Last week nearly 700 people gathered at America’s Center to celebrate the successful 2007 campaign of the United Way of Greater St. Louis, which raised $68 million – and set a new record for the agency’s African-American leadership giving initiative.
From the start of the 2007 campaign, the Charmaine Chapman Society’s goals were ambitious. It aimed to recruit 250 new members (with a $1,000 minimum donation required) and to raise $1.7 million.
In the end, the new member count was 300 and the funds collected exceeded that ambitious mark.
The more than $1.7 million raised in 2007 is a landmark for the Charmaine Chapman Society. It nearly doubled the funds raised in the 2006 campaign and puts the local group ahead of all other United Way African-American giving initiatives in the nation.
“It feels really good to know that our community steps up when they are asked,” said Orvin Kimbrough, vice president of major gifts for the local United Way, who worked his first campaign in 2007.
The 2007 campaign co-chairs – Deborah Patterson, president of the Monsanto Fund, and Larry Thomas, partner at Edward Jones – celebrated their collective achievement.
“Our team worked really hard to achieve this goal, and the African-American community’s response to our request was just tremendous,” Patterson said.
“We reached so many new people in this community this year through Charmaine Chapman,” Thomas said.
“The money we raised through Charmaine Chapman Society will do tremendous good in this community.”
According to Cheryl Polk, senior vice president and COO for the United Way of Greater St. Louis, the $1.7 million raised by the Charmaine Chapman Society enters a pool of more than $18 million in United Way funding that is dedicated to serving African Americans.
“Putting in $1.7 million and receiving $18 million – that’s power,” Polk said.
“Charmaine Chapman would be very, very proud to see that this initiative she and Dr. Suggs started so many years ago has grown to this magnitude in serving our community and making a statement about leadership in the St. Louis region.”
Nearly 15 years ago, American publisher Donald M. Suggs was instrumental in forming the African-American Leadership Giving Initiative at the local United Way. In its inaugural year of 1993, 35 people raised more than $80,000. Now the membership is nearly 30-fold and the funds generated are more than 20-fold.
Also, the current board chairman for the local United Way is an African American, David Steward, chairman and founder of World Wide Technology and a member of the Charmaine Chapman Society.
The society’s most dedicated members only intend for it to keep growing.
“There’s room enough in our hearts and room enough in our budgets for us to step out there,” Patterson said.
“We had a great team working together to raise money for CCS and United Way. I have said I’ll be back next year and can’t wait.”