United Way Speakers Visit Future Journalists

United Way speakers visited journalism students on Thursday. The speakers were Laura Gilliam,the Executive Director of the United Way of River Cities, and Cassey Bowden, the Director of Resource Development and Marketing Director.


Gilliam started out by giving the history of United Way. She informed the students that it started in 1922 and that it has changed since then.


The United Way of River Cities supports 5 counties in West Virginia, they are: Cabell, Wayne, Lincoln, Lawrence, and Mason. Within these 5 counties there are over 200 non-profit organizations.


Gilliam said, "There are 4 focus areas that the United Way is based on, which are: Learning and Earning, Families and Children, Health and Wellness, Basic Needs and Unforeseen Hardships." She then said that these focus areas are fairly new and revised.


"United Way used to just be a national organization but now it is worldwide," Gilliam explained.


Then Gilliam turned the floor over to Bowden. Bowden then explained what the phrase "Live United" means.


"Live United means that together we can unite and make a better tomorrow."


She then went on to talk about the different fundraisers that the United Way of River Cities does to raise money for the agencies that they represent. For the last two years they have done the Putt and Play Tournament. This is a tournament that the whole family can participate in. It is simply a putt putt golf tournament. Another fundraiser is the 5K Championship which brings out nearly 500 runners every year. The fundraiser that brings in the most money is the Workplace Pledge. This is where a company asks its employees to pledge money to help the United Way reach their goal.


The 2009 goal for the United Way of River Cities is 1.4 million dollars. The deadline for this campaign is December 31, 2009.