Kings United Way one of several beneficiaries of $6.6 million Central Valley donation

The $6.6 million earmarked for United Way chapters in the Central Valley will be allocated between organizations representing the counties of San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Fresno, and Madera, Tulare, Kings, and Kern.

The gift is part of a more considerable $15 million-dollar investment meant for the entire network of California-based United Ways, which includes 30 individual chapters (as well as one statewide organization).

Local United Ways will work in partnership with the communities they serve to determine how to best use their portion of the anonymous donation. In the mid-Central Valley, United Way chapters are all engaged in some variation of COVID-19-related outreach.

United Way of Merced County, United Way of Tulare County, United Way of Kern County and Kings United Way have funds specifically intended to assist non-profits doing relief work, while United Way Fresno and Madera Counties and United Way of Kern County’s emergency fund will provide immediate relief to vulnerable residents who have been negatively affected by the pandemic.

All four chapters will also use funds to enhance 211 services to their communities.

“This gift is a tremendous boost to provide critical, timely relief in our community,” says United Way Fresno and Madera Counties CEO and President, Lindsay Callahan. “Yet, even with a multi-million-dollar donation in hand, we simply need more. The level of need is unprecedented, and the increased volume of 211 calls shows us that residents are reaching out, more and more, for necessities like food and shelter. To help these families and individuals get through these difficult times and be able to start a path to recovery from this pandemic, we need more funds, more volunteers, and more community support.”

Nanette Villarreal, Executive Director of Kings United Way, shares Callahan’s sentiments.

“We are so grateful for the support from friends and neighbors who understand our Live United creed,” says Villarreal. “This large anonymous gift, in particular, will go so far in helping many families. But the work we’re doing is on-going. People need more than one-time assistance to get them through. They need ongoing access to resources, and we will continue to partner with local and regional stakeholders as we rebuild and recover from this pandemic.”

Many businesses, organizations, and community leaders have made significant contributions to the various mid-Central Valley United Way funds. Some of these supporters include the Central Valley Community Foundation, Aera Energy, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Golden 1 Credit Union, Health Net, the James B. McClatchy Foundation, Cookies Clothing, Fresno State’s Humanics Program, and Assemblyman Joaquin Arambula, among many others.

If you would like to donate to one of the mid-Central Valley United Way Relief Funds, you can do so by one of the following methods:

• For United Way of Kern County, visit helpkem.org.
• For United Way of Merced County, visit unitedwaymerced.org/covid19-1.
• For UWFM’s Coronavirus Relief Fund, visit uwfm.org/relief or text “RELIEFNOW” to 44321
• For Kings United Way, visit kingsunitedway.org or text “KUWGIVE” to 313131.

For United Way of Tulare County, visit unitedwaytc.org/donate or text “COVIDTC” to 41444

“Money is awesome, but people power is a big component of our work, too,” says United Way of Tulare County Executive Director, Rosemary Caso. “We know this is an incredibly unstable time for many families who would love to give but simply can’t. Volunteering time or even helping get the word out about our programs on social media or through word of mouth is often just as beneficial to our mission as an organization.”

Tulare County residents who might be interested in volunteering can visit volunteer.unitedwaytc.org to get involved, while Kings County residents can sign up at volunteer.kingsunitedway.org. United Way Fresno and Madera Counties are mainly on the lookout for people interested in volunteering as application assistants or prosperity coaches. More information on those positions are available at uwfm.org/giveback.Merced County residents can apply to give or get help at tesseraktinstitute.org/mercedhelphub. All four mid-Central Valley United Ways have presences on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

“This pandemic is systematic magnifying issues that have been around long before Shelter-in-Place or Coronavirus or COVID-19 were words any of us were familiar with,” says Manuel J. Alvarado, CEO of United Way of Merced. “Supporting your local United Way chapter is a way to ensure your time or money goes directly back into your neighborhoods and communities. It is our goal to unite our community together and assist those who need it most, as well as be adaptable to continued changes as we all get through this together.”

To learn more about this donation is being maximized across all California United Ways, see this article.