60 years of impact - United Way / Centraide Windsor Essex County

2
2007 Annual Report 60
years of impact
60 Years of Impact –
A message from the Board Chair and Executive Director
Establishing the Community Fund in Windsor was an act of creating community self -reliance. Those
who had returned from helping win World War II were not prepared to sit idly by and accept an
economic downturn, poverty, or senior government indifference grinding this community down.
The people of Windsor would band together to help their own.
The spark happened in 1947, when a group of business, community and newly formed union leaders
joined to pursue a lofty goal: to establish a Community Fund. At its core, the mandate of the Fund
was to strengthen the fabric of our community and provide a way for the people of Windsor to take
part in achieving this lofty goal with one simple donation. The result was an embodiment of the
Windsor spirit of self-reliance, determination, and caring.
Today, 60 years later, the Community Fund has evolved to become the United Way and its reach has
expanded to include all of Essex County. Without a doubt, the Community Fund, and more recently,
now the United Way, has succeeded in its goal of strengthening the fabric of our community by
being an integral part of our community.
Best known for helping people through the funds it provides to social agencies, United Way has
also helped chart the course for social programs and policies needed by residents in Windsor-
Essex. Its actions have helped to create, nurture and develop many of the progressive changes that
we now consider part of the fabric of our community. Studies carried out under the leadership of
United Way spurred the creation of:
◆ The School of Social Work at Assumption University, now the University of Windsor,
to address a shortage of social workers locally and provincially,
◆ a city-wide daycare system
in response to the needs of working parents with young children,
◆ a Handi-Transit system,
transportation for persons with physical disabilities,
◆ regulations for the operation of rest homes and lodging homes
to protect vulnerable adults.
United Way Windsor Essex remains focused on improving lives, now and in the future. We are directing
more of our resources to prevention and root causes. We are constantly improving our policies and
performance based on best practices and being results focused. For example, the 211 service which
United Way started in 2007 is a futuristic way to connect people today with the information and
community services they need 24 hours a day 7 days a week. This bold initiative was implemented
with the help of the City of Windsor and the County of Essex.
United Way has a 60 year history of bringing the community together to find solutions and make
lasting change. We are proud to be part of Windsor Essex and contribute to the strength, determination,
and caring attributes that are hallmarks of this community. We thank the original founders
and board members who created the United Way and enriched the place we call home.
They understood the role of United Way as a leader and partner in measurably improving our
community and making Windsor-Essex a great place to live.
Bob Renaud
Chair
Sheila Wisdom
Executive Director