United Way of Santa Cruz County Turns 70!
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We're 70! It's official! 2011 marks the 70th Anniversary of United Way of Santa Cruz County. We are celebrating and looking back on our history together all year long. Thank you for choosing United Way as your partner in strengthening Santa Cruz County! |
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70th Anniversary Message for Our Executive Director - Mary Lou Goeke
"When you consider the number of people, companies and local organizations that have come together over the decades to help make United Way's work possible, it's very humbling. To the many hundreds of companies, and many thousands of volunteers and donors that have supported us over these many years, thank you."
| New for our 70th Anniversary 70th Anniversary Honor Roll Become part of the United Way of Santa Cruz's history and join our 70th Honor Roll |
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United Way of Santa Cruz County Video We've got a great video that describes many of the ways that the United Way of Santa Cruz County is helping our neighbors and strengthening our county. |
Meet the artists of our poster and video.
A Community Coming Together
What began during World War II as one of the community's first large-scale charitable campaigns has grown into the United Way of today.
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What we know today as the United Way began in Santa Cruz County in September of 1941 as the Community War Chests - one in Pajaro Valley and another in Santa Cruz. Each state took responsibility for its share of the National War Fund and our local community War Chests supported California in meeting its quotas to support the war effort. |
| After the war, the Community War Chests became the Community Chests and adopted as their symbol the Red Feather. The focus shifted from the national war effort to the effort of helping those in need locally. |  |
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Santa Cruz County continued with two Community Chests - one in Santa Cruz County and another in Watsonville-Pajaro Valley. The Chests had basically no staff, everything was volunteer run - including the selection of the human services agencies that would receive funds. According to the Santa Cruz Sentinel, by 1950 the Santa Cruz Community Chest was serving "4 out of every 10 families" through 7 different agencies. Our goal in 1950 was to raise $44,000 between September 26th and October 7th. |
| We didn't have the workplace campaign back then - instead over 400 volunteers went out door-to-door canvassing the entire community. From the San Lorenzo Valley Sun of October 6, 1950 "By horseback, by car and by foot, volunteer Red Feather workers are canvassing all rural and residential areas of northern Santa Cruz County". |
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Even with all that work, the campaign came in way under goal - so they staged a "Porch Light" campaign on one night in December. "We are asking residents of both the city as well as outlying communities to light their porch lights between 7 and 9 PM as a signal they have a gift for the chest" Whew!! And a final headline from the Sentinel that year stated "Community Chest Drive Hits 80 Percent of Goal, Highest Mark Gained During the Past Five Years." |
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How things have changed for us! In 1967, the Community Chests became the United Funds. Later the Pajaro Valley and Santa Cruz Funds merged together to be the United Fund of Santa Cruz County and then the United Way of Santa Cruz County. Our campaign moved into the workplace - and more people heard our message and responded. |  |
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Since that first effort, the Community Chest (and later United Way) campaign has become an annual community event, thanks to hundreds of campaign volunteers at local businesses that donate their time to make each campaign a success and many thousands of loyal donors. |
Thank You For LIVING UNITED