LIVE. ADVOCATE. VOLUNTEER. LIVE UNITED.

Clean Up Coshocton Day 09

2009-05-05T11:11:00.009-04:00

I would like to take this opportunity to say a big “THANK YOU” to those of you who made Clean Up Coshocton Day a huge success. Over 130 people showed up to the Court Square last Saturday morning to help and we know that there were many groups out around the county doing their own projects too! It was so wonderful to see so many people who were willing to give up a few hours of their day to make a difference in our community.

In a time where many people are struggling to make ends meet and find the positives in the world, this day was an example of the determination and pride of the residents of Coshocton to come together and help one another. Individuals of all ages, families, and numerous groups all came together to lend a hand.

On behalf of the City of Coshocton and the United Way of Coshocton County we want to thank everyone who was a part of Clean Up Coshocton Day and to those who worked in your own neighborhoods to make Coshocton a beautiful place, a place we can all be proud to call home.

Clean Up Coshocton Day Poster Contest

2009-05-05T11:04:00.004-04:00

Together with the City of Coshocton, we hosted Clean Up Coshocton Day on April 25th. To add to the excitement, we added a color contest. The contest was open to all city school students in the 4th, 5th, and 6th grade classes. The student with the winning poster received their own Clean Up Day T-shirt, $10 in prize money and a pizza party for their whole class! Our winners were:

Rachel Lowzowski, Sacred Heart School

Haven Mizer, Central Elementary

& Shania Zeigler of South Lawn Elementary (who was unfortunately home sick the day we came for her pizza party. Her class enjoyed the pizza that day and Mayor Mercer made sure that she got a certificate for her own personal pizza later!)

A big THANK YOU to Dominoes Pizza and Papa Johns Pizza for donating the pizzas!

April Volunteer of the Month

2009-05-05T11:02:00.001-04:00

Penny Egler, April’s United Way Volunteer of the Month!

Penny Egler, who volunteers for First Step Family Intervention Services, inc. has been named the United Way of Coshocton County Volunteer of the Month for April. Egler was nominated by the staff and Farrah Cunningham, Program Director. Nominated for her willingness to help out in any way needed, Egler goes above and beyond to get her jobs done.

Egler is a very active volunteer at First Step. She volunteers every Wednesday night to help with Bingo at the Moose Lodge –a fundraiser for First Step. Egler also helps First Step by cleaning the offices –even cleaning windows! Cunningham describes Egler as “a very caring and compassionate person towards others. She is always willing to help.” Dedication and hard work, like that of Egler is what makes an organization strong. “She never complains and has a smile that always brightens up your day,” says Cunningham.

In addition to helping at First Step, Egler is also an active volunteer at the Coshocton Senior Center and at Windsorwood Place. When not volunteering, she enjoys spending time with her husband Ron Eglar. She has a daughter, Megan and twin grandsons, Austin & Brady.

First Step FVIS provides 24/7 care for victims of violence. They also offer classes to victims of violence, and classes for perpetrators, as well as classes on prevention. For more information on their services or how you can help, contact them at 622-8504 or their offices at 604 Walnut St. Coshocton. First Step will be holding a fundraiser on June 20, 2009 called the “Backwoods Archery & Trap Competition.” It will be held at the Coshocton County Sportsman’s Club. This includes events like Trap competition, Archery Competition and a Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Tournament. Food and drinks will also be provided. On August 8, 2009 First Step will host the Backwoods Softball Tournament at the Lake Park Complex. This event will include a Co-ed softball tournament and a Cornhole Tournament. Food and Drinks will also be provided. For more information, contact the First Step office.

On behalf of the Board of United Way of Coshocton County, Inc., I would like to congratulate and thank Penny Egler for being recognized as a person in our community who is willing to volunteer his time and talents to the community. Give. Advocate. Volunteer. LIVE UNITED.

March Volunteer of the Month

2009-05-05T10:59:00.002-04:00

Kay Hart, March’s United Way Volunteer of the Month!

Kay Hart, who volunteers for the American Red Cross has been named the United Way of Coshocton County Volunteer of the Month for March. Hart was nominated by Caroline Johnson, the Chapter Office Manager.

