On Thursday, United Way in Wood County "kicked off" the 2009 campaign with breakfast and a
"blitz" from Bowling Green State University head football coach David Clawson and some of his
players.
The breakfast began with a pep talk from Clawson who then "punted" it over to Wood County
campaign chair Jill Kegler who talked about the needs in the county.
"I hope everyone will dig a little deeper this year," Kegler said. "There have been times
in our history when we’ve all needed to pull together and this is definitely one of those times. I’m
confident in the generosity of the people of Wood County."
Kegler has already been hard at work on the campaign, engaging new people in the process and recruiting a
campaign cabinet made up of community business leaders.
"Jill has done a fantastic job for us already," said Michael George, director of United Way in
Wood County. "She recognizes the need in our community and is doing a great job of encouraging
people to think outside of themselves."
Following the campaign breakfast, volunteers from six local companies dispersed for a United Way Day of
Caring, a program that matches up local companies with volunteer projects at area non-profits. This is a
fairly new program in Wood County, with available projects that include cleaning, organizing, gardening,
and light construction. United Way Days of Caring help increase company morale and camaraderie and also
create a visible difference in our community. These can be scheduled by the United Way Volunteer Center
for individual organizations year-around by dialing 2-1-1.
United Way in Wood County is part of the larger United Way of Greater Toledo, which will be holding a
Lucas County kickoff next week. Lucas County campaign chair Richard Hylant will be announcing the
overall campaign goal at that time.
Contributions to the campaign will help United Way advance the common good in education, income, and
health. Donations to the 2009 United Way campaign can be made securely online at
www.unitedwaywoodcounty.org, by calling (419) 352-2390, or by pledging at your workplace.