The United Way of North Carolina has named the City of Monroe one of their 2020 Spirit of North Carolina Award winners. The City of Monroe ran a virtual campaign during the month of October 2020 and raised a total of $30,412 from employee contributions. Combined with the proceeds from the United Way Golf Tournament, the total gift to the United Way on behalf of the City of Monroe was $43,520.

 City Manager Larry Faison said, “Our employee campaign coordinators Chris Helms and Darwin De Los Santos and other key leadership worked together to ensure the campaign would be both safe and successful. I am very proud of this team and of all our employees who took to heart the challenge to give back to our community through this campaign.”

 The United Way presented city leaders with the Spirit of North Carolina award in the category of Campaign/Engagement Growth during a virtual award ceremony on March 3. The efforts and support of city campaign leaders resulted in a campaign with a 12% increase in employee giving, a 49% increase in the average gift, and a 108% increase in the annual United Way Golf Tournament from 2019.   

The Spirit of North Carolina Award offers United Ways in North Carolina communities an opportunity to honor organizations whose United Way campaigns exemplify the “spirit” of their community. Winners meet specific standards of achievement and are selected by a team of United Way leaders from across the state. United Way of North Carolina leads the award nomination and judging process and presents the award annually. In March 2021, United Way of North Carolina recognized 78 Spirit of North Carolina Award winners and three Excellence in Community Spirit Award winners. These companies and organizations have not only demonstrated excellence in their United Way campaign but are also building a philanthropic culture community-wide.