Hart is very helpful around the Red Cross office. She can be found scheduling instructors for the Health and Safety classes, handling Monday morning tasks that have come in over the weekend and even keeping the office beautiful outside by caring for the flowers. Kay is willing to pitch in and help out wherever needed. She has been a volunteer for over 3 years.

Johnson describes Hart as always “bright and friendly, which is a great to have on Monday morning!” “Kay is dependable and really cares about the Red Cross and our Clients.”

In addition to the Red Cross, Hart is a member of the Roscoe United Methodist church, along with her husband John and children Michelle and Phil.

The American Red Cross is very busy this time of year with CPR classes, Lifeguard training, and preparing and scheduling for a summer full of swimming lessons, Safety City, blood drives and much more! To volunteer or get more information about the Red Cross, contact them at 245 N. 4th St. or by calling 622-0228.

On behalf of the Board of United Way of Coshocton County, Inc., I would like to congratulate and thank Kay Hart for being recognized as a person in our community who is willing to volunteer his time and talents to the community. Give. Advocate. Volunteer. LIVE UNITED.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-05T16:06:00.003-05:00

First of all like to take the opportunity to wish you good health and much prosperity in the new year.

Now, a little campaign update...
We are currently at 77% of our goal or $288,394. The good new is that there are so many areas that are up this year!

We have almost $30,000 in new givers! -Some new companies like Baker's IGA, Best Heating & Air, & The Beacon. That's wonderful!
We have so many places that have really increased their campaigns and made a substantial difference. The School division is over their goal by $1,671. The Public Employees Division is over by $1,757!
We just received a donation -never received before- from the State Bar Association for $3,300!
Many companies and/or groups have nearly doubled their totals from last year....Kraft Foods, Century National Bank, Auer Ace Hardware, Time Warner Cable. Lots of positives.
Others with nice gains...Ohio Heritage Bank, Annin, Jones Metal, Buehlers, Chase, CASCO, Home Loan, WTNS, Dr. Erwin Family Eye Care.
Unfortunately, this economy has been very hard on our big industry. The industry has been so good to us in the past, making up 67% of our campaign monies last year. To date the Industry division is down $40,721 over last years campaign total. This is understandable, but making it a real challenge on our end. We are still waiting on Clow, AK Steel, Novelty Advertising and Longaberger to come in to boost those numbers a bit.

I refuse to give up. We will tentatively close our campaign (although we NEVER stop taking money!) on January 30th, in order to prepare for the Annual Meeting held in February. That leaves us one more month to beat every bush out there. If you have any ideas on last push efforts, please let me know. We must make a difference when our community needs us most!

Volunteer of the Month

2008-12-16T11:00:00.002-05:00

Duane Stutzman (Pictured above (Left) with T.J. Wright, 2nd grader at Keene Elem.), December’s United Way Volunteer of the Month!

Duane Stutzman, who volunteers for the Tutoring, Learning & Contributing program (TLC) has been named the United Way of Coshocton County Volunteer of the Month for December. Stutzman was nominated by Kathy Raber, Keene TLC Supervisor.

Duane Stutzman has been a TLC tutor at Keene Elementary for 2 years. He is a junior at River View High School. When Duane arrives at tutoring, he is the one everyone (tutors and students) looks up to. “From the time he hits the door until the end of each session, he always has a smile on his face, energy that is contagious. He is always positive and ready to do whatever is asked of him,” states Raber. The word “no” is not in his vocabulary. Because he is so committed to the program, his students work really hard to get a high five, “good job” or just a smile out of Duane. He strives every week to bring out the best in everyone. According to Raber, Stutzman is a great mentor for everyone he touches. Raber feels he is a true blessing to the TLC program. “We are so lucky to have Duane in our program. He is such a dedicated and caring young adult. When I think of T.L.C, I think of Duane and smile,” states Raber.

In addition to his work with T.L.C., Stutzman has dedicated over 100 hours of service to the Coshocton Hospital, he helps with the youth program at his church, is a Junior Leader, a Jr. Fairboard member, and helps with the Higher Hopes auction. He enjoys helping backstage with the school drama department. He has also been known to help disabled children at the Christmas program, help clean up the park after the big storm, and help friends and neighbors with anything that needs done. Stutzman is the son of Mary and Nelson Stutzman and has two sisters Lisa and Marium.

