FAQs

Orange County United Way works to improve the lives of people living in Orange County. We believe that everyone deserves a good quality of life and we strive to provide programs and services that help our residents gain equal access to education, financial stability, health, and housing. Our goal is to help everyone who needs help by creating pathways to self-sufficiency.

• Nearly 3,000 Orange County students drop out of high school each year.
• 1 in 3 OC households struggle to meet their most basic needs.
• Nearly 6,000 individuals in OC are experiencing homelessness and, despite the fact that more families and individuals are in need of affordable housing, there is an unprecedented low vacancy rate while rent remains at an all-time high.

We focus our work through three key initiatives—United for Student Success℠, United for Financial Security℠, and United to End Homelessness℠—which provide programming and services to ensure local students, families, and individuals receive the support they need.

Learn more about the progress we’ve made.

Our three initiatives—United for Student Success℠, United for Financial Security℠, and United to End Homelessness℠—drive next-level outcomes to improve local lives. This progress is possible because of the power of our ecosystem—our dedicated network of local school districts, government agencies, non-profit service providers, corporations, foundations, faith-based organizations and cross-sector Leadership Councils that work alongside passionate volunteers and donors. United Way unifies our community’s energies and resources and magnifies their impact.

Our ecosystem is effective because we rally together to solve problems with urgency, action, and innovation, which enables us to effectively respond to immediate or emerging crises.

Our unique approach comes from an understanding that our community’s most critical issues are inter-related, and we must tackle them in an interconnected way to provide long-term solutions that break the cycle.

Our 10-year community-wide plan, called FACE 2024℠ (an acronym for Fund, Advocate, Collaborate, Educate), is mobilizing local businesses, community organizations, governmental agencies, and local individuals to take action that will improve the lives of Orange County individuals and families. We also educate our community on how to address the underlying root causes of the issues affecting Orange County in order to create a positive future for the next generation of our residents.

We provide Orange County residents in need with comprehensive programs and resources that empower them by providing the support they need to gain access to equal opportunities, rebuild their lives, and ensure they have the resources for self-sufficiency and long-term success.

Our focus is on children, families, students, and individuals who need assistance and most of the clients served by our programs truly want to help themselves, but are unable to for a variety of reasons. Low-wage workers, families with children, Veterans, and seniors often do not have the resources to meet basic needs.

Our service offerings support our work to ensure local students succeed, struggling OC families gain financial security, and our homeless neighbors have a place to call home. Programs include mentoring and tutoring for underserved youth, one-on-one financial coaching to help financially insecure individuals learn to budget and build savings, and a housing navigation program that helps people experiencing homelessness who are holding a housing voucher secure housing in private markets. These are just a few of the 50+ countywide programs we provide. If you’d like to learn more about specific programs offered through our three initiatives, please visit the following links for more detailed program information:

United for Student Success℠

United for Financial Security℠

United to End Homelessness℠

Additionally, our programs are designed to support our work to actively and collaboratively ensure inclusive opportunities and non-discriminatory access to education, health, financial security, and housing for every person in our community. We envision an inclusive, responsive, and equitable Orange County. To this end, Orange County United Way intentionally and explicitly focuses on breaking barriers for those most harmed by them while advocating for equity and justice.

Yes. While we are a proud member of the United Way Worldwide, Orange County United Way is a totally autonomous agency, governed by local volunteers who understand the needs of Orange County residents and the vast resources available to meet those needs. Our work is locally-focused and we serve the Orange County community.

As a proud member of an international network in 1,800 communities around the world in 40 countries or territories, we pay member dues to United Way Worldwide, which are less than 1% of our operating budget. In return, we benefit from receiving national advertising, research, access to best practices, advocacy efforts, government relations, and continuing education.

Orange County United Way is governed by a local volunteer board of directors whose members are respected community and business leaders. The financial operations are audited by an independent accounting firm and carefully reviewed by volunteers who serve on the Orange County United Way Finance Committee and Board of Directors. We conform to the guidelines set forth by United Way Worldwide, but all policy and funding decisions are made locally. The community volunteers who lead Orange County United Way reflect our community’s diversity and represent a wealth of professions. A highly skilled professional staff works closely with these volunteers to handle the daily operations.

The value of a non-profit needs to be measured by the outcome it produces and the value it provides to the community, not just by the overhead rate. Orange County United Way is proud to have improved lives efficiently and effectively for close to 100 years.

In the past fiscal year, we distributed millions of government dollars of rental assistance to help over 8,000 OC households stay housed during the pandemic. And through our direct services and programs, our funded partners network, and essential community outreach, we served 727,925 OC residents in 2021. Our value delivered to the community in the 2020/2021 fiscal year was more than $86 million.

We take accountability very seriously. One of the ways we “walk the walk” is through our annual Scorecard Report, which measures community progress toward our 10-year strategic plan FACE 2024. We show how our programs are contributing to specific and measurable goals in health, housing, education and income, year over year.

Charity Navigator, the objective rating organization, gives Orange County United Way a score of 100 in Accountability & Transparency. Based on our IRS 990 form and their independent rankings, they took into account our independent voting board members, audited financials, conflict of interest, whistleblower policies, and our compensation practices (among others) to determine this score. You can view our Charity Navigator rating here.

GuideStar, another third-party provider of data on nonprofits, gives Orange County United Way its GuideStar Platinum Seal for Transparency for 2021 based on our information and metrics. You can view our GuideStar rating here.

A gift to Orange County United Way is an investment in your local community. Donations are used to provide programs and services to Orange County residents. We strive to tackle the interconnected issues affecting our community by providing solutions that will help to ensure local students succeed, struggling OC families gain financial security, and our homeless neighbors find a place to call home.

