Women United® is mobilizing the collective caring power of women to give, advocate and volunteer f
02/27/2025
🫶 Between 2021 and 2023, United Way of Southeast Minnesota implemented a participatory grantmaking process to give Black and African American community members in Olmsted County the space to determine how best to invest in their community. This process resulted in a three-year Youth Empowerment grant to six local Black-led organizations.
👉 Read more about this process at uwsemn.org/news/3-Ways-Better-Partner, and learn about our Youth Empowerment grantees at uwsemn.org/youth-empowerment
02/19/2025
🙌 In 2021, United Way of Southeast Minnesota engaged nearly 2,000 Minnesotans in a 21-Day Equity Challenge. This activity created a shared opportunity for learning, action, and growth.
Stay tuned for more moments from our history during our centennial year! 👀
02/17/2025
🦅 Happy from United Way of Southeast Minnesota!
This holiday is generally considered to honor former presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. However, it's sometimes understood to celebrate the birthdays of all US presidents.
02/07/2025
✨ We hope you’ll join us for our Centennial Gala on March 15, 2025!
In celebration of our founding in 1925, get ready to step back in time to the Roaring Twenties! From live music to themed activities, you won’t want to miss this night of vintage elegance – all while supporting a great cause.
Tickets are limited, so purchase yours today at uwsemn.org/gala! Sales close on February 28.
02/04/2025
💰 Did you know United Way has resources to help you do your taxes - for free?
VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) and My Free Taxes are two programs that may be able to help you out this tax season. Plus, our 211 information line helps you easily schedule your VITA appointment.
Learn more and check your eligibility at uwsemn.org/tax-help - but do it soon! VITA appointments fill up every year.
02/02/2025
👉 ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) data confirms something we already knew anecdotally: certain members of our community experience disproportionately high rates of financial hardship.
💡 In Southeast Minnesota, like elsewhere in our state, residents of color are among those most likely to face disproportionate financial hardship. in 2022, 67% of Black households in our region were below the ALICE Threshold, compared with 33% of white households.
💙 Learn more at uwolmsted.org/alice
01/30/2025
💙 Our centennial anniversary marks a century of community investment.
🪴Since 1925, United Way of Southeast Minnesota has invested more than $150 million into our community. That’s a staggering achievement – comparable to the GDP of Puerto Rico or the cost of a Boeing 787-3 Dreamliner!
👀 Stay tuned for more reflections on this momentous year for our organization!
01/29/2025
✨ Happy Lunar New Year! Often referred to as Chinese New Year, this day marks the new year according to the lunar (also called lunisolar) calendar.
According to the Chinese zodiac, 2025 is the year of the Snake, an animal associated with wisdom.
01/28/2025
🌟 Join our team! We're seeking passionate community leaders in Dodge, Fillmore, Olmsted, and Winona Counties to help shape the future of United Way of Southeast Minnesota.
When you become a United Way board member, you'll make a difference in our region's health and resiliency, create opportunities for local youth, and advance financial security for all people in our communities.
🫶 In January 2023, the United Way of Dodge County and United Way of Olmsted County announced that they merged. This brought UWOC's service area up to four counties in Southeast Minnesota: Dodge, Fillmore, Olmsted, and Winona.
📷: In 2024, we partnered with Ready, Set, Learn of Dodge County as part of our annual Running Start for School supply drive. Together, we made sure local students in Dodge also had access to new school supplies to start the year off right!
01/20/2025
💙 Happy Martin Luther King, Jr Day!
Today, we're reflecting on all that Dr. King contributed to the fight for civil rights in our country - and the ways in which we can draw inspiration from his actions to continue to support our most vulnerable neighbors.
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Contact The Organization
Send a message to Women United - United Way of Olmsted County:
The collective caring power of Women United members strengthens Olmsted County. With a focus on improving the lives of children and youth by helping them reach their potential, Women United creates opportunities to advance the health and vitality of our community through annual investments, signature programs and events.
As one of United Way of Olmsted County's affinity groups, donors are united through shared interests and experiences, and who are committed to significantly improving the quality of life in their communities through focused philanthropic giving, advocacy and volunteering.
Women United members are also United Way Leaders in Giving and have committed to contributing $650 annually. These dollars go directly back into the community to support education programs and supports that help children, youth, and their families reach their potential. Membership can be started by:
Check-off that you want to join Women United on the workplace campaign form.
Proving a donation through cash, check, or credit card
Gift of stock or securities
Donation through payroll deduction
Membership gifts can be made at any time during the year. Be sure to check the box next to Women United on the online form. You may also wish to print the form and mail in a check to: 903 West Center St, Ste 100 Rochester, MN 55902.
Work-place Donors: Did you pledge or donate at least $650 through your workplace? Email us to connect your contribution to a Women United membership and receive benefits today.
*Learn more about membership here *
Signature Program: Dolly Parton's Imagination Library: provides one book each month to over 6,000 children in Olmsted County from birth to age 5. Since its start in 2006, over 11,500 Olmsted County children have benefited!
Signature Event: Power of the Purse is a community fundraising event hosted by the Women United group. The Luncheon features a silent auction of purses and experiences and a key-note speaker that speaks to one of the relevant community priorities determined by Olmsted County. Contact us to attend or lend a hand during our October 10th, 2020 event.
Maude Finch Award: Recognizes women embodying Maude Finch’s giving spirit in the community. Maude Finch, a recording secretary of Rochester Community Chest, took her $20 payment for her clerical services in 1925 and donated those proceeds back to the organization for the common good. United Way of Olmsted County tracks its organizational history back to Rochester’s Community Chest and is proud to have the Women United continue to recognize women embodying Maude Finch’s giving spirit in the community. Meet past Maude Finch Recipients
As a Women United Member you will...
Change Lives: Your support of United Way’s work in education and youth development through Women United membership prepares children and youth for success in school and beyond.
Have Direct Community Involvement: Learn firsthand about community partnerships and programs. Visits to local programs that are initiates and/or supported through the United Way provides insights into how your support makes a difference.
Network with Local Leaders: Meet women with a shared interest in creating lasting change. Gatherings and volunteer opportunities provide time to socialize as well as learn. The most popular event is the Power of the Purse fundraiser presented by Women United.
Celebrate Women: The Maude Finch Award recognizes women’s achievements in advancing the common good with service, volunteerism and leadership. Women United presents this annual award at the Celebration of Caring & Giving.
Get Acknowledged: As a member of a caring and committed group of women, be recognized in our community as an example of what Living United is about.