T.L.C. is a free, after-school tutoring program that matches volunteer Jr. and Sr. High School students with elementary students. There are currently 13 T.L.C. sites throughout the county. For more information regarding enrolling a student or becoming a volunteer, contact Katrina Havranek, county coordinator at 622-2924.

On behalf of the Board of United Way of Coshocton County, Inc., I would like to congratulate and thank Duane Stutzman for being recognized as a person in our community who is willing to volunteer his time and talents to the community. Give. Advocate. Volunteer. LIVE UNITED.

The Night Before Christmas -United Way style

2008-12-10T14:55:00.001-05:00

Tis’ the night before Christmas
And all through the house,
The cats are not stirring
Thank God there’s no mouse.

When out on the roof
Arose such a clatter
I pulled on my sweats
To see what was the matter.

I threw open the window
Drew up my gaze
To see a sight
That did shock and amaze.

Out on the roof
With a thump on the snow
Landed a sleigh and a driver
Sporting a United Way logo!

His smile was merry
His features so bright
I knew in a second
He was our hero tonight.

As I drew in my hand,
And was turning around
Down the chimney our Hero
Came with a bound.

I stood quite still
When he landed so slow
And asked him quite simply
Why the UWay Logo?

His eyes, how they twinkled
His dimples so merry
He answered quickly
And did not tarry.

“Tis the season of giving,
of love and of sharing.
What better way to
Show we are caring?

Than to give to the needy,
Provide for the poor
United Way does that,
And so much more.

With problems so great
In our world today
It gives me hope
To see United Way…

Address the issues
Our communities face
To find solutions
With dignity and grace.”

Laying a finger
Aside of his nose
With a wink and a smile
Up the chimney he rose

I knew it was Santa
That jolly old elf
Who cared about this world
More than himself.

I heard him exclaim
As he flew out of sight
“Give to United Way &
May your holidays be bright!”

Half Way There!

2008-12-01T14:30:00.003-05:00

I am happy to announce that we are officially half way to our $375,000 goal!

Congratulations to the Schools Division! They were the first group to hit and exceed their goal!
This year the schools have brought in $28,658.96!

Here's where the others are ranked as of today...

Goal; Total raised; % of Goal
Public Employees $20,000; $19,908; 99.5% -Only $92 away!
Retiree $10,000; $ 3,399; 94%
Professional $23,000; $21,025; 91.4 %

Special Gifts (500+) $23,000; $19,120; 83%
Retail/Small Business $45,000; $36,033; 80%
Agribusiness $5,000; $3,790; 75%
Industrial $221,000; $28,502; 13%

We need you! If you haven't given, please consider helping out. Those struggling need us more now than ever. Our mailing address is P.O. Box 84 or donate online by going to our website at http://www.coshoctonunitedway.org/. Thank you!

Ace IS the place!

2008-11-18T14:03:00.003-05:00

A big Thank You goes out to Auer Ace Hardware, their employees and their customers!

For every gallon on Benjamin Moore paint sold in the month of October,

Auer Ace Hardware donated $5.00 to the United Way.

Customers bought 168 gallons of paint in October,

totalling $840 in donations to the United Way!

Thanks to Ace for this promotion and

to all of you who chose to get that painting done in October!

Pictured above are Tom Edwards and AmyTaylor.

Kraft is committed!

2008-11-18T13:45:00.003-05:00

Kudos to the Coshocton Kraft Foods plant. This group joined hands and collected $12,863 for this years' United Way campaign! That is a little more than double what they did last year! Thank you Kraft employees for your contributions and dedication to helping your friends and neighbors in Coshocton County!

Here's just a few of the Kraft employees proud to be a part of it all.

Thanks also to the supervisors and plant Campaign Manager Arturo Jauregui for scheduling the 37 meetings we had to let Kraft employees know about the great things that the United Way does. This was time well spent! LIVE UNITED!

We now pause for this commercial break...

2008-11-12T20:09:00.004-05:00

Hopewell has fun!

