Live United - The FHUW Blog

What I learned from Pat

by Amy Rosenblum

Not only was last Friday the Foothills United Way Day of Caring, it also marked the end of an era at our organization.  With nearly 1000 volunteers deployed to nonprofit agencies throughout Boulder and Broomfield counties, I marveled at the commitment of each individual to our community and focused on one in particular, Pat Farrington. 

For the past 13 years, Pat worked in our Resource Development department at Foothills United Way spearheading our campaign efforts.  Pat retired from her post as our Vice President of Resource Development last week. As we search for another leader for this department over the coming months, I will serve as an interim lead to coordinate the campaigns with an incredible team to make this a flagship year, in Pat’s honor. 

As I start my second week in my new role, I naturally reflect on the greatest lesson I learned from Pat.  Friendships are key.  Pat is known for having great friends in all of her campaigns.  As she inspired companies to run a campaign, she usually befriended their campaign coordinator knowing about their families, their jobs, and why they choose to step up to lead their peers for United Way.  She would often come back to the office with stories starting, “You wouldn’t believe!”  The best was Tuesday afternoons after her Boulder Chamber lunches when she would share about all of her new friends.  She considered her colleagues friends.  What a gift.  This meant that she cared about each of them – and each of us – as more than a company contact or a lead but as a person who contributed to the community we serve. This is the lesson from Pat that I carry into my new position and hope that it permeates all of our work so that we continue to grow as a community. 

Even though Pat is no longer with Foothills United Way, the camaraderie that she built over 13 years will serve us all well into the future.  Thanks, Pat!

Amy Rosenblum is the Program Coordinator for the Nonprofit Cultivation Center, and will serve as Foothills United Way's Interim Vice President of Resource Development.

Foothills United Way's Day of Caring celebrates 18 years

August 19, 2011 – Foothills United Way volunteers from all over Boulder and Broomfield counties got a early start today picking vegetables, building fences, painting walls, and more.

They were all taking part in Day of Caring 2011, the 18^th edition of Foothills United Way’s annual volunteer service event. This year’s event featured more than 985 participants, doing 65 projects for local nonprofits and other organizations.

FHUW Board Chair Frank Bruno, and the rest of the FHUW Board, worked at the Tiny Tim Center in Longmont for Day of Caring 2011.

The beginnings for Day of Caring were humble – 18 years ago it was a few dozen volunteers, starting their days with juice and donuts in the United Way parking lot before heading out to complete a handful of projects. Today, planning for Day of Caring begins six months in advance, the annual participation averages around 1,000 volunteers, and the day concludes with a large, sponsored picnic for volunteers that kicks off United Way’s annual fundraising campaign.  

“Our mission is to mobilize people and resources to create a stronger, thriving community, and Day of Caring is a perfect example of that,” said Barbara Pingrey, Foothills United Way’s President and CEO. “People from all over our community, especially from our local businesses, come together each year to make this event a huge success. Whether they’re painting, landscaping or helping in a nonprofit organization’s office, it’s gratifying to see how the volunteers really take ownership of their projects and deliver amazing results.”

The volunteers represent local business and organizations including Amgen, Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., The Boulder County Business Report, CableLabs, Covidien, Faegre & Benson LLP, IBM, Lockheed Martin, RICOH, Roche Colorado Corporation, and many more. 

In completing today’s projects, the volunteers donated approximately 3,948 hours of work, at a total dollar value of more than $84,300. This year’s Day of Caring projects included:

• re-staining decks at the Bridgewalk complex for Boulder Housing Partners in Boulder
• fence-building, landscaping, and painting at the Ed & Ruth Lehman YMCA in Longmont
• planting flowers, trimming hedges and general cleaning at Bal Swan Children’s Center in Broomfield, in preparation for the first day of school
• landscaping at the Sister Carmen Community Center food bank/client services location and renovation help at Sister Carmen’s Thrift Store location, both in Lafayette
• creating Halloween bags and holiday ornaments for Meals on Wheels of Boulder clients
• wood cutting, painting and bunkhouse repair at the Girls Scouts’ Meadow Mountain Ranch camp in Allenspark.

Gold level sponsors for Day of Caring 2011 are: Blue Mountain Arts/SPS Studios, Covidien, Faegre & Benson LLP, FirstBank, IBM, Pasta Jay’s, RICOH, and Roche Colorado.  Bronze Sponsor: Lexmark International. Other sponsor: Longmont United Hospital.

United Way would like to say thank you to all of the incredible volunteers, companies, agencies, organizations and sponsors who helped make Day of Caring 2011 another huge success!

 

Local volunteers gear up for Day of Caring 2011

Volunteers across Boulder and Broomfield Counties will be out in full force this Friday, August 19th, taking part in one of the largest one-day volunteers efforts in the area.

The volunteers represent local business and organizations including Amgen, Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., The Boulder County Business Report, CableLabs, Covidien, Faegre & Benson LLP, IBM, Lockheed Martin, RICOH, Roche Colorado Corporation, and many more. 

This year’s Day of Caring projects include:

• re-staining decks at the Bridgewalk complex for Boulder Housing Partners in Boulder
• fence-building, landscaping, and painting at the Ed & Ruth Lehman YMCA in Longmont
• planting flowers, trimming hedges and general cleaning at Bal Swan Children’s Center in Broomfield, in preparation for the first day of school
• landscaping at the Sister Carmen Community Center food bank/client services location and renovation help at Sister Carmen’s Thrift Store location, both in Lafayette
• creating Halloween bags and holiday ornaments for Meals on Wheels of Boulder clients
• wood cutting, painting and bunkhouse repair at the Girls Scouts’ Meadown Mountain Ranch in Allenspark.

The projects will be followed at 12:30 p.m. by a picnic for the volunteers at Boulder’s Gateway Park Fun Center.  In addition to celebrating the volunteer spirit of our community, the Day of Caring Picnic serves as the official kickoff of Foothills United Way’s 2011 Community Support Campaign.  Donations made during the annual campaign each year provide the bulk of funding for United Way’s partner programs in the community.

Gold level sponsors for Day of Caring 2011 are: Blue Mountain Arts/SPS Studios, Covidien, Faegre & Benson LLP, FirstBank, IBM, Pasta Jay’s, RICOH, and Roche Colorado.  Bronze Sponsor: Lexmark International. Other sponsor: Longmont United Hospital.