Think tank

With a little more money in their pocket, a room of United Way volunteers from the city of Odessa met Thursday morning to try and come up with creative ways to campaign for United Way this year. 

"Let's get excited," city billing and collections manager Gapi Bernal said.

Organizations around the city are getting ready to give their 2008 pledges over to the United Way as they wrap up their year on Nov. 6th. After weeks of counting, final pledge numbers raised will be announced Nov. 18th.

United Way community relations director Brandi Alexander said donors have been very generous this year, but it is needed with the higher demand that follows a population increase. 

She said her agencies have seen an increase in various cases like the working homeless because of the housing shortage. She said a new problem is people who once could afford a house now don't have enough for the bloated down payments caused by stricter lending laws.

However, some of the Permian Basin's largest donors are energy companies, and they have more money to give with a booming economy, she said. 

ConocoPhillips had a lot to give after a successful silent auction held this year at the Ector Coliseum in Building G. This year's auction generated $150,000 to give to United Way, which exceeded last year's donation of $120,000.

"We were able to raise more money because we had more contractors and employees involved," ConocoPhillips coordinator Erica Arizpe said.

Arizpe said they've done several creative things this year to raise money - they had a raffle for a rifle, which raised an extra $5,000. Then they raised $1,200 playing a game of squares called "50/50" in their local office.

"What we've done this year and last year to raise money has never been done in the Permian Basin," she said.

She said their total donation will be about $175,000 for this year. Alexander said that lot from one company.

Traditionally, companies have deducted money from its employees' paychecks, but in the last two years companies have gone the extra mile.

Odessa College gets their "game face" on for their fund-raising efforts with some fierce competition, Courtney Wardlaw, resource development executive director, said.

The college is divided up in teams and one wins at the end of the month. Last year's winner bragged all year, she said.

Wardlaw said this way is much more entertaining and effective.

"We raised $15,000 last year, which was 3.5 times more than the $4,000 we raised the year before," she said.

OC president Gregory Williams is a big proponent of United Way, so this year he pushed for OC to do more in fund-raising, she said.

Although Odessa Regional Medical Center merely had payroll deduction campaigns this year, it almost doubled their donations.

"Our employees went above and beyond this year," Jacqui Gore, director of communications and marketing, said. "Our employees felt extra generous this year."

Gore said they raised $16,500 last year and that was a record. This year they have raised $26,798 so far and the month isn't over.

"We're so pumped," Gore said.

With the country in such turmoil, people start to look out for other people and their hearts warm up, Alexander said.

GIVE BACK TO UNITED WAY AGENCIES:

>> American Red Cross.

>> Buffalo Trail Council Boy Scouts of America.

>> Boys and Girls Club.

>> Campfire USA.

>> Catholic Charities.

>> Centers for Children and Families.

>> Girl Scouts of the Permian Basin.

>> Harmony Home CAC.

>> Meals on Wheels.

>> Odessa Day Nursery.

>> Odessa Day Nursery.

>> YMCA.

>> Odessa LINKS.

>> P.B. Regional Council on Drug/Alcohol Abuse.

>> Safe Place.

>> The Crisis Center.

>> The Salvation Army.

 If one of these agencies has helped you in some way, please call 333-7763 and share your story. 

What are some creative ways your company campaigns for United Way?

>> Silent Auction.

>> Banquet.

>> Bake Sale.

>> Garage sale.

>> Raffle.

>> Date Auction.

>> Dinner Theatre.

>> Other.