Jodi Moates is “Somebody.” And so is anyone and everyone else who supports United Way of Central Alabama (UWCA) in one way or another.
Be Somebody is the theme of this year’s UWCA Annual Campaign, encouraging all community members to be that person – that “Somebody” – who’s willing to step up and help others in need. As Operations Manager at Easterseals of the Birmingham Area, Moates is doing just that every day.
She said that her relationship with the special needs community started from birth. Her older brother David has Down syndrome. And Moates’ own daughter McKinley, now 12 years old, was diagnosed with cerebral palsy before the age of 1. Moates served as a stay-at-home mother until McKinley was in the fourth grade, when she decided she wanted to go back into the workforce.
After years of watching McKinley receive therapy and intervention services from local agencies, Moates applied for a job at Easterseals, a United Way of Central Alabama (UWCA) partner agency that’s focused on helping people who have disabilities. As it turned out, the job that Moates applied for was already filled. But the Executive Director Michael Woolley saw something in her application that prompted him to call her for an interview anyway. That meeting led to an offer of a different job, which she happily accepted.
“I’m just celebrating my second year at Easterseals and it’s something I’m very proud of,” Moates said. “I get to go to work every single day and witness the differences [we make] in the lives of those with disabilities.”
Moates was among hundreds in attendance at UWCA’s 2024 Annual Campaign Kickoff, held at Birmingham’s The Club on September 5th. This year’s campaign goal is $37.5 million, which will go toward scores of programs and services that improve the lives of people throughout Central Alabama. But the monetary goal is just a starting point, said Campaign Chair Leroy Abrahams, Executive Vice President and Head of Community Engagement at Regions.
“We’ve built this campaign knowing that there is more than $37.5 million worth of need out there,” said Abrahams. “So, we’re going to take this goal and, hopefully, we’re going to blow it out of the water.”
As is tradition, the Annual Campaign was preceded by the Pacesetter Campaign during the summer, which raised $11,086,198 toward the larger goal. The Pacesetter team included Loaned Executives from Regions Bank, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama and UWCA, and was led by Pacesetter Chair Mike Kemp, Founder of Kemp Management Solutions (KMS).
Abrahams urged community members to go beyond simply donating money this year. “We need your endorsement. We need your influence. We need your words,” he said. “We need you to understand that this is about our community and how we continue to be a great place to live and become an even better place to live.” He said that one measure of our community is how well we take care of the least among us.
Abrahams also noted that, under certain circumstances, anyone can fall into a difficult situation. He said, for example, that his own father, who passed away in 2021, had enlisted himself as a recipient of United Way Meals on Wheels to better enable his independence when he knew his health was failing.
“I’ve been giving to United Way for almost 40 years’ worth of my career, and I always give with the idea that I’m helping someone else,” Abrahams said. “And what we need to realize is that when we give to United Way, we’re making an investment, sometimes, in our very own futures.”
For the campaign event, United Way would like to thank the following sponsors:
- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama
- Regions Bank
- Coca-Cola UNITED
- AmFirst
- Mercedes Benz U.S. International
- Behavioral Health Systems
For more information about all the ways United Way works in Central Alabama, visit https://uwca.org/impact.
