More than 200 people attended the United Way of York County, SC, Annual Campaign Awards Luncheon on Monday, April 30.  The event was sponsored by Duke Energy, Piedmont Medical Center and Publix Super Markets.

United Way celebrated the individuals and partner organizations who volunteer their time, energy and resources to make a difference in the lives of others here in York County. The luncheon was held at Southern Charm Events in Rock Hill.  More than 125 awards were presented Monday afternoon.

Awards presented ranged from company honors such as Campaign Supporters and Circle of Honor. Individual awards included Outstanding Campaign Coordinator of the Year and the most prestigious award, Spirit of York County, and several others. The Spirit of York County is given to an individual who lends their time, talent and voice to make a difference in our community.  It is the United Way of York County's highest honor.

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The 26th annual Letter Carriers' Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive is mere days away. This one-day food drive, the nation's largest, provides letter carriers, and thousands of volunteers across the nation the opportunity to help feed many hungry residents in our local community.  United Way of York County, SC partners with local post offices and coordinates with local food banks that are in need of re-stocking their shelves at a critical time of year. Food pantries' resources become dangerously low in the summer months. The timing of this food drive is important because these agencies have traditionally seen a drop in donations during this time of year when the demand for services is going up. Read more .

On April 28th the United Way partnered with the City of Rock Hill Weed and Seed program to present Connecting the Dots. Connecting the Dots focused on five key areas:  job readiness, affordable housing, mental health care, affordable child care and public transportation.  We are using the findings from the United Way Community Needs Assessment to help us target the areas where we can have the most impact and advance our goal of empowering our residents. This initiative aimed to increase training and employment opportunities for individuals who are unemployed and under-employed.

The United Way believes that the development of a highly skilled workforce begins with training and access to opportunities. The goal of this event is to empower participants and to introduce them to opportunities that could produce skilled workers, increase productivity and improve retention, while offering workers the opportunity to earn higher wages and career advancement.

We had a great day and left motivated by the powerful words of our keynote speaker. We also had a host of other great speakers that share a wealth of knowledge with our guest.

A special thank you to our key sponsor South State Bank for helping make sure this event was successful.