History of the Shelby County United Way
50 Years of Neighbors Helping Neighbors

By Rich Wallace

Shelby County has been a caring community from its inception. Organizations too numerous to count have been formed to address the multiple needs of our residents over the years. Those noteworthy causes all had needs for operating funds. With little government funding available, most groups turned to the businesses and community members for support. That created an understandable conflict in fundraising efforts.

Leaders of these charitable endeavors recognized the conflict and sought to achieve a workable solution that would benefit the entire community. The Shelby County United Way, celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2007, is the latest in a series of collaborative undertakings that represent the best in community leadership and problem solving.

The first recorded effort to combine fund raising projects occurred in 1894. A group known as the Associated Charities was formed to oversee charity work and fund collection efforts. It was short-lived, however.

The need for coordinated charitable work and fund raising was heightened during the Great Depression. The summer of 1931 saw the formation of the Sidney Community Chest. Its purpose was as stated in a Sidney Daily News article from that period.

Mindful of the competition between agencies for limited community charitable dollars, the author of the 1931 article noted, " The Community Chest also secures a perfect community of mind and fulfills the command that there be no divisions among you, but that ye be perfected together in the same mind and in the same judgment, and the citizens are earnestly asked to give united co-operation ".

Although the Sidney Community Chest organization faded from the scene, similar problems " co-operation " problems compelled local leaders to try again. The Triangle Chest was launched in 1936. It was a combined fund drive by the Boys' Club, the Boy Scouts and the Salvation Army. Mrs. William Ross, grandmother of brothers Dr. Bill and Dave Ross, was the executive secretary of Triangle Chest. Her son, Billy Ross, Jr., made the assembly call and played taps at the opening program. It was an exciting time in Sidney. The campaign workers fell just short of their $5,000 goal, however.

The Triangle Chest apparently morphed into another organization. The front page of the September 27, 1945, Sidney Daily News carried an article about the Shelby County War and Community Chestand its fund raising campaign. Drive chairman H.A. Binkley was assisted by industrial division chairman Rudy Berg. A " house to house" solicitation of retired persons was conducted by a volunteer group captained by Marcus Sellers. The goal was met, although the amount was not reported in the paper. The business and professional division led the way, collecting 136% of its goal.

After a name change to the Sidney Community Chest, the group continued its annual campaign through 1953.  The organization's  board of directors conducted a survey during the summer of 1953, as interest in a joint drive had waned. The board press release noted that, " The results of the survey clearly indicated a lack on an interest in a joint campaign ".

Charitable agencies conducted separate for the next three years. It was back to the drawing board for community leaders favoring one community campaign.

There was an inherent recognition that a united community effort to collect funds for charities must have the backing of key industrial leaders. They were seeking relief from the constant requests for donations. These concerns compelled the community to try once again.

The Shelby County United Fund was established in June 1957.  The board was a veritable powerhouse of community leaders, led by president Jerome Raterman (Monarch Machine Tool), first vice-president J. Oliver Amos (Amos Press) and second vice-president Frank Gleason (Copeland Corp.) These men decided what Shelby County needed was a permanent organization with a staff to address community needs on a regular basis. A set percentage of the funds raised would support the organization during the year.

Campaign chair H.E. Roth of Sidney Tanning Company and his team ran the first United Fund campaign. They raised $70,119 to provide funding for its agencies.  Six percent (6%) was used for administration and campaign expenses.  The United Fund was managed and operated totally by volunteers from the community.  The member agencies funded at that time were the Cancer Society, Red Cross, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Heart Association, Junior Achievement, Health Association, Retarded Children, Salvation Army, and U.S.O. (United Services Organization).

The first executive director of the United Fund was Irene Collier. She remained in this position for the next seventeen years.  Over this period, the campaign goal increased from $70,119 to $139,000. Progress was slow, but the organization demonstrated it was here to stay.

Judy Wagner became the executive director in 1976. Her boundless enthusiasm and tremendous heart for the needy in the community helped energize agencies and the board. The drive that year, led by campaign chair Rich Wallace, topped the $200,000 mark for the first time. Over $202,000 was raised.

The Shelby County United Fund changed its name to Shelby County United Way in 1977 in an effort to align itself with the national organization of the similar name.

