’m pleased to report that under the leadership of United Way volunteers and staff, the people of our community responded to the call during this time of crisis in an overwhelming and extraordinary way. Prior to this campaign, the most money United Way had ever raised was $563,578. This year, because of the generosity of people like you, our community simply blew past that old record by raising $752,541. That’s a whopping 34 percent increase over the previous all-time high!

This year’s campaign success was fueled almost equally by an increase in giving among current donors and a significant number of people who gave to United Way for the first time. A total of 1,078 donors contributed to the campaign. Of that number, 18 percent were new to United Way, and collectively, their gifts constituted 51 percent of the total increase in contributions. The other 49 percent of the increase came from existing donors who reached deeper into their pockets.

It’s hard for me to overstate how incredible this is. 

“Most United Ways across the state have closed out their campaigns flat or down,” Kohnle said. Some of her counterparts have even extended their campaigns into 2021 in an effort to capture a few more dollars. 

That our neighbors opened their wallets yet again to help United Way and its constituent charities – even after donating $1.1 million to the Emergency Response Fund – is a remarkable testament to the generosity of our year-round and seasonal residents.

With all this extraordinary generosity, two things immediately come to mind. 

First, thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Your gifts to United Way will help make life easier for many of our neighbors who are struggling during these difficult times. Both individually and collectively, you are a reminder of what makes Door County such a wonderful place to live. Your generosity is heartwarming.

Second, and more practically, I couldn’t help but wonder what United Way is going to do with all that extra money. 

“This is the first time in the 21 years that I have been here that we have surpassed a goal by enough to be able to go back and make increases,” Kohnle said. “We are putting these dollars to good use. We are investing in nearly 30 nonprofit program partners. These programs are working to help Door County residents achieve their full potential through education, financial stability and healthy lifestyles.”

Kohnle recently reconvened the United Way Community Investment Committee and said, “We are pleased to be able to invest 21 percent more into our community than last year. The committee members were thrilled to have more dollars and were all smiles during the meeting.” They are smiling because of people like you. 

We are enduring the difficult challenges of this unprecedented time because we are supporting each other and remaining united as one community. You are an inspiration!

Contact Bret Bicoy at [email protected].