MANSFIELD — The United Way of Richland County reached its $1.425 million goal this year.
The organization announced Thursday at its annual dinner that it surpassed its goal by 0.2 percent, raising a total of $1.427 million.
“We feel amazing. It’s so exciting because it was a community effort, a team effort, I truly believe that,” said United Way of Richland County’s executive director Dan Varn. “This was a ton of people coming together, and that’s where the strength in United Way is.”
Just a few weeks ago, the United Way was still short of its goal. At its Dash to the Goal event Friday, Feb. 22, the United Way had raised 93.6 percent of its $1.425 million target.
At that time, Varn said, he felt “cautiously optimistic,” and rightfully so. Several donations from outside of Richland County were collected since then, and more donations came in from the individuals in the community, too.
The money raised by the United Way will be divided between more than a dozen local nonprofits, including the Friendly House, the Domestic Violence Shelter and Third Street Family Health Services.
“We have a group of 40 individuals who will meet and make decisions on how those organizations are funded,” Varn said. “We’re being diligent, as we view this as an investment of confidence in us, that we’ll use these dollars for the most effective impact.”
Beyond celebrating its the campaign’s conclusion, the United Way’s annual dinner recognized campaign achievements and honored volunteer leadership, including campaign chair and Mechanics Bank president, Mark Masters.
The top 25 companies raised a total of $803,000, according to Varn, and the top five raised a combined $350,000. He highlighted the top five as Mechanics Bank, Therm-o-Disc, The Gorman-Rupp Company, Richland Bank and Newman Technology.
Still, he said, its the community as a whole that makes an impact. He estimated that employees and individuals make up about 65 percent of the total amount raised.
