UWRA ENDOWMENT FUND
In Honor of Gordon Berg

Online Request for Information
Read About The Fund
Read About The Survey
                                     Please send me information as indicated below:

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I would like information on the following:
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   Making A Gift of Cash:   
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About the
UWRA ENDOWMENT FUND
You are a member of an idealistic generation who placed service to community first in your long United Way career, through broad based fundraising, community planning and priority of need. Most of us want to continue this legacy, particularly when we look at the challenges facing United Way and our communities today.

Your United Way Retirees Association is giving you this opportunity through our newly established Endowment Fund. It was established in honor of Gordon Berg who was the founder of UWRA in 1989. He is now 91 years old and in rapidly declining health, but you may remember him as a top flight Social Work planner and long time Executive of both the Charlotte area United Way and Community Foundation.

We request that you seriously consider a gift to the Endowment Fund. You will be part of a legacy that keeps alive the spirit of United Way where you spent your working life, and will pass experience from one generation to the next.

We are thrilled to report that members of your UWRA Board have already led off with their commitments. To date, we have received lead gift commitments of approximately $100,000 in outright cash and $85,000 in deferred giving arrangements through wills and bequests. Several have done both. The recent retiree survey results on ranking service priorities will help guide the distribution of funds.

Please complete and mail the UWRA Endowment form for information and material on how to sign up. Those that contribute before the end of 2005 will be considered founders and will receive public recognition.

For questions, contact the Endowment Committee Chair or the UWRA office:
Bernie Hyman
bjhyman1@aol.com
 Tricia Smith(800) 892-2757 Ext. 624
tricia.smith@uwa.unitedway.org

We deeply appreciate your being part of this exciting opportunity
to continue and expand our service to the United Way field.


UWRA Endowment Fund Survey

One of the action items from the May 2004 UWRA Board meeting was to conduct a survey of the membership to assist in prioritizing the distribution of the UWRA endowment income. A one page survey was sent out in mid June 2004 to 590 UWRA members with a requested return date of July 9, 2004.

A total of 162 completed surveys were returned for a 27% response rate. Thanks to all who responded! Your input will be very helpful as we continue to plan for the success of the UWRA Endowment honoring Gordon Berg, our founder. Specific proposals within these guidelines will be developed and funding decisions will be made considering relevancy, achievability, and cost.

Survey Results. UWRA members were given a list of seven suggested priorities and asked to rank them in order of importance. Members were also given the option of writing in an additional suggestion to be ranked. The results of the survey are presented below.

The suggested distribution item which received the highest ranking among respondents (i.e., the majority of respondents – 59% - ranked it in the top three) was:

Expansion of services to small and medium United Ways through mentoring, consultation, and interim staff assistance

Two other suggested distribution items which received high rankings were:

Piloting additional programs to meet the needs of United Way retirees. An example could be pre- and post retirement planning for local United Way staff. (44% of the respondents ranked it in the top three)

Support for professional leadership development for local United Ways. Examples could include training and scholarship assistance. (40% of the respondents ranked it in the top three) The distribution item dealing with core operating support received mixed reviews:

Support for strengthening UWRA financially, programmatically, and administratively. This could provide core operating support. (While 40% of the respondents ranked it in the top three, it was also placed in the bottom of the rankings by the highest percentage of respondents – 42%).

The other three suggested distribution items received less support and were placed in the bottom of the rankings (i.e., 5, 6, or 7) by 38% of the respondents:

Support for strategies that would strengthen effective collaboration between UWRA, UWA, and local United Ways. Examples could include technology utilization and training assistance.

Provision of a cadre of volunteers to fill critical positions and roles as requested by local communities and nationally by UWA. Examples could include interim or temporary staffing and committee assignments.

Support for new initiatives identified in continuing dialog with UWA and local United Ways. Examples could include expanded responsibility for service to small communities, aiding communities in transformation to community impact, and assisting in organizational self assessments.

Suggested priorities for distribution of endowment income written in by members and then ranked in the top three included:
1) Assistance to laid off UW retirees,
2) Affordable health care for retirees,
3) Put a COLA on our pensions,
4) Helping UWA staff improve their community relations skills,
5) Utilize retired PR types to help UW image.

Twenty members wrote other comments on the survey forms with several indicating that it was hard to choose between the priorities because they were all worthy of support. We appreciate members taking the time to complete the survey. The rankings regarding the distribution of the UWRA endowmentincome and the comments noted on theforms will be taken into consideration as planning moves forward.