The United Way Central Alberta held their 2017 campaign kickoff luncheon today down at the Sheraton Red Deer Hotel.

The United Way helps to raise money for local groups that address community issues and problems, with the national organization providing leadership to their 117 autonomous, volunteer based United Ways across Canada.

The theme for this year’s campaign is 'Improving Lives Locally', something CEO of United Way Central Alberta Robert Mitchell says is one of the cornerstones of their organization.

“Basically that’s something United Way has been doing for over 50 years, but we are just trying to keep the focus on all the donations that are raised in Central Alberta stay in Central Alberta. So we support over 40 different programs, and we just try to get people to understand that the money raised locally stays locally, and we are improving lives locally in our three different areas.”

Mitchell says those three areas that are top priority are education, income, and wellness, all designed to help kids be all they can be, moving people out of poverty, and building strong and healthy communities.

This event marks the start of the four-month fundraising drive to support over 40 programs and services in those three priority investment areas.  

The United Way helps to raise money for local groups that address community issues and problems, with the national organization providing leadership to their 117 autonomous, volunteer based United Ways across Canada.

For more information on everything the United Way does in Central Alberta, you can check out their website, caunitedway.ca.

 

(Central Alberta United Way CEO Robert Mitchell takes questions from the crowd and media after the luncheon)