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All of a sudden United Way is in my face with fund-raising appeals in a big way, hyping its “Power Hour”—occurring as I write these words—to help it reach a $25,000 goal during its “Great Community Give.” The blessings such money will bestow on our community are multiple, we’re assured, with prominent mention of free tax-preparation assistance (presumably, at this point, for next year’s filers) and back-to-school backpacks stuffed with the supplies kids will need a few months hence. Worthy projects all, to be sure, but color me skeptical.
First, a little context. These appeals are being made by the United Way of Central Shenandoah Valley, which until last June was known as the United Way of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County. The name change, and its accompanying turf expansion, followed the late 2024 collapse of the SAW United Way amid a swirl of rumors and allegations of financial impropriety. That, in turn, opened the door for the Harrisonburg-based United Way to expand its domain and thereby broaden its fund-raising base—nature does abhor a vacuum, after all.
The demise of the SAW United Way was no great loss in the overall scheme of things, as I wrote a year ago. Although in its last year the local agency disbursed $196,405 to a dozen or so area social service providers, that represented only a third of the amount it had received in contributions and donations. Virtually all of the balance went to maintaining the office itself, including an $83,250 salary for the executive director. So while Valley Supportive Housing or Renewing Homes of Greater Augusta undoubtedly felt the sting of their lost United Way contributions, local residents who had been contributing to United Way could still provide such agencies with direct donations without propping up a bloated middleman.
But as last month’s IRS filing suggests, the new United Way is only marginally an improvement over the old one.
First, the numbers. For the fiscal year that ended April 30, 2025—which is to say, just as it was swooping into the SAW region—the United Way of Central Shenandoah Valley received donations of $625,909, a 9.5% decline from the previous year. Total expenses, boosted by a 7.8% increase in wages for eight employees, were up 4.3%, to $765,725. Which, yes, means expenses exceeded donations by nearly $140,000, a hole that was partially offset by $25,746 the United Way received in interest from more than $900,000 it has stashed away in investments. The shrinking inflow of donations, meanwhile, continues an overall five-year slide from the $905,253 received in 2020.
What did our now-local United Way do with its money? It gave its executive director, Amanda Leech, a 7.5% raise, to $70,863 a year. It spent more than $7,000 on investment management fees, $42,000 for accounting fees and $103,104 on fundraising expenses. And it expended $197,945—or just 30 cents of every dollar received in donations—on donations and grants to others. Of that, $129,490 went to six community organizations “focused on sliding scale scholarships for local families,” and $68,455 went to support an unspecified number of low-income families with financial emergencies.
United Way is, in other words, a tail wagging the dog. To the extent that people want to support the organizations to which it is contributing, a direct donation will triple the impact. And while its other activities are more or less worthwhile, potential donors should weigh whether its priorities align with theirs. Helping people prepare their income tax returns is not nothing. Nor is it worthless to coordinate the effort that send kids back to school with supplies that they may not otherwise be able to afford. But people contributing to United Way should understand that the lion’s share of their donations are underwriting an organization that is scrambling to justify its continued existence by taking on relatively secondary social needs.
At a time when growing numbers of people are struggling to obtain life’s most basic essentials, including medical care, sufficient food and adequate shelter, there are numerous local organizations trying to meet those needs that need donations more desperately. They are leaner, they are more focused and they will make every dollar go further than can be said of United Way. Moreover, unlike United Way, almost all of them will provide you with either a direct link to their latest IRS Form 990, so you can see for yourself how they’re managing your money; or at least their EIN number, which you’ll need to find the forms yourself.
The EIN for United Way of Central Shenandoah Valley, by the way, is 54-0632716; you won’t find it on the website. Or check out its latest filing here—then go back a year from now to see the financial consequences of the agency’s southward expansion.
Looking askance 