2008-11-10T16:00:00.005-05:00

Hopewell School finished up their campaign with a day of drawings. They offered incentives for employees who gave. One of those was a special "United Way Parking Place."

Another prize was an extra personal day off of work. Who wouldn't like that?

And lots of miscellaneous prizes. Thanks to everyone at Hopewell for your support!

Chase Chips In

2008-11-09T20:39:00.002-05:00

Chase employees got in the United Way spirit this week. In addition to running their internal campaign, Friday they hosted a luncheon for employees and guests. It was a great lunch with soups, sandwiches and yummy desserts. Thanks to everyone who participated!

Thermometer

2008-11-06T22:41:00.005-05:00

The thermometers are up! Thanks to the great guys at Smurfit Stone Container, you can keep up with our progress by checking out one of thermometers at displayed at the entrance to Conesville, the WTNS lot in Coshocton, at the Home Loan lot in West Lafayette or coming out of Wal-Mart in the Hopewell school lot. Thanks to all of these places for letting us display!

I hope we get to see this thermometer in motion!

Results are coming in...

2008-11-04T15:40:00.006-05:00

It's that busy time in the United Way campaign when campaign packets are rolling right in.

We are currently at 30 %! To date we have raised $111,712!

If you have not been asked to give, please contact our office. (Or donate online at http://www.coshoctonunitedway.org/) In these tough times, our campaign is as important as ever! The needs are great and are programs are helping to make a difference to the lives our our friends and neighbors in Coshocton County! Any donation you can make is most appreciated!

In addition to the 20 amazing agencies we support and work with all year around,

the United Way is also making a difference in our community with these programs:

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library

This program is being introduced to Coshocton County children from birth to 5 years old. Each month a new, carefully selected book will be mailed in your child's name directly to your home. Dolly Parton's Imagination Library is a FREE GIFT to our children. Registration forms can be picked up at the United Way office, both libraries, Maternal/Child Health Clinic, the WIC office and the Help ME Grow office.

Familywize Discount Prescription Card Program

Anyone that has a prescription that is not being covered by insurance, Medicare or Medicaid is encouraged to pick up a Discount Card from your United Way office. No personal information is needed to receive the card and one card is good for an entire family. The average savings from these cards is 25%. Since United Way started this program in April of 2007, Coshocton County residents have saved over $27,000! Call our office for more details. 622-4567.

United Way of Coshocton County is making a difference in our community. Please contact the office if you have any questions or would like to volunteer with any of our programs.

2008-11-04T15:14:00.005-05:00

The great group of employees over at the Coshocton County Board of Health collectively put together a lovely luncheon to raise funds for the United Way.

Employees from the building and all over came to enjoy the great soups, breads and desserts.

Thank you to this group for all of your hard work and to everyone who came to support their efforts!

American Red Cross

2008-11-03T10:54:00.007-05:00

The American Red Cross of Coshocton County put on their first Armed Services Ball this past Saturday night at the Coshocton Armory. The event was very well attended and was a delightful evening.

The evening highlighted the services that the Red Cross provides to the families of military. Red Cross is the only means to contact a solideir in the case of an emergency.

The Coshocton Hospital (Dave Powers & crew) served a delightful meal.

And the Coshocton Big Band entertained the guest with great music. Congratulations to the Red Cross and it's volunteers who put on a very nice fundraising event.

CASCO

2008-11-03T10:49:00.003-05:00

Amie Bair is the United Way's Employee Campaign Manager at Classic Auto Supply this year. She is getting everyone in the campaign spirit by filling their stomachs. Each Friday, employees have had the opportunity to buy lunch at work with the profits going to CASCO's United Way campaign. Here's a picture of Amie (right) and one of CASCO's owners, Betsy Brown (left), serving up some delicious spaghetti.

2008-10-28T10:13:00.007-04:00

School campaigns are going strong this year. Here are a few pictures of what is being done in the city schools.

South Lawn Elementary had a pumpkin decorating contest. Students and faculty can vote on their favorite pumpkin by using their change. Check out these awesome pumpkins...

Way to go!

At Central Elementary this neat display was on the art door.

