Horry United Way campaign blitz a bit ahead of 2015 drive

Two months into its annual fund-raising campaign, United Way of Horry County is three percentage points ahead of last year’s drive, with 35 percent of the $1,325,000 goal achieved by Monday. United Way President Genie Sherard notes that this year’s goal was increased by $25,000.

The past two campaigns have exceeded the monetary goals after several drives fell short following the Recession of 2008. The campaign prior to the recession raised $1,491,000, well above the $1.475 goal. Subsequent drives had lower goals, in line with economic realities. Even with the recent increases, the 2016-17 goal is still $150,000 below the goal several campaigns ago, illustrating the extent of the recession, the hardships caused, and the long turnaround.

Sherard initiated a 90-day blitz, beginning with the kickoff in mid-September. The goal of the blitz is “to get the bulk of the funds in, 75 to 80 percent,” before the Christmas holidays. “The blitz has a beginning and an end; volunteers [and supporters] can take it off their plates during the holidays.” This campaign’s blitz ends Dec. 16. The overall campaign also has a date certain ending on April 30.

Another upbeat note: this campaign quickly caught up from the impact of Hurricane Matthew, and especially its aftermath. Several company and organization employee-drives were delayed, including those of Santee Cooper and Horry County Schools. A United Way presentation was scheduled at a principals’ meeting that was canceled. Academy for the Arts, Science & Technology students made a video of a another presentation, which is being used.

“The momentum slowed, but definitely has picked back up,” Sherard says, recalling a sense of deja vu from the impact of October 2015 flooding on the United Way drive a year ago. When Matthew hit in early October, many residents still were trying to recover from 2015 flooding.

In the main divisions of the campaign, the South Strand is leading with 67 percent of its goal. Angie Hackett, chairwoman of South Strand, is new to campaign leadership. In the division, Surfside Business has an impressive 87 percent. The next closest subdivision is North Myrtle Beach Business with 66 percent. Marc Jordan, chief executive of the North Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce, is chairman of the North Strand Division, which is at 56 percent.

Horry County has assigned more than its quota of 150 volunteers to read in elementary classrooms on Nov. 17 in the United to Read initiative with Black River United Way, covering Georgetown and Williamsburg counties. Black River continues to sign up reading volunteers. Black River has a campaign goal of $500,000.

United Way of Horry County helps fund 38 community partners, nonprofits serving tens of thousands of Horry County residents, plus the 2-1-1 service and the “Get Connected” volunteer site. Sherard is “always cautiously optimistic, but we’re feeling good about the momentum and the enthusiasm of volunteers and supporters under [campaign chairman] John Rowe’s leadership.”

This story was originally published November 8, 2016 at 7:04 PM with the headline "Horry United Way campaign blitz a bit ahead of 2015 drive."