The United Way of the Flint Hills is fast approaching its annual campaign celebration.
As part of KVOE’s Newsmaker segment Friday, Chief Executive Officer Daphne Mertens said the lunchtime event will be May 23 at the Fairgrounds Bowyer Community Building.
Since taking over from former CEO Mickey Edwards, Mertens says she has learned a lot about what the United Way does locally and regionally.
Mertens says United Ways across America are dealing with lower fundraising after the COVID-19 pandemic, and that includes the Flint Hills region — which has seen fundraising down about $200,000 since 2020. Besides determining how to proceed with its community partners, Mertens says the United Way is now considering the fundraising campaign as an all-year process. The campaign has been a late-summer to mid-spring effort for decades.
For more information about the United Way, its annual campaign and other ventures, go online to unitedwayoftheflinthills.org or call 620-342-7564.
