Many of these changes will

be measured in terms of unemployment statistics, retail sales levels,

housing activity, foreclosure rates, bankruptcy filings and the like.

Ultimately, you and I will

measure these changes in terms of their impact on our friends and neighbors.

We will be concerned about who is out of work, who had their utilities

turned off because they couldn't afford to pay the bills, and who has

been turned out of their homes because they could no longer pay the rent

or mortgage. To put it plainly, these are people in our own community

who will need our help.

Please allow me to remind you

that the Fayette County United Way is here. Our United Way is not just

about fund-raising. It is about being a community-based force with the

task of doing what our community thinks is most important.

As the events of Sept. 11 unfolded,

the communities in which our United Way operates thought it was most important

to get the word out about how we can help those directly affected. It

was also important for the people of our community to have someone to

turn to if they needed help coping with these tragic events. While many

of you were watching the national newscasts that were covering the events

of Sept. 11 and their aftermath, you saw a line of text roll across the

bottom of the television screen that displayed a way to give and receive

help: dialing the United Way 211 Helpline.

Thousands in our community

were given quick and detailed information about how to give and receive

help just by dialing 211. The United Way staff and volunteers on the other

end of that line will never know about the thousands of small miracles

they may have initiated just by giving out the right information to the

right people in a time of crisis.

The mission of the United Way

does not stop there. Our Fayette County United Way is working at the grass

roots level to help our local nonprofit programs realize the benefits

of forming partnerships among themselves and bring even more benefits

to our community. Our United Way is working hard to raise funds for our

local programs. Workplace campaigns, leadership giving events and community

fund-raising efforts have taken on new meaning in these times of drastic

change.

Now, more than ever, the United

Way must continue to do what our community thinks is most important. What

is important is very clear ... to help our neighbors through this.

Mike Jablonski

Chairman, Advisory Board

United Way of Fayette County

Back

to Opinion Home Page | Back

to the top of the page