What do Macy’s, Chevron, PG&E, Starbucks, and San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee have in common? They all helped kick off United Way of the Bay Area’s 2012 fundraising campaign. This is our 90th campaign, and another critical year in our movement to cut poverty. Having such committed partners will help us to make this fundraising drive a success for our community and the 250,000 Bay Area residents who depend on our services each year.
Macy’s Walnut Creek hosted our East Bay Kick-Off where guests learned more about United Way’s ten successful SparkPoint centers where individuals received one-stop access to financial services and coaches to secure good jobs, get out of debt and achieve financial stability.
On the other side of the Bay, thanks to event sponsors Chevron and PG&E, United Way hosted its San Francisco kick-off at Tres followed by a Giants/Dodgers game. We celebrated the success of Summer Jobs+, the partnership between United Way and the San Francisco Mayor’s Office which placed 5,000 youth in jobs and internships. Mayor Ed Lee, Starbucks Regional Vice President David Chu, United Way Chief Operating Officer Eric McDonnell, and youth participant LaRon Ryan spoke about the program and how companies really came through to give youth the opportunity to gain employment skills and training. Many guests continued on to the Giants game to root for the home team and celebrate the beginning of Week of Caring, United Way’s volunteer week in which thousands come out to lend a hand at hundreds of nonprofits.
It is an important year for United Way of the Bay Area – our 90th year serving the community. We simply could not have made it 90 years without the generosity and support of individuals and partner organizations. Thank you for all you have done and continue to do to make the Bay Area a better, stronger, more vibrant community. We look forward to another successful campaign season.
A special thank you to the following partners for their attendance at our kick-off events: ACCO Engineered Systems; Anheuser-Busch, Inc ; AT&T Corporation; Bay Area Black United Fund, Inc; Bryan Cave L.L.P.; Callan Associates Inc.; Chevron; Comerica Bank; Costco; Department of Financial Institutions; Davis Wright Tremaine L.L.P.; Department of Transportation; Dow Chemical Company; Dodge & Cox; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company of San Francisco; Ernst & Young LLP; Federal Reserve Bank; Fluor Corporation; GPSG-Alza Corporation; Hertz Corporation; Hult Student Campaign; Macy’s Inc.; McKinsey & Company, Inc.; Miller Starr Regalia; Nordstrom; Northwestern Mutual San Francisco Bay Area Group; NuStar; PG&E; Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman L.L.P.; PwC; Ropes & Gray L.L.P.; Riverbed Technology; Target Corporation; Sandia National Laboratories; Shell Oil Products US Martinez Refinery; Shook, Hardy & Bacon L.L.P.; Solano County Government; Squire Sanders L.L.P.; UPS; US Trust; Valero Benicia Refinery.
