Together with Mile High United Way, Mayor Hickenlooper today unveiled a viral online grassroots appeal intended to raise awareness about homelessness in Denver and encourage generous giving to those in need this holiday season.

Also at the press conference: Suncor Energy launched a matching contribution campaign of up to $50,000 for any donations made from now until January 29.  Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel also donated over 2,000 gently used blankets and pillows to organizations serving the homeless in Denver. 

“There is no good time to be homeless in Denver,” said Mayor John Hickenlooper.  “But it is more important than ever that Denver now embrace our ten-year plan to end homelessness and remain focused on housing, services and prevention to minimize the impact of this economy.”

Visit ThisIsDenversRoadHome.org and help Denver’s Road Home reach thousands of new people in the community to educate them about Denver’s ten-year plan to end homelessness.

The centerpiece of the website is a short video that we encourage you to spread virally via email and the Internet.  Included on the new website is an enhanced fundraising tool that allows individuals to purchase decals to demonstrate their support for the initiative.

“With so many people in need, the decals are a great, visual way for individuals and organizations to show how much they care and to help generate resources to provide housing and services to those in need,” said Christine Benero, president and CEO of Mile High United Way.

Why not adopt a meter on their behalf and help the homeless at the same time?!!

People in Denver give more than $4 million away to panhandlers every year. That’s very generous, but there’s a problem — the money does nothing to help homeless people live a better life off the streets.

This fact sparked innovation in Denver’s Road Home and the Donation Meter Project was born. Instead of giving to panhandlers, Denver’s Road Home urges you to put your spare change into a Donation Meter so that we can work together to help struggling individuals and families achieve financial stability.

It’s a creative way for everyone in Denver make a real difference.

Now in its second year, the Donation Meter Project has significantly exceeded our expectations in generating both community awareness and resources, and stands to generate over $500k over the course of the next five years.

We have 12 meters available at the following locations just in time for the holidays!

• 17th & Court
• 16th & Court
• 15th & Glenarm
• 17th & Larimer
• 6th & Broadway
• 17th & Market
• 14th & Stout
• 99 W. 9th Avenue
• 1501 E. Colfax
• 1551 Wewatta
• 900 Santa Fe
• 776 Santa Fe

Denver’s Road Home is a partnership between the City and County of Denver and Mile High United Way.

If you are interested in purchasing a Donation Meter, please contact Lisa Betchey: lisa.betchey@unitedway.org

In this time of need, more than $100,000 will go to the metro Denver community thanks to the 7,600 runners and walkers who participated this morning in Mile High United Way’s largest fundraiser on Thanksgiving Day.

Presented by Qwest, the Turkey Trot benefits Mile High United Way’s investment in three life-changing initiatives: School Readiness, Youth Success and Adult Self Sufficiency.

“It was an amazing show of the collective generosity of our community to see so many people come out on Thanksgiving morning,” said Christine Benero, Mile High United Way president and CEO. “Especially during this critical time when so many families are struggling just to make ends meet right here at home. What happened here today will make a big difference for those families and for all of us.”

To learn about Mile High United Way, the people we help and our work in three life-changing initiatives, visit www.unitedwaydenver.org.

Race Results
The top three finishers for women and men in the 4-mile timed race include: (The public can see their results by 3 p.m. today at www.onlineraceresults.com.)

4-Mile Run Top Three Women Finishers
1. Clerc (pronounced Clair) Koenck, age 22, from Monument, CO
2. Cassie Ficken, age 24, from Morrison, CO
3. Kelly Couch, 31, from San Mateo, CA

4-Mile Run Top Three Men Finishers
1. Greg Reindl, age 24, from Denver, CO
2. Andres Urbina, age 22, from Fort Collins, CO
3. Russell Slade, age 25, from Morrison, CO

Fun Facts:

• 39 states represented at the race today; people visiting Colorado relatives for Thanksgiving.
• Our 35-year-old Turkey Trot mascot was officially named Gobbles this year, through a fun contest on our website.
• 250 volunteers helped put on the race this year with some volunteering for more than 25 years in a row.

All I ever wanted was a place to call home. When I was a kid, my parents got divorced, and I was tossed around between countless family members in metro Denver.  I changed schools a lot, but I still graduated on time from high school. Click here to read Jamie’s story…

By Fermin Avila

The state of Texas was hit by Hurricane Ike on September 9, 2008.  This hurricane hit Texas the hardest in the city of Galveston (population of 58,000), and made its disastrous trail all the way to Houston.  The effects of the hurricane were deadly and claimed the lives of 82 within the U.S. alone.  Hurricane Ike destroyed buildings, stadiums, windows, power towers, cell phone towers and more, leading to a repair on U.S. coastal areas of 27 billion dollars.

I had the opportunity to help a fellow United Way 2-1-1 Call Center during the crisis in late September 2008, and was sent to Austin where Texas had established a temporary disaster call center in an existing 2-1-1 office.

In this 2-1-1 Call Center, an additional 20 phone lines and laptops had been set up and were dedicated to disaster response only.  My role when I arrived in Austin, was managing the Disaster Response volunteers, their schedules, training, questions and crisis phone calls.  I also helped take out the trash, ensured that everybody had lunch, drinks, and assisted with debriefing volunteers at the end of their shifts or after an emergency crisis call.

During the Disaster Line Operating dates, 2-1-1 received 249,081 calls related to Hurricane Ike across the state of Texas.  Their daily peak was 18,000 calls.  During this two week duration, the Austin 2-1-1 Call Center had a total of 200 volunteers answering phone calls.  The Texas 2-1-1 Call Center as a whole had anywhere between 200 – 275 staff members answering calls daily.  (more…)