Even in a difficult year, local donations set a record for the local United Way campaign.

Congratulations to the United Way of Douglas County for completing a successful 2002 fund drive. Although the final campaign total was slightly below the original goal, it still set a record for annual giving in the drive.

The estimated $1.425 million raised in the 2002 fund drive will provide vital assistance for the 28 agencies that receive United Way funds. The effort United Way takes to assist agencies and oversee their budgets also allows donors to know that their money will be well-spent.

Because money was tighter last year for both businesses and individuals, the United Way campaign faced some special challenges. The success of the campaign is a credit not only to those who led and participated in it but also to those who saw the need, even in difficult financial times, to maintain their charitable giving.

The agencies that received United Way funding provide services to battered women, the poor, people with AIDS, the elderly, children in need, the disabled and others. Thousands of people in the county are touched directly by these services, and the agencies’ work makes Douglas County a better place in which to live.

The hard work contributed by hundreds of United Way volunteers pays off for all of us.