Reservation forms for the 12th Annual Golf Classic are available by clicking here.

Dust off your clubs, break out your sunglasses and get ready to tee-off at the 12th Annual United Way Golf Classic! The popular event will be held on Wednesday, April 30th at the Mt. Prospect Golf Club and will feature a shotgun start and scramble format. Northwest Community Hospital has stepped forward to sponsor the event, which United Way hopes will raise additional dollars for people in need in the community.

“We’re very excited about our partnership with Northwest Community Hospital,” said Northwest Suburban United Way’s Chief Professional Officer, Marcia McMahon. “Their philosophy of community involvement is a great match for United Way’s commitment to improve lives and help people become self-sufficient.”

The Golf Classic, which United Way heralds as the first golf event of the season, is held once again in memory of George Gattas, former Athletic Director at Prospect High School and long-time community volunteer. Three scholarships toward post-secondary education will be awarded in his name at the dinner to follow the event.

McMahon recalls George Gattas’s volunteer spirit and the impact he had on the lives of so many in the community.

“George touched the lives of so many people. He was instrumental in starting the United Way Youth Commission and organized a United Way marathon where residents would ‘run for fun’ throughout our community. United Way is proud to continue that tradition of caring through the United Way George Gattas Scholarship.”

According to McMahon, helping children and youth succeed was a dream close to George Gattas’s heart and a high priority for United Way. The local organization commits over a third of their funding to programs targeted to youth – programs that provide affordable day care, access to healthcare and adoption services, keep children safe, healthy and prepare them for school, as well as after school activities, leadership development and mentoring programs that help youth stay on track for graduation.

McMahon hopes the community will support this mission by golfing on April 30th, sponsoring a hole, donating a raffle prize or simply by attending the awards dinner following the event. Reservation forms for the 12th Annual Golf Classic are available here. For more information about the golf event or to make a donation, please call the United Way office at 847.768.1074. Openings for foursomes are filled on a first-come, first-serve basis, so make your reservation today!

Northwest Suburban United Way Community Celebration

Thursday, June 5, 2008 from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm

Maggiano’s Little Italy at Old Orchard
4999 Old Orchard Shopping Ctr.
Space # 28
Skokie, IL 60077

For reservations call 847.768.1074

At the annual meeting of its board of directors, Northwest Suburban United Way elected a new slate of officers for fiscal year 2007-2008. Taking over as President of the organization is Michael S. Abruzzini, President of Buffalo Grove Bank & Trust; 1st Vice-President, Gregory Guarrine, Superintendent of Prospect Heights School District 23; 2nd Vice-President; James Tansor, Nicor; Treasurer, Gary A. Cueno, JP Morgan; Secretary, Susan Bondy, Schwarz Supply Source.

Abruzzini has been a United Way donor since 1980 when he began his career at Continental Bank. A member of the Northwest Suburban United Way board since 2004, he is looking forward to his tenure as President of an organization which plays such a vital role in the community.

“I feel privileged to be associated with the many generous volunteers who give of their time and talent,” Abruzzini stated. “United Way provides the leadership and resources it takes to help people overcome life’s challenges and become independent.”

Abruzzini is one of twenty-five board members who put their strong commitment to community to work by volunteering with United Way, an organization which has been an integral part of the Chicagoland area for 75 years. United Way volunteers work to improve lives by assessing the needs of each community then funding a network of programs to address those needs. If no programs exist, new initiatives are launched to fill those gaps.

According to Abruzzini, United Way plays a critical role in the community. After the government, United Way is the leading funder of the health and human services, providing the largest source of unrestricted funds. United Way supported programs help our neighbors, or our families, cope in the face of unexpected crisis, keep our youth in school and on track for success, help the working poor remain self-sufficient and care for their families, and so much more.

But Abruzzini points out that this network of support is not guaranteed. United Way has only $1 of funding for every $3 requested. “It is up to each of us to protect and sustain these critical programs in our community.”

National City Sponsors Half-Million Dollar Challenge Grant

Double Your Impact in the Community

Through a generous matching grant of $500,000, National City Bank can double your impact when you increase your gift to United Way. The Challenge Grant will match dollar-for-dollar every new or increased Leadership or Tocqueville gift for the 2007 campaign.

How the match works:

If you are… National City Bank Chicagoland receives…
Challenge Grant matches…

A new leadership giver dollar-for-dollar $1,000 gift +
Example: $1,000 level $1,000 $1,000 match = $2,000

A current leadership giver dollar-for-dollar $1,500 gift +
and increase your gift to $1,500 $1,500 match = $3,000
the next giving level
Example: $1,500

A new Tocqueville Society dollar-for-dollar $10,000 gift +
Member ($10,000 and above) $10,000 $10,000 match =$20,000
Example: $10,000

A current Tocqueville Society dollar-for-dollar $15,000 gift +
Member and you increase your 15,000 $15,000 match = $30,000
Gift to the next giving level
Example: $15,000

Leadership Giving Levels:

Edward L. Ryerson Circle

Daniel H. Burnham Level $1000 - $1,499
Jane Addams Level $1,500 - $2,499
Jean Baptiste Pointe DuSable Level $2,500 - $4,999
Pere Jacques Marquette Level $5,000 - $7,499
Abraham Lincoln Level $7,500 - $9,999

Tocqueville Society

Tocqueville Society $10,000 - $14,999
Order of Independence $15,000 - $24,999
Order of Liberty $25,000 - $49,999
Order of Equality $50,000 - $74,999
Order of Fraternity $75,000 - $99,999
The National Society $100,000 - $999,999
Million Dollar Roundtable $1,000,000 and above

Through the generosity of National City Bank, your leadership or Tocqueville gift becomes even more powerful. Please consider a gift to United Way today!

