Organizers behind the United Way’s annual fundraising campaign in Guelph say donations are down this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
With only a couple of weeks left in the campaign, they are reminding everyone that they have a role to play as the community responds to and recovers from the impact the disease has had.
“In a year like no other, our community has stepped up in extraordinary ways to help our families, friends, neighbours — even strangers. But the year isn’t over and neither is our work,” said Glenna Banda, executive director at United Way Guelph Wellington Dufferin.
“There are still members of our community struggling to find support and meet their basic needs.”
This year’s campaign focused on social issues in the community and a new video series has been launched by the organization highlighting problems such as food insecurity, homelessness, mental health, domestic violence and isolation — all of which have been exacerbated by COVID-19.
Banda said up to 1,300 people are on a waiting list for mental health services and there have been double the number of opioid-related deaths in 2020 compared to 2019, and households experiencing food insecurity are now more than the national average.
“These are issues that we could not ignore before COVID-19 and certainly can’t ignore now,” Banda said.
Campaign chair and former police chief Jeff DeRuyter said the community has been generous this year and organizers are grateful, but they need some more help.
He said donations are down 13 per cent from 2019.
“So many more people are depending on us for support this year and we need everyone’s help to ensure we can meet the increasing needs,” DeRuyter said.
The United Way said the decrease can be blamed mostly on the usual fundraising events being cancelled because of COVID-19.
Second to only the government, the United Way is the largest investor in social services and all money raised goes to local organizations.
The Ontario Non-Profit Network estimates one in five non-profits across the province will close in the next six months.
Banda said this is not the year to be making cuts to the usual funding they receive through donations.
“The fact is our community looks a lot different without our social services in it. Imagine if there was no distress line to call when you were experiencing a mental health crisis, or a food pantry to visit when you couldn’t feed your family,” said Banda.
“We have a responsibility to ensure that the safety net that United Way funds and our community relies on is there for people when they need support.
More information on how to donate can be found on the United Way’s website.