Research for United Way Assignment

     United Way of the River Cities is a non-profit organization whose mission is to better the community. They do so by fundraising and working with other programs in the area. On the website it says that they "support programs and strategies that address critical issues in the four focus areas of Health and Wellness, Learning and Earning, Families and Children, and Basic Needs/Unforseen Hardships".
     Long term solutions of these community problems are said to be met by fundraising and donations. Donations are used within the community that they are given, and are said to go to the most pressing problems in the area.
     There are many people affiliated with United Way, for example: Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Goodwill Industries, the Special Olympics, and the YMCA. Chad Pennington is also featured on the webpage as a United Way volunteer. One of their programs, "Success by Six" is trying to ensure that children will be ready physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially before starting kindergarten. This organization is very active in trying to better the community.
     Laura Gilliam is the current executive director of United Way of the River Cities and was the executive director of the Faith in Action  of the River Cities from 1996-2005. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a BSBA in 1985 and moved to West Virginia in 1991. Laura and her husband of 23 years, Frank, have two children together, Rachel and Ian. When Laura is not occupied with her work, she is active in the community, volunteering alone and with her church Enslow Park Presbyterian.
     Cassey Bowden is the Director of Resource Development and Marketing for United Way of the River Cities. She is also a part-time professor at Marshall, where she attended college and now teaches Career Exploration.  She has also worked for the University of Charleston and Alderson-Broaddus College as the Human Resources Coordinator. Bowden's husband Wes is a firefighter for the city of Huntington and together they have one child, Ryley Cole Bowden. Cassey is active in community service and is a member of the Rotary Club of Huntington, and the Huntington Regional Chamber of Commerce. In Bowden's spare time, she golfs, runs, and spends time with her family and her friends.