United Way sets fall campaign goal
BY DERRICK EK THE LEADER

CORNING After raising a record $4.3 million during its 2006 fundraising drive, the United Way of the Southern Tier has set the bar just a bit higher for this year's campaign, which gets under way today.

The United Way held a kickoff celebration Monday evening at the Corning Museum of Glass.

The goal for this year's campaign is $4.4 million, said Donna Keegan, communications director at the United Way.

The organization holds an annual fundraising drive in area workplaces and in the community, then serves as a distribution point, funding 110 programs offered by 69 health and human services agencies, such as the YMCA and the Economic Opportunity Program, Keegan said.

Community support has been strong in the past few years, reflecting an improving economy, said Ron Hatch, United Way president.

"We're optimistic about this season, too, but it's optimism guarded by a lot of anxiety," Hatch said. "It's always a challenge to raise that kind of money, and certainly a lot of work."

Aside from being a funding "umbrella," the United Way also works to pull together partnerships within the community, Hatch said. The organization is currently involved with three major projects, he pointed out.

One is a partnership with Cornell Cooperative Extension and about a dozen non-profit groups that helps working-class families gain access to tax benefits such as earned income tax credits, Hatch said.

Last year, the program - using 80 volunteers - helped approximately 2,800 families receive $4.8 million in tax returns, he said.

The United Way is also working with the Health Ministry of the Southern Tier to provide "community care centers" in Corning, Bath and Elmira to assist families without health insurance, Hatch said.

The program provided health and dental care to more than 1,000 families last year, and helped them receive $300,000 worth of free prescription medications, Hatch said.

A third major project is a joint program with the Institute for Human Services that has established a three-digit phone number - 211 - to serve as an information and referral service for people across the Finger Lakes region, inc luding Steuben, Chemung and Schuyler counties.