Spirit Awards Advisory Committee Members review all community nominations to determine winners for Spirit Awards presented annually by United Way of Sheboygan County in April (National Volunteerism Month). Below outlines the commitment in detail.

Responsibilities of this Committee's Members

• Attend all 3-4 meetings and the event (Meetings are typically held between December – March. The actual event is held in late April. In 2026, Spirit Awards Ceremony & Luncheon will be held on Thursday April 30th at The Osthoff.)
• Review each award nomination
• Determine appropriate winners for each volunteer award presented

Commitment to This Committee

Estimated total time commitment is between 10-15 hours.

• Required Meetings | Estimated 4-6 hours
  • Initial Meeting: Introduce everyone plus review the nomination and selection process.
  • Evaluation Meeting: Evaluate volunteer nominations as a group and choose winners.
  • Evaluation Meeting #2: If necessary, a second meeting is set to continue evaluation.
  • Recap Meeting: Identify any opportunities for improvement for the next year.

• Review Nominations | Estimated 2-3 hours
  • Prior to the evaluation meeting in March, each committee member will be sent volunteer nominations to review. There are six award categories and the time commitment to review the nominations is dependent on the amount of nominations.

• Attend the awards event | Estimated 3 hours
  • The awards ceremony date in April. 2026 date is Thursday April 30th. (The event is a luncheon and is typically from about 11am to 1pm.) 

Interested in Joining, please contact: 

Lisa Finney, Director of Volunteer Center | lisa @ uwofsc.org 

NextGen Leaders is a group of community-minded individuals committed to making Sheboygan County a better place - together. We care deeply about where we live and are taking action through service, learning, and leadership. Whether you're new to volunteering or ready to step into a leadership role, NextGen Leaders is your on-ramp to community impact.

The NextGen Leaders Vision Committee helps guide the group’s direction, plan upcoming activities, and dream big for our community. Vision Committee members commit to:
• A minimum of a 2-year term. Following 2-years of service on the Vision Committee, the commitment becomes annual.
• Each individual on the Vision Committee commits to making a meaningful financial contribution to United Way of Sheboygan County each year.
• A desire to grow as leaders in service.
• The Vision Committee also gathers for an annual mini-retreat each April — a dedicated time for training, connection, and strategic planning for the year ahead.

Responsibilities of this Committee's Members

A 2-year commitment that includes:
• Attend monthly Vision Committee meetings
• Set annual goals and activities
• Help to organize quarterly meetings/open gatherings, which are the best way for the public to get to know NextGen Leaders and learn more about community needs. 
• Engage in (optional) group volunteer opportunities 6+ times per year
• Support the United Way staff with various activities at Day of Caring, with a goal of generating $1500 to support United Way’s community initiatives
• Support UWSC Annual events, when available

Interested in Joining, please contact: 

Meagan Van Ahn, Director of Marketing & Outreach, meagan @ uwofsc.org
Ryan Wilinski, Director of Community Partnership for Children, ryan @ uwofsc.org 

About our Campaign Engagement Committee 

The purpose of this committee is to deepen business relationships with United Way by increasing corporate outreach and engagement opportunities to further United Way’s mission of improving lives.

Responsibilities of Committee Members

• Identify 3-5 businesses to contact on behalf of United Way, which includes:
  • Schedule and participate in business engagement and stewardship meetings
  • Identify goals and measurements for each business to increase engagement with United Way
• Obtain and provide contact information for new business leads and existing accounts that would benefit from improved personal relationships
• Champion United Way within your own workplace by driving a best practice campaign that includes: a corporate donation, a strong employee campaign, and a personal leadership gift
• Participate in regular ‘thank you’ outreach to donors

Commitment to this Committee A one-year commitment that includes:

• 3-4 meetings
  • June/July | Intro meeting and assignments leading up to new fiscal year
  • August | Touch base on outreach efforts
  • November/December (Campaign half-way mark) | Wrap-up; send second ask letters if needed
• Set up and attend 3-5 company meetings with leadership staff
• Report outreach progress with United Way Development Staff
• Attend/support various events when available. Examples:
  • April | Spirit of Sheboygan County Volunteer Awards
  • May | PATH Educator Appreciation Social
  • June | CPC Family Fun Fest
  • June | PATH Golf Day
  • September | Day of Caring & Campaign Kickoff
  • On-going | NextGen Leaders Events
  • On-going | Community Outreach & Public Education Events

UWSC Staff will work closely with you to support, advise, organize meetings, provide agency tours and training, research potential leads, keep the campaign volunteer committee informed of team progress toward goals and prepare communications necessary for the successful attainment of campaign goals.

