Our Work Overview

Improving lives in the Coastal Empire

United Way of the Coastal Empire believes that everyone in Bryan, Chatham, Effingham and Liberty counties deserves the opportunity for a good life: a quality education, stable employment, and good health and that before any of these things can be achieved, one must have the basic necessities of life, including food, clothing and shelter.  That’s why our work focuses on four priority impact areas that are essential for a good life:

• Education & Youth Development  – Helping children and youth achieve their potential
• Economic Independence  – Advancing financially stable individuals and families
• Health & Wellness  – Improving health for all
• Basic Human Needs  – Providing fundamentals to those who are in crisis

United Way supports more than 100 programs and services at nearly 70 nonprofit human service organizations  across the coastal empire that are delivering positive outcomes for our community.  These organizations apply for program grants from The Community Fund, which is United Way’s primary resource for community impact funding.  All organizations and programs are vetted through a rigorous evaluation process whereby trained community volunteers, assisted by staff, assess organizational capacity and program efficacy, outcomes, service quality and accessibility.  United Way imposes standard outcomes that must be tracked and reported back to United Way throughout the funding cycle.  To further support our funded programs, United Way offers regular workshops for professional development, as well as trainings specific to our funding priorities and evaluation process.

To help inform the direction of program funding and other resource investments, United Way has collaborated with the City of Savannah, Chatham County, Armstrong Atlantic State University and other community partners to establish and track Community Indicators – specific measurements used to assess the well-being of the community as a whole and to provide a blueprint for successful community impact.  For information about serving as an Investment Volunteer, visit United Way HandsOn Savannah.