Volunteers Are At Core of LIVE UNITED Campaign

United Way of Greater New Bedford’s new LIVE UNITED message – a concept that calls on everyone to become involved in their community through giving, advocating or volunteering – may sound catchy, but the organization’s dedicated volunteers are already putting those words into action.

Each year, United Way draws on the help of community volunteers to assist with their fundraising efforts during the busy fall campaign – an annual drive that ultimately raises over a million dollars for local people in need.

Leading the organization’s annual campaign this year is Beth Sylvia Caldwell, Vice President of the Sylvia Group of Insurance Agencies. Ms. Sylvia Caldwell, along with the Campaign Cabinet, will work to secure new campaigns and help strengthen the organization’s current business relationships.

“United Way is the only local organization that brings together businesses, volunteers and agencies to work towards the common good,” said Ms. Sylvia Caldwell. “They make it easy for anyone to contribute to the community by providing lots of opportunities to do so.”

This year’s Campaign Cabinet includes: Dr. Robert Baarsvik, Orthodondist; Jill Buffington, Direct Hire Recruiter for Spherion; Roger Cabral, Vice President at Bristol County Savings Bank; Tom Davis, Executive Director of GNB Industrial Foundation; Andrew Guilbeault, VP of Marketing & Business Development at BankFive; Chief Ronald Teachman, NB Police Department.

United Way has also welcomed seven Loaned Executives this year, most of whom are employees that local businesses have “loaned” to United Way one day per week to support campaign efforts and help keep administrative costs low.

Members of the Loaned Executive team are: Dawn Ferreira, Acushnet resident and Asst. Branch Manager at BankFive; Robert Horta, New Bedford resident and Deputy Superintendent - Chief of Civil Process for the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office; Gianno Lettieri III, Rochester resident; Linda Moniz, Fairhaven resident and Document Control Assistant Specialist for Lockheed Martin; Vivian Medeiros, Dartmouth resident; Wendy Mendoza-Rivera, New Bedford resident and Human Resources Manager for the New Bedford Housing Authority; Helen Soares, Fairhaven resident and Internet & Deposits Advisor at First Citizens’ Federal Credit Union.

United Way of Greater New Bedford is a non-profit organization that was established in 1953. United Way enables every member of the community to play an active role in local philanthropy by bringing together volunteers, donors, community leaders, and corporate partners to provide quality programs and initiatives that achieve positive results. Its service area has a population in excess of 200,000.