Interested in joining? Please contact 

Trisha Erpelding and Meg Scott, Fund Development team members at United Way of Sheboygan County, give @ uwofsc.org 

About the Community Action Team

Members provide leadership, oversight, and engagement with our community impact investment process. This includes Innovation Grants and on-going support for Strategic Partnership Grantees (SPG) (formerly ‘Partner Agencies’).

The team is made up of individuals (ideally, no more than 13) from diverse backgrounds and skill sets. The committee works closely with the UWSC Director of Essential Needs & Nonprofit Engagement, President & CEO, and overall impact team, to understand the landscape of needs within the county and fund solutions to old problems.

Preferred Characteristics

Demonstrated leadership skills, consensus building, excellent communication skills, creativity, ability to “think outside the box,” represent/value diversity, outcome and evaluation knowledge, ability to analyze, develop strategy and direction, possess a community building focus and grasp the “big picture.”

Time Commitment and Responsibilities  

• 3-year terms
• 6-8 meetings annually
  • Fall focus on SPG relations, impact and outcomes
  • Spring focus on annual Innovation Grant awards
• Grant Recipient Site Visit(s) | Schedule TBD
• Ensure responsible stewardship and accountability for funds invested by United Way of Sheboygan County
• Oversight of Innovation Grant focus, application, evaluation tool, awards
• CAT members are asked to make a monetary donation at a level that is personal and meaningful via an individual gift or workplace campaign. What you give matters, no matter the amount.

Interested in Joining, please contact: 

Hanna Maechtle, Director of Essential Needs & Nonprofit Engagement  | hanna @ uwofsc.org 

The purpose of the Outreach & Visibility Committee (O&V) is to provide guidance and counsel as a “think tank” for United Way of Sheboygan County (UWSC) within public relations, special events, marketing, and outreach efforts. O&V Committee members play a vital role in community awareness for UWSC’s mission, vision, programming, and community impact initiatives. UWSC staff and board, in conjunction with community members, make up the O&V Committee. UWSC staff will coordinate schedules, agendas, minutes, and support timely and appropriate communications to the O&V Committee.

Responsibilities of this Committee's Members

• Understand and advocate for UWSC’s mission, vision, investment process, and community impact initiatives
• Meet monthly to provide counsel on public relations-related agenda items and goals shared by the UWSC development staff, board, and organizational strategic planning efforts
• Participate as a “think tank” to:
  • review current marketing materials/tools and provide suggestions for enhancement as needed,
  • brainstorm ideas to increase general community and/or target audience engagement,
  • support the curation of new public relations marketing pieces, when needed, using various mediums and platforms, and
  • engage, when possible, in the promotion and support of special events, projects, and initiatives.
• Examples of discussion and engagement opportunities include:
  • General community relations
    • Review content ideas for traditional and non-traditional marketing outlets, such as newspaper, radio, print materials, social media channels, website, and other digital marketing opportunities
  • Business and individual donor relations
    • Review Workplace Campaign and Individual Donor outreach strategies and materials
    • Evaluate new ideas and materials to increase donor engagement
  • UWSC special events and projects
    • Review event marketing strategies and execution
    • Assist with event contacts and planning if applicable
    • Volunteer at events prior, during, and after if applicable

Commitment to This Committee

• Attend quarterly meetings 
• Adherence to the responsibilities outlined above
• Engagement on O&V in the best interest of UWSC free from outside bias and when appropriate conflicts of interest are shared

Interested in Joining, please contact: 

Meagan Van Ahn, Director of Marketing & Outreach | meagan @ uwofsc.org