The United Way board changed the direction of its strategic thinking in 1980. There was a sense that top corporate leadership in the community was required to take the United Way to the next level of giving. The board asked Bob Cross, then vice-president of Copeland Corporation, the area’s largest employer, to manage the campaign. He agreed to do so. Other business leaders, including Dick Pope (Stolle Corporation), Fred Kirk (Kirk National Lease), Dan Francis (Amos Press) and Paul Boorman (Copeland Corp.) followed. The results were dramatic. In seven short years, the amount raised had increased from $202,000 to over $500,000.

1988 was a year of transition. Judy Wagner retired after an outstanding career of service. During her thirteen years as executive director, the annual fund-raising campaign grew from $161,300 to $620,000.
 
Deborah Russ became the executive director of the Shelby County United Way in 1988. During the next two campaigns, United Way Volunteers raised $748,719 and $810,000, which propelled the Shelby County United Way into the National United Way of America’s Metro V category (United Way organizations raising $750,000 to $999,999). 

Charlotte Rehmert took over the reins as the executive director of the agency in 1991 after serving as the leader of the Shelby County Youth Services Bureau.  She quickly became a community favorite for her ‘can do’ attitude and boundless energy. Charlotte continued in this position for the next 10 years. Her first campaign was the most difficult. There was an economic downturn economic downturn in 1991, and few were confident the drive could raise anywhere near its goal. However, over 130 volunteers, led by Linda Coffman, raised $771,051, and another successful campaign effort was in the books.

Successful campaigns and good planning allowed the United Way to begin a concerted effort to provide start up funding for ‘special projects’ each year. Some notable examples included New Choices, Habitat for Humanity, Shelby County Residential Services, Shelby County Headstart, youth programs through the Mental Health Clinic and many others.

Campaign efforts in the mid-1990s were very successful. Scott J. Hinsch, Jr., Ralph Keister and others set the stage for the first million dollar campaign. Bruce Boyd accomplished the feat in 1998. Dale Luebke was president of the board. This moved the United Way into the Metro IV division of United Way of America.

Iddy Andrews, formerly the communications coordinator for the Sidney City and Shelby Schools, became the next executive director in January of 2003. The goal of $1,150,000 during the campaign of 2003 was met and exceeded.

Perhaps second only to her passion for the Ohio State football Buckeyes is her love for the needy in the Shelby County community. She has strengthened the United Way partnerships with other key community groups and spearheaded the United Way's leadership of many annual community activities such as Kids Around the Square and the Community Christmas Dinner.

The most recent annual campaign was led by Ken Monnier, Vice President of Emerson Climate Technologies. Under Ken’s leadership the goal of $1,250,000 was met and exceeded. The goal for the 2007 campaign which will be led by Frank Gilardi of Freshway Foods is $1,260,000, and the 50th birthday theme is, " Celebrating 50 Years of Neighbors Helping Neighbors ".

Much of what makes the United Way successful occurs behind the scenes through the hard work of the board of trustees of 20 volunteers from various companies and walks of life throughout Shelby County. The Allocations Committee is composed of board members and community volunteers who meet with each agency in the spring to review budget requests for the following year and determine the recommended allocation.  Agencies must prove their need for funding annually.  Proof of need, documented outcomes, and the dollar potential in the community are carefully considered during this process. 

During 2003, a formal Community Needs Assessment was financed and facilitated through the Shelby County United Way in partnership with the Community Foundation of Sidney and Shelby County. The results of this process indicated that the need of most concern to the community was access to quality, affordable health care, affordable housing, drug/alcohol abuse, education, and single parent household issues in that order.  This was yet another tool that the United Way used to determine where the money raised in the county could best be spent.

During the 2007 allocations period several new organizations became affiliated with the United Way including a new member agency Gateway Youth, as well as a partnering with other community organizations to establish the Compassionate Care free health clinic for Shelby County. Also being unveiled during the year 2007 is the Enhanced Giving Initiative for the purpose of developing a more formal leadership giving program. This initiative was the result of the Strategic Planning which occurred during 2006 and made possible through the generosity of the Irene Jarfas estate.

The mission of the Shelby County United Way is to "Evaluate, Identify, and Meet the Needs of Human Services in the Community". The Vision, which was written during the Strategic Planning Year of 2006, is "To lead collaborative efforts in building a better community". Another service of the United Way is as a local Information and Referral  source for those needing services. Referral and funding needs vary all the way from rent and utility money to domestic violence or health issues.

The Shelby County United Way is no longer just a community fundraiser and distributor. It has become, as its vision might suggest, "A Community Solutions Provider" with a goal of getting all of the providers and members of the community organizations to come together and work to make the most of every service that is offered to the residents of Shelby County.