Nikki Ellington named United Way volunteer of the year

Feb. 23—Nikki Ellington was named the United Way of Cass County volunteer of the year Thursday evening as the United Way celebrated their 2023 campaign at The State Theatre in front of a record attendance of 117 community leaders and members.

While fundraising was lower than hoped—the organization raised over $400,000 and were still calculating the final total—the mood was jubilant as the United Way celebrated all of the many volunteers who contributed throughout 2023.

Chris Armstrong, the United Way of Cass County executive director, said the organization was down $150,000 from where they wanted to be in order to continue funding all of the programs that they support.

"We just have to get in there and dig our heels in this year and try to find more new donors," she said.

Despite the shortfall, Armstrong was excited about the new relationships that had been built in 2023 and was proud to have raised the amount they did in a difficult economy.

When announcing the volunteer of the year award, Armstrong said the United Way's mission came down to three words: give, advocate and volunteer. She said Ellington embodied those words through her actions and service.

She praised Ellington's willingness to serve on committees when needed, to man a table at events, to attend an important meeting and stepping up to be the board's secretary when she was a newcomer.

Ellington called the United Way a great organization to be a part of.

"There are so many great people in the community who volunteer," she said. "I'm humbled and honored."

"Nikki is phenomenal," Chris Armstrong said. "She's been great to have on our board. She's very thoughtful. She thinks things through. She's not afraid to voice her opinion, which is great. That's what you need when you have a board. You want everyone's ideas and opinions in order to make good decisions. And she steps up whenever we need anything."

Small Parts was awarded the Outstanding Pacesetter Award and Lewis Cass High School and Pioneer Elementary and High School were all recognized for their participation on Live United Day last Sept. 8.

"I think it's very important to teach the younger generation about giving back," Armstrong said. "Not necessarily monetarily but with the talents that you have or your time. It doesn't have to be that you give money. There are so many ways people can give back to the community and when it comes from high school students, I think that is huge."

Board president Alesia Brown announced some of the specific things the United Way was able to do during the year.

Throughout 2023, the United Way provided 105 pairs of winter boots to children through their partnership with Shoe Sensation. Local homes received 14,788 children's books from the Imagination Library program. The United Way coordinated over $10,000 in Emergency Food and Shelter Program funds to help supply the Emmaus food pantry with dairy products. There were also 591 Live United Day volunteers doing projects around Cass County on Sept. 8.

They also helped fund local initiatives such as the AMVETS Stand Up event, a new freezer for Felix's Pantry, Caston Robotics and the Pioneer Life Skills Program and Elementary Technology Adapters.

Brown called 2023 a comeback year for the United Way following the pandemic.

"(This) was our year to really get back out there and be around people and have some normalcy," she said. "I feel like our community was still a little hesitant and hesitant to financially support efforts outside of their home. But our campaign team did a stellar job getting out there, getting support and making sure they are cheerleaders for our organization so people felt comfortable supporting us again."

As the 2023 campaign chair, Jennifer Savini said she wanted the residents of Cass County to be proud of their community and the people within who give so much to it.

"People do care," she said. "We are passionate about making Cass County a better place to live. We want to see it grow. And being involved in the United Way, it really makes you realize how many people feel the same way.

One of Savini's concerns from the past year was that many in the community don't know what United Way is.

"I feel that we touch so many people and are out in the community and people still don't know exactly what we do," she said. "They might have heard of United Way but the don't actually know the impact we have on Cass County."

Chris Armstrong said that Savini did a phenomenal job as campaign chair and Karli Armstrong, impact and marketing director, admired Savini's resiliency during a difficult campaign cycle

Several volunteers were recognized for their efforts as part of the Reading Railroad. The readers included Sharon Lantz, Deb Ploss, Stacy Rans and Maria Rogers, all who had been reading to local students since 2008. This year volunteers read 144 stories to children.

The United Way of Cass County also said goodbye to board members Josh Hopper and Lloyd Knight during the ceremony while welcoming Elizabeth Mills and Mike Barron aboard.

Security Federal Savings Bank's Kelly Stephenson and Lynn Ness will co-chair the 2024 campaign.