FORT SMITH — The United Way of Fort Smith Area’s annual fundraising campaign is in full swing.
Every dollar of the United Way’s campaign funding goes back into the community, said Maddie Stojanovic, resource development director of the United Way of Fort Smith Area.
The nonprofit raises money through the annual campaign to give back to its 31 community agency partners across the River Valley. She said every contribution local businesses and individuals make toward the campaign goes to the agency partners because the United Way of Fort Smith Area is fully funded by an endowment fund.
Partners include Boys & Girls Clubs in Leflore, Sequoyah, Sebastian and South Logan counties, Van Buren, Fort Smith and Diamond Hills; Arc for the River Valley; Crawford County Senior Citizens Center; Boy Scouts, Natural State Council; Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Crawford, Franklin and Sebastian Counties; Ozark Area Youth Organization; and the River Valley Regional Foodbank, just to name a few.
According to the organization’s website, in 1990 the United Way of Fort Smith Area Board of Directors formed an endowment fund to provide “perpetual assistance” to the United Way Service Center. The endowment became large enough in 2010 to sustain the operations of the United Way Service Center and make it possible for all donations received throughout the annual campaign to United Way partner agencies and initiatives.
Stojanovic said in March and April the organization will begin its “community investment process,” by which the community will make recommendations to the Board of Directors on how the funds raised through the yearly campaign should be used.
When asked how this year’s campaign is progressing, Stojanovic said, “We are having a wonderful year. We are so busy!”
In addition to the organization’s community campaign, local businesses and individuals — known as “United Way Champions” — volunteer to have internal campaigns to raise funds for the organization, Stojanovic said.
She said over the past 100 years $90 million has been redistributed into the Fort Smith community.
Businesses in the area that have internal campaigns are Weldon, Williams and Link, ArcBest and ABB.
According to ArcBest’s website, the company raises funds for United Way agencies through employee events and plans to participate in United Way’s annual Day of Caring and provide Fill the Bus donations. The company will also conduct an employee-led holiday food drive, the website states.
Rileigh Richardson, executive director of The Arc for the River Valley, said the United Way largely contributes to The Arc’s funding and allows the organization to carry out its mission.
The Arc is an activity center for adults with disabilities, Richardson said. She said after high school, people with disabilities “really don’t have things to do.” She said The Arc gives members a community, recreation and provides advocacy for them, such as education, jobs and legal aid.
Richardson said the some of the activities the center provides members is art and computer classes, karaoke and bingo.
She said the United Way also supports the activity center in day-to-day resources. She said United Way employees once held a cooking class to teach Arc members how to cook nutritious meals.
“We serve a lot of members,” Richardson said. She said the center’s 300 members all have “rich, individual lives” that are each helped by the United Way’s efforts. She said the same is true for the other partners of the United Way.
