Twenty volunteers from local building trades raised more than $3,100 for United Way of LaPorte County during the Sixth Annual Union Street Collection on Saturday in downtown La Porte.
Representatives of Iron Workers Local 395 of Hammond and Electricians Local 531 of La Porte donned reflective vests and took to the streets with plastic buckets in unseasonably cold temperatures to raise money that will be used by United Way’s 22 partner agencies. Generous motorists filled the buckets with bills and coins as they passed through the intersection of Lincolnway and U.S. 35 at the county courthouse between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Retired ironworker Jim Stemmler organizes the annual union street collection. He is a member of the United Way of LaPorte County Board of Directors and a volunteer on the Allocations Committee that channels United Way annual campaign funds to agencies that are serving local people in need.
“We know that 44 percent of residents in La Porte County use the services of United Way agencies,” he said. “In the economic times we’re in, we have people who need United Way more than ever.”
IU Health La Porte Hospital President Thor Thordarson, a United Way of LaPorte County board member, provided a collection center and refreshments during the Union Street Collection event.
United Way of La Porte County’s mission is to improve people’s lives by mobilizing the caring power of the community. It partners with 22 nonprofit agencies to provide programs and assistance aimed at meeting basic needs of people in La Porte County. For information about how to give, advocate and volunteer, visit www.unitedwaylpc.org or call 219-210-3534.