Every penny counts in the United Way’s fundraising campaign

A penny saved is a penny earned. That’s true, but if you’ve been saving your pennies in a big jar, now is the time to donate them to a great cause. In today’s economy, after all, it might be smarter to switch to saving quarters.

United Way began its first annual Million Penny Campaign last week. The goal is to collect a million pennies ($10,000) in Pinal County to support programs like Early Childhood Success by 6, Adult Literacy, Self-Sufficiency, Services to Seniors and Domestic Violence. These types of programs benefit all the residents of the county.

The first annual Million Penny Campaign got underway last week.

At last week’s Maricopa City Council meeting, local councilmen approved a proclamation in support of the campaign. The mayor’s proclamation reads:

“Now, therefore, I, Kelly Anderson, Mayor of the City of Maricopa, Arizona, hereby proclaim that the City of Maricopa supports the United Way of Pinal County Million Penny Campaign, and the City of Maricopa encourages its citizens to contribute their pennies to the campaign.”

Those contributions can be made at City Hall and at Bashas’. The Maricopa Prevention Program students and Santa Rosa Elementary School are also doing collections.

Look for these collection containers — and don’t forget to deposit your pennies!

According to Kathy Nyetrae, Director of Resource Development for the United Way, “The money raised will go into the community fund, and community volunteers will review requests for funding this spring to decide how to distribute the money available. We have some programs applying for funding in the Maricopa area, and we are so excited to be an active part of the community.”

“We have about 60,000 pennies that were turned in the first week, so we have our work cut out for us to reach one million pennies,” added Nyetrae. “Even the money brought in by the penny campaign will make a huge difference in the services that are available in the county. Literally, every penny counts!”