November 3, 2003

State Employees' Charitable Campaign:
Still Time To Give, Make A Difference

At the UConn Health Center, employees returning their Connecticut State Employees Charitable Campaign form this year have the chance to enjoy the renewal of the Red Sox-Yankee rivalry from the fifth row at Fenway Park. Employees in Storrs have a chance to win tickets to the top-ranked UConn men's and women's basketball teams.

And donors at any UConn campus have a chance to know they're making a difference, contributing to organizations that research some of life's most intractable diseases; helping some of the country's most disadvantaged citizens live a better life; or working to keep the environment clean and beautiful.

Last year, UConn employees from Storrs and Farmington to Stamford and Torrington donated more than $200,000 to the campaign, more than any other state agency. This year, campaign coordinators Maria Sedotti in Storrs, and Joyce Borkowski in Farmington, hope to raise at least that much, while also more than doubling the number of employees who contribute to the campaign. They are lofty goals, but the duo think they can be achieved.

"I think we can do it," says Sedotti, who hopes to increase participation at the Storrs campus from 700 last year to more than 1,000 this year, while pushing the total contributions over $125,000 again. "They're coming in slowly, and I'm a little disappointed, but we still have time."

Borkowski is more optimistic. By October 29, Health Center employees were already nearing their totals from last year.

"We're getting there, but we really need more people to step up to the plate," she says.

With about three weeks left in the official campaign, the two campuses are neck-and-neck. In Storrs, more than 320 employees had combined to contribute $55,728 to the campaign; at the Health Center, 263 employees had donated $62,220.

The Health Center has never raised more than Storrs.

"I know this is a hard year, especially with all the people who took early retirement," says Sedotti, adding that several of those retirees have called recently and asked for a donor form. "They really inspired me."

She says anyone else who needs a blank donor form should contact her at 860.486.4866. At the Health Center, retirees can contact Borkowski at 860.679.2115.

Besides tickets to the Red Sox and Huskies games, both campaigns have free core parking spaces in the drawings, as well as autographed basketballs. And, in Storrs, drawings are also planned for lunches, dinners, grinders, theater tickets, and more.