Thanksgiving is an American tradition with origins in hardship and suffering. At Plymouth in 1621, the settlers had endured a brutal first winter in their new land and were mourning the loss of nearly half of their fellow travelers. Those who remained credited their survival, in large part, to the Native Americans who helped them. And they set aside a day to celebrate their survival and to honor those whose help prevented even greater hardship and loss of life.
As we celebrate Thanksgiving in 2013, far too many of our neighbors in the 13-county greater Atlanta region, like the early settlers, are experiencing profound hardship: 7,500 are homeless on any given night, more than 10 percent cannot find work to support themselves and their families and, not surprisingly, 794,000 have no health insurance. But like the Pilgrims, many are doing the best they can with the little they have, and they need help from their community to overcome their hardship.
United Way of Greater Atlanta gratefully acknowledges the thousands of you who consistently and generously serve as donors, volunteers and advocates when the Annual Campaign calls. You believe that you can do more through United Way and with others who share your values and your desire to build a stronger community. You believe that you can best help others by providing a hand up, not a handout.
Through United Way, you are helping to ensure that all children get a quality education, and you are creating opportunities for those without jobs, insurance and housing to get training, health care and shelter. You are giving people who want a better life the tools they need to achieve it when and where they need them most. You and others like you have made it possible for people to get to their first step, get a fresh start, another shot, a new beginning for themselves and their families.
You are United Way, and through your partnership with more than 147 amazing nonprofit organizations and through more than 200 signature programs (such as the 2-1-1 Contact Center, which offers 24/7 assistance for emergency needs), you put more than 80,000 people on a path to improve their lives in 2012.
As community stewards, you have enabled some of the most well-respected nonprofit organizations in the region to provide people the tools they need to get their lives back on track. VetsConnect, for example – a strong initiative with the Veterans Administration as a lead partner – has helped place more than 250 heroic homeless men and women who have served in the armed forces in permanent or transitional housing and connected them with counseling and the job training they needed.
Through United Way, you have come together in the spirit of community, pooling your financial resources, volunteer hours and compassionate service. And because of you, the number of lives that have been touched is infinitely greater. You should be proud.
Still, with all that you have already done, need never takes a holiday. So, our 2013 holiday wish is that your spirit of generosity will continue to shine, lighting a path for others to follow toward self-sufficiency. We thank you for your unending support and ask that you make time during the coming days to give the gift of your time and treasure to make this a thankful season for all.
Your partnership in the ongoing campaign to make the greater Atlanta region a place where everyone can create a better life for themselves and their families is a mainstay. And for all that you do to help so many navigate the long, harsh winters of life, we celebrate you on this Thanksgiving holiday.
