On March 11, Brittany Burnett recalled the upbeat and hopeful vibe at the United Way of the CSRA campaign kickoff in August 2024.
With a theme of “Imagine a Better CSRA,” the event drew community leaders who rolled up their sleeves to generate 1,700 volunteer hours after the breakfast event that day to help non-profits.
“What we weren’t imagining was exactly five weeks to the day of that event on the early morning of Sept. 27, Hurricane Helene would impact our community. We were not expecting that. Our community was not prepared. Without much of a guidebook, we started putting ourselves into action,” said Burnett, United Way’s CEO and president at Tuesday’s campaign celebration, where the organization announced it raised more than $3.3 million with an economic impact of $5.05 million.
Even though United Way staff members had trees through their homes’ roofs, they spent the early days after the storm staffing the 211 referral lines from the parking lots of Publix and Lowe’s Home Improvement.
The United Way office was damaged, so staff eventually shared space with partner agencies Golden Harvest Food Bank and the American Red Cross.
“We knew the community was depending on us,” said Burnett who saw calls increase 10-fold as people searched for resources.
And even though many of the downed trees are now gone and roofs are being replaced, the needs still exist in the community.
In 2024, 129,950 people were impacted by the United Way through the more than 40 programs at local non-profits that it funds.
The United Way highlighted some of its impact at the event such as 1,257 rides through the partnership with Lyft. A majority of those rides were for people who needed a way to get to work. Also, nearly 2,000 people received toys through the Empty Stocking Fund, and more than 1,900 food items were collected through a Martin Luther King Jr. drive.
The organization honored several companies and individuals.
Top fundraisers included Club Car, John Deere, Publix with campaigns of more than $100,000; Southern Nuclear with a campaign of more than $200,000 and the top fundraiser, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, with a campaign totaling $246,000.
Campaign superlative winners included:
• Double Impact Award – Augusta Coca-Cola Bottling Co. UNITED
• Volunteer Champion Award – John Deere
• Youth United Award – MJ Henson
• Top Fundraising Schools: Burke County High School – Burke County; Grovetown Elementary School – Columbia County; Hephzibah Middle School – Richmond County.
The 2024 Alvin W. Vogtle Volunteer of the Year Award was presented to Donnell Jenkins, an exceptional volunteer at MACH Academy. Jenkins has been instrumental in empowering youth through computer literacy, coding, financial literacy, and STEM education, exemplifying the spirit of service and dedication that defines United Way’s mission, according to a news release.
MACH Academy received a donation of $2,000 in Jenkins’ name.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for more than 35 years. She’s a Georgia Press Association award winner.Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
