From shaving his head to hosting a car show at the UPS Chicago Area Consolidation Hub (CACH), United Way volunteer Mike Johl (pictured left) has been willing to do whatever it takes to raise money to strengthen our community through United Way. This spring, after 37 years with UPS and seven years as UPS campaign coordinator—and raising more than $5 million for United Way—Mike is retiring.

“Mike is not just a good guy,” says Ken Krull (above right), United Way fundraising manager. “Mike is a great guy. He is an innovative thinker and is always creating new ways to go about fundraising.”

Mike has consistently led his organization in superior campaign performance and has won the coveted Frances Wisebart Jacobs award that recognizes campaign leader of the year. Due to Mike’s commitment, perseverance and ground-breaking efforts, the UPS employee campaign has ranked among the top three within our metropolitan area and last year was the only corporate partner to place in the “$2 million and above” category for individual giving.

United Way is grateful to Mike Johl for his constant dedication to our community and looks forward to taking him up on his offer to volunteer during his retirement!

Thanks to the sponsorship and volunteer efforts of Hitachi Consulting, the United Way Teaming for Technology program hosted a free technology training day for local non-profit organizations on January 25.

Eighteen nonprofits attended the seminar, located on the first floor of the United Way administrative office building. Participants learned about best practices in storing data, the differences between Excel, Access and SQL, and how to more effectively use Excel.

Teaming for Technology was also able to distribute 28 desktop computers, 33 laptop computers and one server at the seminar to participating charities, thanks to the generosity of IBM.

Nonprofit participants included: West Suburban PADS, the Chinese Mutual Aide Society, the Chinese American Services League, Hepzibah Children’s Center, Healthcare Alternative Systems, the McCormick YMCA, YMEN, Imagine Englewood If, BUILD, ECFA, Asain Human Services, Pillars, the Children’s Home and Aide Society, the South Side YMCA, Parenthesis, CAEELI, the Berwyn-Cicero Council on Aging and the League.

United Way is excited and grateful for KPMG’s dedication to strengthening their community. For the first time, the employees of KPMG raised more than $1 million through their 2007 campaign increasing their contributions by almost $250,000.

(Above, from left to right: Paul Snyder, Kathy Hannan, Janet Froetscher and Bruce Piller)

KPMG employees have also represented their company well through their participation in the United Way Tocqueville Society. As of February 4, 2008, KPMG ranks fourth among all metropolitan Chicago corporations with 55 individual donations of $10,000 or more. This level of commitment to helping people is what makes KPMG one of Fortune Magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” in 2008.

As a United Way Volunteer, you raise vital resources that go right back into your community each year—helping countless families and individuals get the help they need most. But did you know that many United Way donors will soon retiree from the workplace, placing our Annual Campaign at risk of significant losses?

By attending this presentation, you have the opportunity to learn:

• why additional revenue streams are critical to United Way’s fiscal health and longevity;
• why planned giving and/or an Endowment is vital to your United Way;
• how to successfully solicit a donor for a Planned Gift;
• where other local United Way’s have been successful in these efforts;
• the most efficient way and time to make a charitable donation, and;
• the tax advantages of a charitable donation.

This will be a great resource for your future campaigns—please encourage your United Way team to join us!

When: Friday, February 29, 2008, 7:30-8:30 am

Where: GCG Financial, Inc., 3000 Lakeside Drive, Bannockburn, IL 60015

Breakfast will be served promptly at 7:30 am, followed by the brief presentation.

For more information or to register (by February 22), please contact Jack Kaplan, Chief Professional Officer at North Suburban United Way at (847) 509-8743, or Beth Curtis, Senior Manager, Strategic Giving, at United Way of Metro Chicago at (312) 906-2457.