By By BILL CRIST – Publisher
As the United Way of Brewton and East Brewton enters the stretch of its fundraising drive for 2003, it received a welcomed boost from the employees at T. R. Miller Mill Company. The employee group has pledged more than $11,000 to this year's campaign.
T. R. Miller Mill Company is matching the employees' pledges, meaning the total donation to the campaign will amount more than $22,000, or 27.5 percent of the drive's total goal.
With just under two weeks to go in this year's campaign, over $53,500 has been donated and pledged. That means that over the next 10 days, the board will be hard at work to raise the remaining $26,500 needed to reach its goal of $80,000.
Last year the 13 agencies that receive United Way funding shared $71,000 that was raised locally. This year's funding will support 14 local agencies, an increase of one over last year.
In addition to raising money for United Way, T. R. Miller Mill Company held a contest for employees, purchasing a shotgun and a 19-inch television. Calvin Madden won the drawing for the television and Mark Peacock won the shotgun. The company expressed its pride in the employees that donated to this year's drive saying, "we are proud of our employees for doing their part in making this drive successful."
The agencies supported by this year's campaign are American Red Cross of East Escambia County, Brewton Area YMCA, Brewton Parks and Recreation Dept., Escambia County Mental Health Assoc., Boy Scouts-Gulf Coast Council, Girl Scouts-Deep South Council, East Brewton Youth Sports, Southwest Alabama Mental Health/Mental Retardation Board, Escambia County Cooperative Library System, Alabama Cooperative Extension System, Disable Children and Adults-Brewton Chapter, Salvation Army, Christian Community Benevolent Fund and the Brewton Public Library.
Over 99 percent of all the money raised in this year's campaign will go directly to the agencies to be put to use in our local area. Donations for the 2003 United Way of Brewton and East Brewton Fundraising Drive can be mailed to P. O. Box 34, Brewton, AL 36427.