About Us

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The United Way brings the community together to help those in need through an annual campaign to support local nonprofit agencies; serves as a resource in identifying and assessing community needs; provides information about community services; promotes volunteerism; focuses resources on areas of Education, Health and Income.

Mission: To improve lives and meet community needs by uniting people and resources.

Values & Guiding Principles of the United Way

Values:

·         Be agents of change.  Energize people to make a difference in the community by giving, advocating, and volunteering.

 

·         Be responsive.  Commit to focusing on the educational, financial, and health concerns of the community.

 

·         Practice accountability.  Demonstrate responsibility for our actions and expenditures; likewise, promote accountability on the part of our agencies.

 

·         Be fiscally responsible.  Maintain integrity in all financial matters; manage and spend funds wisely.

 

·         Be volunteer driven.  Empower community members to serve one another through the United Way, and to provide direction to the United Way.

 

·         Maintain the highest integrity.  Conduct ourselves with honesty, respect, and openness.

 

·         Inspire contributions.   Raise funds in a creative, effective, professional manner.

 

Be a leader in the community.    Work collaboratively to prioritize and address current and emerging needs to help make the community more successful.   

Principles

Those who contribute, expect the United Way to make a difference in the community with their contributions. They expect the United Way to be responsive to community needs, accountable for funds contributed and to achieve impact with those funds.

History

Since 1970, the United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County has united the community to care for those in need. First, we were known as the United Fund. In 1975, our name was changed to the United Way. Faces have changed and needs have changed but our commitment to the community has never changed.

Standards of Excellence

In Fall 2006, ten United Way volunteers, staff and board members completed a self-assessment of the United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County as required by United Way of America every three years.

The purpose of the UW Standards of Excellence is four-fold: 1) to define how to be a “great� United Way, pursuing and achieving community impact; 2) to establish aspirational benchmarks for individual United Way and system performance; 3) to provide clear definitions and a common language to describe United Way’s business today; 4) to provide a vehicle to help enhance stakeholder understanding of the “new� United Way.

These standards will help United Way of Oxford & Lafayette County become more focused in achieving its community mission.