History
1923-1959
It all began in 1923, when a coalition of Lafayette residents banded together to garner $23,000 to fund nine agencies. By 1936 the "Federation of Agencies" had been established to solicit community support. That year, this city-wide effort raised $30,490 over a seven-week period. The late 1940's saw a movement identified as the Community Chest which began to gain national recognition. Do you remember the "Red Feather", the Community Chest logo which became a national symbol? Business leaders began to see the Community Chest as an efficient way to distribute needed funds in an orderly fashion. At the same time, it assured their communities that their businesses and industries were a viable and interested part of the communities of their residence. In 1946, fourteen agencies which included the YMCA, YWCA, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, the Salvation Army, the Flower Mission, Lincoln Community Center, the South End Community Center, and the USO were served by the Community Chest. While most of these agencies are still participating agencies of United Way today, there have been additions, deletions and evolutions. The Lincoln Community Center on North 14th Street has now become Hanna Community Center on North 18th Street. Other specialized needs have produced agencies such as Food Finders Food Bank, Tippecanoe County Child Care, the Community Health Clinic, and Lafayette Transitional Housing. By the same token, the USO no longer exists in this community.
THE SIXTIES
A merger of the United Fund and the Council for Community Services in 1966 heralded the arrival of a new name and some new philosophies. Reasons for the merger included transferring the leadership from divided groups into a single community effort to study the health and welfare needs of the community. The Council for Community Services was primarily a planning organization. The United Fund served as the fundraising arm. Both were handicapped by inadequate facilities and staff. The merger provided for a new organization with a board of directors consisting of not more than thirty members elected from the community-at-large on a rotating basis. A less cumbersome and a more efficient administration greatly streamlined the efficiency of this organization.
THE SEVENTIES
1974 was another year of change for the organization, this time with a new name. United Community Services officially changed its name to United Way of Greater Lafayette and Tippecanoe County at its annual meeting. The main reason for the change was so the local organization would be more readily identified with the national organization which had made its name change in 1972. No longer "the United Fund" as it was colloquially known, the new name did not presume any other changes in the structure of the organization.
AGENCY PARTNERSHIP
The number of agencies remained consistent for several years. Starting at fourteen groups in 1956, the total of 23 was reached in 1969. It dropped to 21 when the Boy Scouts chose not be included in 1970 and three community centers combined into one unit (The Greater Lafayette Community Centers). 1983 saw the number rise again to 23 agencies and with the addition of Food Finders Food Bank, two subsidiary agencies, the Women in Crisis Shelter and Lafayette Adult Reading Academy, and Leadership Lafayette, the number now stood at 26. 1991 brought the addition of the new Community Health Clinic and the loss of Leadership Lafayette which is now privately funded. In 1992, Lafayette Transitional Housing Center came under the United Way umbrella. In 1994, the Lafayette Adult Reading Academy was no longer considered a purchase of service tenant and stood as a separate entity. In 2003, Cerebral Palsy Association closed its doors. In 2006, the Greater Lafayette Volunteer Bureau became a division of the United Way and in early 2008, New Directions closed its doors due to funding cuts from the state. Today, a total of 23 agencies are partners of the United Way of Greater Lafayette.
COMMUNITY IMPACT
Since 2004, the United Way has been looking at how it can improve lives in our community beyond simply funding our partner agencies. Working with our partner agencies and other stakeholders, we have focused our work on education, income and health. United Way is working in these areas to create lasting changes in community conditions by leveraging financial, human and other resources against the root causes of some of our community’s greatest challenges. See our Community Impact section for more information on this important work.
HISTORY
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