A meeting will be held to begin planning and organizing for the 2019 Communithon, the annual fundraising telethon event for the member agencies of the United Way in Weyburn.
The meeting will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 16 in the Weyburn Credit Union’s Community Room, starting at 7 p.m.
The meeting was set to ensure the continuance of the Communithon, after the Weyburn and District United Way board voted on Dec. 12 to be dissolved as of the end of 2018.
A volunteer leadership committee will continue to represent the interests of the member agencies which had been under the umbrella of the United Way, with United Way Regina to now take over administering the Weyburn area.
“The Communithon is well-recognized as a major fundraiser in Weyburn, and we’re going to have this meeting in the hopes of keeping it going,” said Sabrina Kraft, past president of the Weyburn United Way. “If someone has new ideas for Communithon or for fundraising, they can bring that forward also.”
Many of the member agencies have indicated to her they want to be involved in the volunteer leadership committee along with the Communithon committee, but any area resident who has an interest in helping to organize or to volunteer is welcome to come out and take part in the discussion.
A debriefing of the 2018 Communithon was held in November, and in the discussions, members raised the wish to have this meeting and to invite people to bring fresh new ideas forward and any suggestions for how Communithon can be improved.
“There was a lot of conversations on things we could do differently,” said Kraft. “If there’s interest in going back to a two-day event, for example, then there will be time to plan for that to happen, or if there’s a new fundraising idea, there’s time to plan for the new fundraiser and to figure what manpower will be needed.”
She added in regard to the upcoming meeting, “If anyone has ideas or suggestions for entertainment or for the production of Communithon, we want to make sure their ideas are heard. The Communithon is a part of the community, and this meeting is open to anyone in the community.”
The new volunteer leadership committee will be communicating with United Way Regina, and many of the member agencies are planning to be a part of that group to ensure there will be continued coverage for the Weyburn area.
“United Way Regina doesn’t want to drastically change anything,” said Kraft, noting they want to ensure that the needs of Weyburn people will continue to be looked after. They also want member agencies or potential member agencies to know that they can still apply for funding through the United Way.
Any funds raised by the Communithon or by any other fundraising activity in Weyburn will stay in Weyburn to benefit the residents served by the member agencies.
