Award Winners Announced at United Way of Central Ohio’s Celebration of Excellence
Monday, 19 April 2010 18:39
United Way of Central Ohio presented awards to six organizations for the excellence of their campaign efforts at its Celebration of Excellence held at the new Ohio Union at The Ohio State University.
Grange Insurance Companies received the highest honor, The Award of Excellence, which recognizes overall achievement in corporate and volunteer philanthropic efforts. Award judges found that Grange excels in all aspects of their campaign including strategic performance, leadership giving, and employee education and volunteerism.
This is the sixth year that The Award of Excellence has been presented. Previous winners are American Electric Power (AEP) / IBEW Local 1466, Nationwide, UPS, Deloitte & Touche and Bruner Corporation.
The five other awards recognize accomplishments in specific areas:
- Employee Volunteerism – AEP-IBEW Local 1466
- Employee Education – Bruner Corporation
- Leadership Giving – Alliance Data Systems
- Strategic Performance – Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP
- Best First-Time Campaign – Ologie
The awards were presented by Michael Morris, chairman, president and CEO, AEP, who hosted the event, and Ann Pizzuti, immediate past chair, United Way of Central Ohio Board of Trustees.
“Today’s award winners are leading the way for all organizations in central Ohio,” said Janet E. Jackson, president and CEO, United Way of Central Ohio. “The people in each of these organizations are passionate about helping others and inspiring our community to give, advocate, and volunteer.”
Rhonda Johnson, president of the Columbus Education Association and a United Way of Central Ohio Board Member, announced new awards, the Recognition of Excellence in Community Impact, which recognize programs for excellence in supporting the achievement of United Way of Central Ohio’s Bold Goals through collaboration and best practices.
She recognized the eleven agencies that were part of the 2009 Workforce Development Group that pioneered methods to help United Way collect and use data in meaningful ways. Through the efforts of these agencies United Way has been able to more clearly determine the most effective strategies for helping people get jobs. The award-winning agencies are:
- Alvis House
- Columbus Works
- Columbus Urban League
- Godman Guild
- Goodwill Columbus
- Jewish Family Services
- New Directions Career Center
- The Neighborhood House
- The Salvation Army
- United Cerebral Palsy of Central Ohio
- Vision and Vocational Services
The Ready to Read Corps program of the Columbus Metropolitan Library also received the Recognition of Excellence. This innovative outreach effort goes to gathering places in neighborhoods like settlement houses and food pantries and conducts workshops that teach parents and caregivers effective methods to promote reading with their children.
Janet Jackson also announced that the 2009 United Way of Central Ohio annual campaign raised $43.8 million to fund programs and initiatives in the areas of education, income, health and home.
Michael Morris thanked Labor Co-chair Rocco Evangelista, president of the National Association of Letter Carriers, Number 78, and Randy Sleeper, president and CEO of Bruner Corporation who served as Leading Edge Chair. Leading Edge is an effort focused on increasing the number of organizations that conduct United Way of Central Ohio workplace campaigns.
Celebration of Excellence host Michael Morris announced that Carl English, Chief Operating Officer of American Electric Power will serve as the 2010 General Campaign Chair, and Charles Tippie, President and Business Manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1466, will serve as Labor Co-Chair.
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Founded in 1923, United Way of Central Ohio is working to advance the common good by focusing on the building blocks of a better life: a quality education that leads to a productive career, enough income to support a family through retirement, good health, and a safe place to live. Together, we can achieve real, lasting improvements in our community. For more information, visit www.liveunitedcentralohio.org.
CONTACT: Kermit Whitfield
United Way of Central Ohio
(614) 227-2726
kermit.whitfield@uwcentralohio.org