Arlington Heights School District #25, Faith Lutheran Church, Northwest Community Hospital, the Salvation Army – Des Plaines Corps., Village Bank & Trust, Village of Arlington Heights and Wheeling Township joined forces with Northwest Suburban United Way to make the first Arlington Heights “Ready for School’ community initiative a success.

The ‘Ready for School’ initiative provided disadvantaged students a place for one-stop shopping to get ready for school. Students picked up backpacks filled with school supplies, visited the mobile dental clinic for a checkup and received a physical needed for school. Disadvantaged students living in School District #25, as well as other students who live in Arlington Heights, were able to take advantage of the services in a welcoming atmosphere provided by Faith Lutheran Church. Prior to the event, District #25 notified qualified students by mail in a multilingual flyer explaining the services available to them through the ‘Ready for School’ initiative. The students only needed to bring their flyer and show proof of residence in Arlington Heights, which could be in the form of a lease or utility bill.

On hand to welcome the students and their families were representatives of the participating organizations, including Arlington Heights Mayor Arlene Mulder, Village Bank & Trust CEO Mike Polanski, District #25 Superintendent Sarah Jerome, Pastor Tom Sanders of Faith Lutheran Church, as well as representatives from the Salvation Army and United Way.

Northwest Suburban United Way was instrumental in bringing these organizations together for the benefit of local elementary students. Meetings with Mayor Mulder and Superintendent Jerome to identify a local community issue began as early as January, but it was only after conversations with the Salvation Army and Faith Lutheran Church this summer that the plans for the school initiative began to take shape. The Northwest United Way board hopes to enlarge the scope of this initiative and make this an annual event in the Arlington Heights community.

“United Way provides leadership and resources to help people overcome life’s challenges and become independent,” said Marcia McMahon, Chief Professional Officer for Northwest Suburban United Way. “The ‘Ready for School’ initiative is just one of the ways that United Way works to improve lives and strengthen the community.”

Regina Schlamp, Vice President of Commercial Banking at Village Bank and Trust and Secretary of Northwest Suburban United Way, agrees.

“I think it is wonderful how United Way was able to bring together community organizations to make this program so successful,” stated Schlamp. “It makes me proud to be a Northwest United Way board member.”

For six years, HSBC – North America has partnered with United Way as the title sponsor for the annual “Day at the Races” event at Arlington Park. As always, the event promised to be an exciting day of racing, fancy hats, silent auctions and – most importantly — making a difference for people in the 18 communities served by Northwest Suburban United Way.

The 2007 “Day at the Races” event was no exception – except in one important area. Thanks to the generosity of HSBC and other major corporate sponsors such as Capgemini, Northwest Community Healthcare and Comcast, Northwest Suburban United Way was able to raise a record $96,000.00 to benefit the health and human service programs serving residents in the Northwest suburbs and Skokie Valley. And the total is still growing as contributions to the event continue to flow in.

“It’s so great to see the community rally around this event in such a record way to support United Way,” said Marcia McMahon, Chief Professional Officer of the Northwest Suburban United Way. “The money raised at this year’s “Day at the Races” will make a tangible difference to people in our community.”

In addition to the dollars raised, everyone who attended had a great time, added McMahon. United Way guests in Arlington Racetrack’s elegant International Room were greeted by stunning views of the track, an incredible buffet, an exciting “mystery” wine raffle and a wide variety of silent auction packages, including such items such as a Flat Panel HD TV donated by Meijer, an overnight stay in New York City, autographed sports memorabilia and even a week long stay at the spectacular Villa Tre Grazie in Todi, Italy.

Northwest Suburban United Way’s Youth Board was proud to accept a $5,000.00 grant from Capgemini, which will enable them to make their own community investment in a program that is creating results in the Northwest suburbs and Skokie Valley. The check presentation was made during the special “United Way Making A Difference” race. Youth Board representatives joined representatives from HSBC and Capgemini in the winner’s circle to present the trophy to the winning jockey, along with a mock-up of the check representing their youth board sponsorship.

Northwest Suburban United Way would like to thank the many sponsors of this record-breaking event: title sponsor, HSBC, Capgemini, Northwest Community Hospital, Comcast, IBM, First Data International, IBM – Enterprise Content Management, Pegasystems, Inc., Cornerstone National Bank & Trust, Experian, Fair Issac Corporation, Nicor, SAS and Equifax. This event would not have been possible without their support and that of all the individual attendees whose support of the silent auction, wine raffle and split the pot helped to raise much-needed dollars for the community.

The Northwest Suburban United Way office received a makeover this spring. Thanks to the generosity of Nicor Gas and their employees, the office is now full of bright colors.

This year Nicor employees decided that, as part of their Annual Volunteer Day, they would spruce up the United Way office. Nicor Gas donated all the materials needed to paint including: brushes, plastic, tape and paint. On a Saturday morning, six Nicor employees came to the office and got right to work.

The fresh coat of paint features a United Way gold and blue entry way and blue or gold accent walls in every office. Nicor volunteers were able to personalize each office to give it a unique feel.

There is even the United Way logo on the wall in the entry way! The office is now a proud statement of work that United Way does in the community; work that can only be done with dedicated volunteers.

Celebration Luncheon

Thursday, June 5, 2008 at 11:30 AM-1:30 PM

Maggiano’s Little Italy at Old Orchard
4999 Old Orchard Shopping Center
Space #A28
Skokie, IL 60077

Campaign Leaders Training for Educators

May 6, 2008 - 7:30am - 9:30am

Northwest Suburban United Way
550 Business Center Drive
Mount Prospect, IL 60056