Spirit of the Bay Winners Announced!

United Way Kicks Off 22nd Annual Koko Challenge

October 2, 2010 By Danielle Cohen Leave a Comment

Last week, United Way kicked-off our 22nd annual Koko Challenge at a gathering of law and community leaders hosted by Squire, Sanders & Dempsey. The Koko Challenge is a fundraising contest among local law firms that run United Way fundraising campaigns. The firms compete for top honors by excelling in total dollars raised, innovation and enthusiasm. Scroll down to see a photo slide show of the kick-off festivities.

The theme of this year’s United Way campaign, “Change the Odds,” is a call to action to Bay Area residents to join us in pursuit of our goal to cut in half the number of local families who live in poverty by the year 2020. Currently, one in five families in our region does not earn enough to cover its basic needs, according to United Way’s “Making Ends Meet in the Bay Area” report.

Jay Price, who is chair of the 2010/11 Koko Cabinet, announced the fundraising goal of $1.5 million this year from the 21 participating law firms. Last year, 18 participating firms raised $1.4 million for charitable causes, setting a standard of excellence in philanthropy for the business community.

The Koko Cabinet is comprised of general counsel from United Way’s corporate partners and leaders within bay area law firms. Cabinet members recruit new law firms, lead volunteer efforts and provide support to all participating firms.

2010/2011 United Way Koko Cabinet

Jay Price, Bank of America – Chair
Michelle Banks, Gap Inc. – Vice Chair
Hewitt Pate, Chevron Corporation
James Potter, Del Monte Foods
David Hearth, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP
Vanessa Washington, Bank of the West
Charles Custer, Gordon & Rees, LLP
Nancy Greenan Hamill, Law Office of Nancy Greenan Hamill
Michael Kelly, Squire, Sanders & Dempsey L.L.P.
Richard Kopf, The Fremont Group LLC
William Sawyers, Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center
James Strother, Wells Fargo Bank

For more information about how you can join the 2010-2011 Koko Challenge please contact Danielle Cohen (415)808-4322 or dcohen@uwba.org.

Read more about last year’s Koko Challenge.

Filed Under: Donor recognition, Pathways out of Poverty Tagged With: business, Donor recognition, give, Koko Challenge, partners

Bank of America Golf Classic Raises $30K for United Way

September 28, 2010 By Rick Oculto Leave a Comment

Who says philanthropy can’t be fun? On Friday, September 10^th Bank of America celebrated its 21^st Annual Golf Classic with all proceeds benefiting United Way of the Bay Area.

It was a fun day in the sun at Walnut Creek’s Boundary Oaks Golf Course, where the bank gathered over 90 golfers for a relaxing day in the sun to help support our community. The carts took to the course with a 1:00 p.m. shotgun start. The course included several themed holes, including Closest to the Pin, the Tiger Hole, and the infamous Hole-in-One, where a lucky golfer had the chance to win a motorcycle if she or he was able to sink the ball in one swing.

Later in the day ,the golfers were joined by Raiderettes, Ashlee and Jessica, who encouraged players to give by selling raffle tickets for prizes that included a giant flat screen television, weekend getaways, and golf packages to name a few.

The tournament ended with a banquet held at the club house where winners of the different challenges throughout the day were recognized. At the end of the day, our community was the big winner, with more than $30,000 raised to help United Way of the Bay Area create pathways out of poverty.

Brian Kilpatrick, Tournament Chair for the last few years had this to say, “Bank of America is very happy to continue its ongoing support of the United Way with the 21st edition of our Concord Tech Center Golf Tournament. 90+ golfers and over $30k in donations plus a great day of golfing and good food afterwards really made this event a great success. We look forward to our 22nd.”

Filed Under: Donor recognition, Pathways out of Poverty, United Way Partners Tagged With: business, Donor recognition, partner, United Way, Volunteer

Spirit of the Bay Winners Announced!

May 13, 2010 By Olu Johnson Leave a Comment

Tuesday evening, United Way of the Bay Area honored Bank of America and BRE Properties, Inc. with its highest tribute, the 2010 Spirit of the Bay Award. While all of the nominated companies are strong United Way partners, Bank of America and BRE Properties went above and beyond the call of duty to give back to their community.

United Way’s prestigious award recognizes two Bay Area employers that exceed all others in community involvement through its partnership with UWBA. Thirty two local employers submitted applications for the 2010 award, which were reviewed by an independent evaluation committee composed of representatives from Bay Area corporations actively involved with United Way.

In addition to the Spirit of the Bay Award, United Way presented awards in several other categories to recognize local companies and individuals for their outstanding dedication to community.

These include:


Anheuser-Busch,Inc AT&T Corporation Ball Metal Container Group Bryan Cave LLP, Cargill Salt California Department of Transportation Cargill Salt Comcast Costco Deloitte Enterprise Holdings FedEx	Gordon & Rees LLP GPSG (A Unit of ALZA) J&B Aviation (A Unit of Illinois Tool Works) JCPenney KGO-TV Neiman Marcus Nordstrom Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP	SamTrans Target Corporation The Dow Chemical Company Union Bank UPS Valero Benicia Refinery Wells Fargo Western Digital Corporation Winston & Strawn.