At Monday's Las Vegas-themed United Way of the CSRA kickoff event, Mark Maund made a wager he believes Augusta-area donors will make good.

"This year's goal is a mystery. My decision is to not make an overall goal," said Mr. Maund, the campaign chairman for the organization, which funds 19 health and human services agencies in the area, at the luncheon at the Bell Auditorium.

Last year's fundraiser brought in more than $4.41 million.

"We couldn't set a goal high enough to meet all the needs in the community, so why set one?" he said.

What campaign officials and volunteers will strive to do this year is to show people and corporations "how foolish it is not to invest all you can in this particular campaign," he said.

Mr. Maund pointed to the United Way's record in the Augusta area.

In the past five years, the organization has had a "completely clean" annual audit without a single recommendation of change. Also, the United Way of the CSRA has an administrative overhead of just 13 percent; and the money raised in the community stays in the community, he said.

Those attending the luncheon heard how the United Way can affect a life.

Keynote speaker James P. LaRose is the president of Development Systems International in Columbia. A decade-long cocaine addiction caused him to lose everything including his family, his home, his health and his businesses.

"I was a young man full of greed, full of ambition and full of self, self, self," he said.

The day he woke up in a dog kennel, which a 70-year-old woman had converted into a homeless shelter, was a step up for him, he said.

Through the help of several United Way agencies, he got back on his feet and changed his perspective on life.

"I understood I must get out of myself and meet the needs of others to secure my healing and my needs," he said.

Mr. Maund reiterated Mr. LaRose's words when he asked donors to serve the needs of their community.

"If you will invest in the needs of others and help those who need it the most, you will receive a double blessing," he said.

The amount raised will be announced at the organization's annual meeting in February.

Were you Spotted at the United Way of the CSRA's Vegas Escape Luncheon?

      
Click here to find out

View and share photos FREE at spotted.augusta.com.