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Frequently Asked Questions What does Maui United Way do? Maui United Ways brings people in the community together to generate the financial and human resources needed to address local needs and create positive change in the community. Why should I give? Everyone benefits from a healthy community and a better quality of life. United Way funds a broad range of programs and services that help create a strong community. Because of your generosity, one in three Mauians is helped annually. These individuals might be your coworkers, neighbors, friends, or perhaps even family members. By investing in your community today, you ensure a program will be available for someone in need tomorrow. Does my donation really make a difference? Yes! Agency programs
depend on the funding they receive through Maui United Way. Your donation,
regardless of size, provides agencies with a stable funding source to administer
programs for one in three Mauians. Payroll deduction makes it easy to divide your contribution into regular manageable amounts. Because times are tough, you will want to make sure that quality services will be there if you or someone you know needs them. Why should I give through Maui United Way? Why not give directly to a charity? Maui United Way works as an umbrella organization raising funds to meet critical health and human service needs. When you give to Maui United Way member agencies, you can be assured that your contribution is being invested wisely. Maui United Way member agencies meet rigorous management standards that are reviewed on a regular basis. Each agency has an established record of service and is financially stable. What is Maui United Way’s General Fund? This fund combines the generosity of thousands of corporations, organizations, and individuals, maximizing the power of each gift and effectively investing in programs that address our community’s most pressing human service issues. Trained Maui United Way allocations volunteers make funding awards to programs member agencies based on each program's capacity to address community problems and demonstrate strong management and positive outcomes. Can I give my pledge to the agency of my choice? Yes. Through the donor choice section on the pledge card, you can give your pledge to a Maui United Way agency, to other United Ways, or you may write in any eligible 501(c)(3) organization. Write-in agencies are not reviewed by Maui United Way; it is the donor's responsibility to ensure they are good investments and provide quality programs and services. Is an agency's General Fund award impacted by designations? No! Full member agencies receive designated gifts in addition to any allocation they receive as a full member agency of Maui United Way. When I contribute money to Maui United Way, how are my dollars used? When you contribute to Maui United Way, you invest in the future of Maui. You are helping more than just one person or charity—you are changing community conditions that create lasting results. Your dollars support a wide variety of programs provided by health and human service agencies in our community. These programs address hunger, homelessness, violence and abuse, strengthening families, supporting our you, mental health services, programs for health and rehabilitation, services for the disabled and elderly, disaster relief, and more. How do I know Maui United Way is focusing on the right issues? Local community leaders and volunteers-your friends and neighbors-help ensure that Maui United Way is focusing on the most pressing needs in our community. Volunteers examine community needs, review agency grants, visit agencies and review their programs, and deliberate to ensure that donor contributions our meeting critical needs. This is how United Way makes sure the right issues are being addressed and that programs are not being duplicated by other agencies. How can I be sure my dollars are really going where I want them? Maui United Way is committed to effective and efficient operations and adheres to strict standards of accountability set forth by its Board of Directors and by United Way of America. Maui United Way is independently audited and uses accounting practices that conform with federal guidelines. How much of my contribution goes towards administration? How much goes towards fundraising? About 10% of contributions are used for administrative, management and operational purposes. This percentage is very low compared to many nonprofits. Our fundraising percentage is 14%. The Better Business Bureau notes that an acceptable admin. and fundraising rate for fundraising organization is 35%, so Maui United Way is well below the acceptable rate. With the help of volunteers, we strategically and efficiently fundraise to maximize resources and direct those resources to programs. Who makes sure United Way is doing what it should? Maui United Way, like other local United Ways, is governed by a volunteer board of directors. These are local citizens from various walks of life who meet regularly to help set the future organization direction and insure that the organization is properly managed and held to strict standards of accountability. How much of the money raised stays on Maui? Approximately 98% of the money raised stays on Maui. 1% goes toward United Way of America dues and 1% goes toward our United Way Statewide Association dues. From time to time, things like equipment, may be purchased from the mainland which can change this percentage by fractions of a percent. However, Maui United Way strives to purchase goods and services locally to support our local business community that supports our campaign. How did United Way begin? United Way began as a voluntary, charitable movement in 1887 in Denver, Colorado. Four clergy from different faiths recognized the need to create a community effort that focused on addressing local problems. They joined forces to create an organization to help meet local needs through a single annual fundraising campaign. Is there more than one United Way? There are almost 1,400 local United Ways throughout the United States-all sharing the mission of helping people in their respective communities. Their local independence provides the opportunity to find solutions to the issues and problems unique to each community. There are also United Ways throughout the world in developing countries. In Hawaii, each County has its own United Way. · Maui United Way – Maui and Lanai · Aloha United Way – Oahu · Friendly Isle Fund – Molokai · Hawaii Island United Way – Big Island · Kauai Island United Way - Kauai Maui United was incorporated to serve Maui, Molokai, and Lanai, however, the residents on the island of Molokai wanted to create their own United Way to serve their community. At one time, they were a part of the United Way system, today they are not a “United Way” organization, but continue to be a local community building organization, with their own fundraising drive, that participates in Statewide United Way programs. What is United Way of America? United Way of America is a national service center located in Alexandria, Virginia that provides leadership on issues of mutual concern among all local United Ways.
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