Some other ways that Orange County United Way uses donations to serve our community include:

• Comprehensive research into critical community needs
• Measurable return on investment
• Convening partners that represent the business, non-profit, and government sectors and mobilizing them to help solve the most critical needs of local families
• Better accountability and volunteer oversight, assuring that United Way partner agencies adhere to sound fiscal policies and provide quality services

There are plenty of ways to support our mission. Giving takes a number of different forms in addition to monetary contributions. Lending your time and talent are always welcome contributions to our cause. Volunteers, in particular, have the chance to witness the true needs that our work is meeting. Find volunteer opportunities here.

Yes, contributions to Orange County United Way, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations qualify as an eligible contribution for tax purposes. Consult your tax advisor for more detailed information and assistance.

Yes. United Way can be your point of contact for additional charitable gifts. As a 501 (c)(3) organization, we can redirect donations to any other 501 (c)(3) organization.

At Orange County United Way, we’re committed to investing your donation in programs that are meeting the most pressing needs in our community. With the exception of targeted grants that address gaps in the community safety net, all United Way partnerships and granting decisions are aligned with the goals set forth in FACE 2024. However, if you wish to designate your gift to a particular agency, you are welcome to do so. Orange County United Way will honor that pledge and ensure your money is directed to the agency of your choice.

Partner agencies are businesses or organizations whose programs are consistent with our goals. We join forces with these entities to expand our reach, leverage their talents, and accomplish more together.

Volunteer and staff oversight ensures that Orange County United Way partner agencies adhere to sound fiscal policies and provide quality services with measurable results. As part of our program funding agreement with any agency, the agency reports back to us on its results at least every six months.

In order to support initiatives, partner agencies may include faith-based organizations whose programs are consistent with our goals. All funded organizations must be classified under Section 501(c)(3) or (4) of the Internal Revenue Code and Patriot Act compliant.

We serve Orange County residents in need. Our focus is on children, families, students, and individuals who need assistance and we aim to empower them by providing the support they need to gain access to equal opportunities, rebuild their lives, and ensure they have the resources for self-sufficiency and long-term success.

Most of the clients served by our programs truly want to help themselves, but are unable to for a variety of reasons. Low-wage workers, families with children, Veterans, and seniors often do not have the resources to meet basic needs. When our community hurts, it hurts us all. But, when we join together on big issues, we can accomplish so much more than we could alone. We not only help our neighbors, but we create safer neighborhoods, we train the workforce of tomorrow and we make the place where we live and work better for ourselves, our families, and for everyone who calls OC home.

When we reach out a hand to one, we influence the condition of all. We all win when a child has a head start on a quality education that will put them on the path to success in future jobs, when individuals have enough income to support their family, and when we all enjoy good health and stable housing. We help people to help themselves and ensure they are set up to succeed.

Additionally, our work aims to actively and collaboratively ensure inclusive opportunities and non-discriminatory access to education, health, financial security, and housing for every person in our community. We envision an inclusive, responsive, and equitable Orange County. To this end, Orange County United Way intentionally and explicitly focuses on breaking barriers for those most harmed by them while advocating for equity and justice.

Call 2-1-1. It’s a FREE, 24-hour emergency hotline linking you to thousands of local health and human services resources. Staffed 24 hours per day by caring, experienced and trained specialists, 211 Orange County connects you with help. You can view all of the 211 Orange County resources available to help you at: www.211oc.org.

If you are looking for information about Emergency Rental Assistance programs for Orange County renters, you can find information about programs available for residents in Irvine, Santa Ana, and Anaheim here. For other cities in Orange County, please call 2-1-1* or visit 211oc.org.

If you are looking for housing or financial assistance, please click here or dial 2-1-1 for more information. Discover other ways to contact 2-1-1 OC.

Orange County United Way funded programs can’t always provide the help requested at any particular time. But we will do everything we can to help people in need identify the community resources that do exist. Services like 2-1-1 Orange County, one of our community partners, offers a free information and referral line that helps connect people to available and appropriate services. Please refer people in need to this resource by simply picking up the phone and dialing “2-1-1.”

We love working with businesses and welcome the support. Whether through a workplace campaign or volunteer events, there are plenty of opportunities for you and your company to give back to our community. Learn more here.

We believe that giving is a personal choice. Exerting pressure or coercion to give to United Way is in direct opposition to our philosophy of giving, which encourages donors to make informed personal decisions based the knowledge of how their personal support will benefit local children, families, and individuals. We encourage you to learn more about what we do before you make a commitment. One of the best ways to acquaint yourself with our work is through volunteer engagement. The more you know about United Way, the more likely you are to connect to our cause or invest in our mission.

There are several ways you can get involved to support our community:

• Give: You can participate in a workplace campaign, sponsor an event, or make a monthly or one time gift. Never underestimate what your contribution can accomplish when it is combined with the investments of others on the same issue.
• Advocate: Lend your voice to an issue by advocating for policy change and help inform others about important causes.
• Volunteer: Put your time and talent into creating immediate and positive change.
• Join an Affinity Group: Affinity Groups members show their passion for philanthropy by contributing time, talent, and financial resources to help transform our community into an even better place to live and work. Members also enjoy special events and networking opportunities.
• Attend an Event: Attending an event is a great way to learn more about our work and meet like-minded individuals who care about improving lives in our community.
• Sign Up to Receive Email Updates: Receive emails about upcoming events, the impact of our work, opportunities to get involved, and the latest news.
• Connect with Us on Social Media: Like or follow us to stay up-to-date with what’s new.

Please visit http://www.getconnected.unitedwayoc.org for information on ways to volunteer with United Way and our partner agencies. It’s an excellent way to get connected with what we are doing in our community.