September 16, 2009
Purdue United Way Campaign begins
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Purdue's United Way Campaign kicked off Tuesday with the theme "United Starts with U!"
"The United Way depends on your donations to help create lasting change and make a positive impact in our community," says Dennis Depew, Purdue UW Campaign chair and dean of the College of Technology. "This is truly an effort that starts with you."
The Purdue United Way goal of $730,000 is more than one-seventh of the community goal of $5 million.
Team captains now will distribute pledge cards to employees in all West Lafayette campus departments. Cards can be returned to the team captains or sent via campus mail to Purdue United Way Gift Processing at Dauch Alumni Center (DAUC).
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Contributions go to the 23 Lafayette-West Lafayette service agencies supported by the United Way of Greater Lafayette. Faculty and staff can designate their gifts for other area United Ways if they so choose.
New gifts and increased gifts to United Way will be matched this year by Lilly Endowment. For example, if you gave $100 last year and pledge $150 this year, Lilly will pitch in the amount of the increase, which is $50. Any new gift will be matched fully by Lilly.
Already, Purdue Vanguards and the Purdue University Retirees Association are leading the way for the Purdue United Way Campaign. As of Tuesday, those groups had raised more than $300,000.
Vanguard givers are those who give at least $1,000, in part to cover the campaign's administrative expenses.
More information about how to donate is at the Purdue United Way site: www.purdue.edu/unitedway.
How to give to the campaign
Participating in the Purdue United Way Campaign through pledging is a simple and private matter set up as follows:
1. For purposes of the UW campaign, Purdue has 18 areas, each with volunteers serving as senior chair, junior chair or team captain. Those volunteers picked up pledge packets at the kickoff on Tuesday and will begin distributing them to employees in their area.
2. Each employee considers a gift. Things to consider are stories of those helped by United Way agencies, the value of being involved, the nationally outstanding frugality of the local UW and its campaign, the benefit of each dollar given.
The pledge process is constructed to ensure privacy and an absence of coercion. Campaign volunteers do not see whether a returned pledge form contains a dollar figure or a zero.
3. Those who return a pledge form can pick up a 2009 United Way poster, which features Neil Armstrong Hall of Engineering and a bronze sculpture of Armstrong.
4. Those making a pledge decide on method — payroll deduction; one-time direct payment; or quarterly, monthly or one-time billing.
5. Employees should put pledge forms into the provided envelopes before sending them in through campus mail or giving them to the team captain for forwarding.
United Way auction
Faculty and staff can contribute to Purdue's United Way Campaign by participating in an online auction.
The auction, sponsored by Purdue's United Way student chairs, includes local artwork, Purdue sports and convocations packages, sports memorabilia and food. The auction can be found at http://www.cmarket.com/auction/AuctionHome.action?vhost=purdueunitedway.
CAPTION: The 2009 Purdue United Way Campaign leaders include (from left) Anne Washburn, Purdue UW executive director; Lois Wark, Purdue University Retirees Association president; Jonathan Gandolf, student representative; Christine Ladisch, vice chair; and Chris Johannsen, Purdue University Retirees Association vice president. Not pictured: Dennis Depew, UW chair; Lauren Abriani. student chair; and Emily Bunder, United Way Student Organization president.