ROCK ISLAND, Ill.--During the initial weeks of the 2012 Illowa Bi-State Combined Federal Campaign, federal government employees have seen a flurry of activity in their work areas. Employees have been donating to CFC charities to make a lasting difference in people's lives in the Quad City Area and beyond. In addition, volunteers in various agencies have been holding fundraisers to generate additional donations to CFC.
"The campaign is going very well," said Matthew Kopel, this year's CFC chairman. "There is a high level of awareness about the campaign and people have really gotten involved with special fundraising events."
Federal agencies have jumped on the bandwagon with unique events such as:
-Letters to Santa, taco dinner, cutest pet contest, chili cookoff (Transportation Security Agency)
-Flamingo flock, silent auction, scoops and squares, silent auction (Civilian Human Resources Agency)
-Pumpkin carving, parking space auction, pancake flip breakfast (Joint Manufacturing and Technology Center)
-Gobbler clobber, salsa contest, bake sale (Joint Munitions Command)
"I hear that CHRA's sundae sale was a big hit with its bacon bits topping. Go figure!" said Kopel.
"Another positive this year is the fact that CFC's four loaned executives have made an outstanding effort to get out into the far-reaching areas of Illowa Bi-State's 37-county area to contact employees in small federal offices," said Kopel.
"Some of these federal employees have never heard of CFC, nor had the opportunity to donate to a favorite charity through CFC," said Cheryl Davidson, loaned executive from Army Contracting Command. "We're busy getting the word out."
Loaned executives are volunteers on loan from agencies on Rock Island Arsenal. Their agencies continue to pay their salaries thereby allowing CFC to keep its administrative costs below seven percent. LEs serve as liaisons to federal agencies and employees and keep everything on track during the campaign.
In addition to Davidson, the other LEs this year are Stephanie McMillin from Army Sustainment Command, Gigi Ruplinger from Joint Munitions Command and Terry Stevens from Joint Manufacturing and Technology Center.
"I have really enjoyed getting out to the rural areas to contact employees at post offices, FBI and IRS offices and farm service bureaus, to name a few," said Davidson. "I tell them 'I'm a federal employee, just like you' and we talk one on one about how their CFC donations can help others. Now I'm following up to build relationships for subsequent campaigns with the employees of these small federal offices."
McMillin has served as a key person in past campaigns. Key people in individual agency offices work to promote the CFC. They personally contact 100 percent of coworkers to give them the opportunity to "Give a little, help a lot."
"It's been rewarding to see the whole CFC campaign from the LE perspective this year," said McMillin. "I see how big CFC is here at Rock Island Arsenal and it's rewarding to be a part of it. CFC has great support from the agencies here, and I have seen how much their employees care about giving."
In a similar light, Ruplinger shared, "I was a bit hesitant at first, but during my first week the other LEs and I visited local charities and, for me, it was humbling and heartwarming to see firsthand what they do for people. This has been a great learning experience and I want to stay involved with and connected to CFC."
"There are so many people in need," said Stevens. "I used to just fill out a pledge card every year and that was it. But this year, as an LE, I have found out what CFC is really all about and how it can affect people's lives in such a positive way."
Federal employees in the bi-state area can choose from 2,500 local, national and international charities to make donations. Last year, area federal employees pledged $681,724 to CFC charities.
"We want everyone to know how much their donation could help," said Kopel. "If one person is able to donate just one dollar a pay period, which is equal to one pop a week, their yearly donation would provide 50 hours of activities for seniors at a center, or 68 meals to low-income individuals, or food for two shelter dogs for a month," said Kopel.
The Illowa Bi-State Combined Federal Campaign will wrap up by December 15th.
"We expect that, as always, we'll see a great response this year from our dedicated federal employees in donations to their favorite charities," said Kopel.
More information on the Illowa Bi-State Combined Federal Campaign can be found at http://illowacfc.org/. General information on the national campaign is available on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's Web site, at www.opm.gov/cfc.
Social Sharing