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Charlotte's United Way kicked off its annual fund drive Friday, with potential donors still seething over the agency's pay scandal and the annual Pacesetter campaign falling $900,000 short of last year's tally.
The Pacesetter campaign, which typically involves about 150 companies, is viewed as a gauge for how the full campaign might fare, and offers the first tangible evidence of potential damage caused by controversy surrounding a $1.2 million pay package given to the former United Way CEO Gloria Pace King.
Last year, Pacesetters raised $8.7 million. The companies involved are considered among the staunchest supporters of the United Way of Central Carolinas. This year's shortfall is credited to the fact that 16 of those companies delayed their campaigns for a variety of reasons, including the hope that the negative publicity dies down. Two additional companies declined to participate in the Pacesetter campaign due to the controversy, officials said.
The Charlotte area United Way supplies essential dollars to 91 charities, ranging from the Salvation Army to the Council for Children's Rights. Some groups depend on United Way for as much as much as 40 percent of their operating money. Last year's campaign raised a record $45 million. But public ire and the nation's faltering economy are expected to deal a double blow.
“In a sense, we are facing what I think is the perfect storm,” said United Way Interim CEO Mac Everett, addressing volunteers at the kickoff. “Health and human resources needs have increased right along with growth, and layer onto that the economic times in which we operate and … add to that the controversy around the United Way.”
The agency kicked off the overall campaign Friday without the usual balloons and banners. Even the long-standing tradition of setting a monetary goal was dropped, as campaign officials vowed to focus attention on the mission rather than the amount.
In doing so, campaign officials hope to soften the hearts of supporters who have become disgruntled since King's pay package became public in June. The board responded to criticism last week by replacing King with Everett. On Tuesday, board chair Graham Denton resigned, claiming he'd lost board members' trust.
An independent review committee has been set up by United Way to investigate the pay package and propose measures to prevent it from being repeated. However, the report is not expected to be finished until after the campaign.
That's unacceptable to potential donors like Lynda Hayes of Pineville.
“The board needs to be more forthcoming with answers,” she says. “Without those answers, nothing has been solved. This is public money, added up from the nickels and dimes of people who joined together, and it should be safeguarded and cherished. The board was making its decisions with disregard for other people's money, and they need to come clean about why.”
United Way officials hope to avoid a shortfall by reaching out to new donors. They plan to lobby companies that don't currently have United Way campaigns, in hopes they will either sponsor an employee campaign or make a corporate donation. A list of 300 such companies has been compiled and United Way representatives will meet with their executives or employees.
Some representatives of the United Way-supported agencies attended the kickoff, and expressed optimism about the campaign's success. However, all said the worsening economy could end up doing the most damage.