2008-10-22T13:16:00.005-04:00

The Students and teachers got in the campaign spirit by a fun game of volleyball. Students who donated to the United Way to take their shot at beating the teachers on this beautiful fall afternoon! What a fun way to LIVE UNITED!

Kick Off

2008-10-02T20:05:00.015-04:00

The 2008-09 was kicked off by another great event. The "Taste of Coshocton County" was held on August 28th at the Lake Park Pavilion. Thanks to a great Kick Off committee, the hard working partner agencies, a fantastic group of board members and 500 of our community members, the event was a true success!

18 food vendors from around our county showed off their favorite foods.

Entertainment was provided by the Union Recreation Cheerleaders...Union Spirit. They rallied the crowd with United Way cheers. What cuties!

Miss Jennifer's Elite Dance Force strutted their stuff and danced their way into many hearts. What talented groups we had that night!

14 Longaberger baskets were given to 14 lucky participants in the basket raffle. Each agency creatively designed a basket and filled it with tons of great items.

The evening was a huge success! We raised over $4,000 in one evening, but more important, we came together as a community to kick off the campaign and Live United!

August First Fridays

2008-08-05T16:17:00.010-04:00

Last Friday night was the First Friday event in downtown Coshocton. This has grown into such a wonderful family activity in our community.

With our annual Kick Off just around the corner, we took this opportunity to show off some of our 14 Longaberger baskets we will be raffling off at the event.

I'll try to get some up close pictures of these basket in the near future so you can check them out!

We also handed out free popcorn and bottles of water to those passing by. We had some of our wonderful board members there to help out with the event. This is a great night to talk with fellow community members and work together as a team to make such a pleasant night for Coshocton.

We even had the Mayor stop by and join us for some jump rope. He was really quite good!

What a great night! I hope to see you at the September First Friday Event!

Quite a donation!

2008-08-05T16:10:00.002-04:00

The United Way of Coshocton was blessed this spring to get an unusual donation. A donor, who has asked to stay annonymous, donated a mobile home to the United Way. His mother had passed away and he hadn't been able to sell it. He wanted to move on with life, so he decided to gift it to us. We in turn, contracted with Peddicord Rice Auction Realty and held an auction. The trailer sold on June 30th for $21,000!

Needless to say we are thrilled! A huge THANK YOU goes out to the generous family who donated the home, to Peddicord Rice for bringing great results, the Coshocton Tribune for some great press on the event and to everyone who turned out that evening to show your support. The home sold to a nice family that is going to move it onto their property in order to move their elderly parents closer to them. This was a win-win-win situation for everyone involved.

If you have something different that you would like to donate to the United Way, give us a call!

We did it!

2008-02-28T11:20:00.004-05:00

Thank you Coshocton! I know it's been a long time since I've blogged and I apologize. However, we have been working hard to pull together our community and achieve our goal! Thank you to all of those board members, division chairs and volunteers who worked so hard to make this happen. To date we are at 102.1% of our goal. -Raising $383,040.03! That's awesome!!

Last week we had our Annual Meeting and Awards Presentations. It was very well attended (especially being a very cold early morning.) We recognized all of our generous supporters along with thanking our 2007-08 Corporate Sponsor Jeff Drennen Dealerships. Smurfit Stone Containers was named, for the 8th year in a row, the Top Giver with pledges over $78,000.

We also were excited to announce the 2008-09 Corporate Sponsor: Ohio Heritage Bank. We are thrilled to have them on board and are looking forward to a great year of working together.

Campaign Kick Off

2007-09-24T19:16:00.000-04:00

wow!!!!!

I know, I apologize. It has been a while since I have updated the blog. I think this will be worth the wait.

The 3rd annual "Taste of Coshocton County" happened on August 30th. What a night! The turnout was unbelieveable. Dave Powers, one of the great committee members estimated that we had easily 500 people there that night. What a wonderful thing for Coshocton! For those of you who don't know, it was the campaign kick off event.

There were 16 food vendors from around the county , who offered tastes of their specialty. For only $10.00 a ticket you could choose 10 different samples. I don't think anyone walked away hungry. The restaurants did a great job of bringing a variety of things to try.

A huge thank you to everyone who planned, helped or attended this evening.

What a success!!