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Frequently Asked Questions |
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United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County is the largest and most respected, private health and human care service organization in Bexar County. We fund 120 strong, well-managed programs at 70 agencies that help people with basic needs and change lives.
Now, we are engaging the community to get to the heart of problems. Here in San Antonio, United Way focuses on three critical areas -improving early care and education for children, strengthening families to become more financially stable and developing individual capacity for success. [Top] |
Is United Way a Local or National Organization? |
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| While it is affiliated with a national service and training center, United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County is a local organization and is independent and separate from all other United Ways in the country. A volunteer Board of Trustees composed of key business and community leaders in San Antonio governs it. |
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How much influence do I have over how my gift is invested? |
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| You have complete control over where your donation is invested. You can choose to make your donation to the
United Way
of
San Antonio
and
Bexar
County
where it will make real changes. You can designate one of our threeTargeted Areas: 1) Developing Successful Children, 2) Strengthening Families and 3) Developing Individual Capacity for Success; or designate directly to one of our partner agencies. |
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How much of my money really goes to helping people?
I don't want my money to be tied up in administrative costs. |
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| Your local United Way has succeeded in keeping its overhead costs at 8.4 percent and maintains one of the lowest operating costs of all United Ways in the country. In fact, United Way's stringent controls enable 91.6 cents of every dollar you give to go directly to programs that matter as they support children, families and our community. [Top] |
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What happens once I donate to United Way? How do I know my money is really going to make a difference? |
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| Many committed volunteers – business professionals, retirees and homemakers – meet with agencies across town to monitor their programs before deciding where to invest your contribution. They, too, want to be convinced that their donation changes lives. United Way is always looking for people to join the review process. Call 352-7031 to become a program monitoring volunteer. [Top] |
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How does United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County allocate funds? |
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| United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County funds local health and human care service agencies by helping people with immediate needs (food, clothing, shelter, safety), by partnering with well-managed programs that change lives (assisting the elderly, supporting children, supporting the disabled), and by working with many community resources to get to the heart of issues that really matter (successful children, strong families, successful individuals.) [Top] |
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How is
United Way held accountable? |
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There is nothing more important to
United Way
of
San Antonio
and
Bexar
County
than upholding the trust of our donors, volunteers and all other members of the community. For this reason we find it absolutely imperative to maintain the most stringent of operating and accounting procedures and meticulously comply with accepted, legitimate accounting standards and practices.
- We diligently follow established accounting guidelines. Our standards for accounting for revenue and expenses are in compliance with those issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), an organization that sets recommended accounting standards for nonprofit and for-profit businesses.
- We are audited annually to ensure that we are in compliance with FASB standards, the results of which are further reviewed by leading community volunteers who are our trustees and represent the full spectrum of the financial and accounting professions. Every audit report has been completely clean of recommendations to improve or make changes to the accounting system. [Top]
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Which local agencies does UW support? |
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| United Way of San Antonio and
Bexar
County
funds 70 agencies and 120 programs. Please click here for view the agencies. [Top] |
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Is my contribution tax deductible? |
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| If you itemize deductions on your annual taxes, then your contribution is tax deductible, but please check with your tax advisor. [Top] |
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I always receive solicitations from other charities and organizations to give, so why should I give to United Way? |
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Your
United Way
gift allows you to accomplish more than you can alone or through a single charity. When you give to a specific charity, you support a cause. When you give to
United Way
, you help improve people’s lives and strengthen our entire community.
United Way invests your one donation in more well-managed programs that change lives and strengthen families than any other organization in this community. United Way supports every member of the family - from children to teens to adults and grandparents. Most importantly, the expertise and scope of services in the 120 United Way programs represent a standard of care unequalled in San Antonio and Bexar County. [Top] |
| Since my spouse gives at work, I believe our family is already counted. |
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| Your gift is just as important. The health and human care needs in this city are great and the community needs everybody's support to meet those demands. We all have a stake in the city's well-being. [Top] |
I resent feeling like I have to give. |
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| Absolutely no form of coercion is accepted when donating to United Way. Giving is a personal decision and United Way prefers that donors give from the heart. Whether to give and how much to give is entirely up to you. [Top] |
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Our employees and their families are struggling. How can we ask them to give? |
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| Time and again, some of the most generous givers are those who themselves have struggled and needed a helping hand from our community. Everyone should be given an opportunity to express caring through charitable giving and to enjoy the emotional reward that comes from knowing he or she has helped our community become safer and stronger. [Top] |
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What other services does United Way offer? |
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The United Way Help Line/ 211 Texas is an information, referral, crisis intervention and telephone counseling service. Callers receive information on alcohol and drug rehabilitation, crisis intervention, suicide prevention, parenting, transportation and financial assistance. It's free. Call 227-HELP or simply dial 2-1-1.
United Way at Work, links employees in the workplace to community services. United Way-trained Referral Agents help fellow employees access resources to overcome problems, often changing their lives for the better. Currently, there are 900 employees serving as Referral Agents in many of our local companies. Call 352-7060 if you are interested in having a Referral Agent at your workplace. [Top] |
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How can I find out more about United Way? |
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Visit this site often for up-to-the-minute information about the campaign or how United Way works in your community.
United Way also provides a monthly e-newsletter that tracks lives that have changed and provides virtual tours of United Way partner agencies and programs. Check out this month's newsletter here. To sign up for our monthly newsletter, check here.
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Need more information? Write us online to receive a quick response. [Top]
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