Campus Charitable Fund Drive | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Message from the CCFD Chair

Dear Illinois Community,

I am very pleased and honored to serve as chair of the Campus Charitable Fund Drive (CCFD) for 2008. Over my 20-year career at Illinois, I am especially proud to have participated through giving in each CCFD. The non-profit agencies supported by the CCFD deliver outstanding services to the people and organizations of our community. Our campus plays a critical role in the abilities of these agencies to provide a wealth of often critical services to those in need.

As we celebrate the 140th year of our magnificent university, the CCFD goal for 2008 has been set at $1.4M, with the continuing theme of Every Gift Matters. The Advisory Board, working together with the dedicated volunteer leaders from across campus, has also set a goal to increase the overall participation rate this year. We hope that many of you who have not contributed in the past will recognize this unique opportunity to so easily improve the quality of life for the people of our community. In these challenging times, the CCFD agencies likely will face an increased need for their services, for example, in the form of helping a cancer patient travel to obtain treatment, providing emergency counseling for a young person in distress, sponsoring the Special Olympics events, providing temporary accommodation for a family whose house has burned, or making possible another Big Brother-Big Sister relationship.

This brochure summarizes the many opportunities to make a real difference in the everyday lives of people through each of the eleven agencies under the CCFD umbrella. The CCFD website, www.ccfd.illinois.edu, also has this information in a readily accessible form. Your gift can be directed for general support of an agency which enables its leaders to select areas of most urgent priority. Alternatively, you may specify that your gift be directed to address a specific need of particular significance to you and your family. All gifts, of all sizes and all agency designations, are greatly appreciated and will make a difference. Please do browse through the many examples highlighted by the agencies that illustrate how surprisingly much can be accomplished with just a few of your gift dollars contributed in each pay period.

In the coming weeks of this year?s campaign, the CCFD volunteer in your unit will be in contact. I hope you will spend a few minutes of your day to discuss the opportunities and ways to join and support the 2008 CCFD. For those of you who participated in the CCFD last year, please consider increasing your gift this year to help reach the $1.4M campus goal. Our volunteers will gladly answer any questions and help with designation forms and procedures. For most of us, payroll deduction provides the simplest method to join the 2008 CCFD and has the additional benefit of sending support to the agencies of your choice over the entire year. One-time gifts through either a check or a gift of stocks are also most welcome and can be coordinated through your unit?s volunteer leader.

The Campus Charitable Fund Drive represents the very best Illini spirit of our entire campus community acting together to support so many worthy agencies that impact the daily lives of our friends and neighbors. With the CCFD website, giving has never been more convenient, it is just a click away at www.ccfd.illinois.edu. Please be as generous as possible this year and know that truly ? Every Gift Matters !

Sincerely,

Robert H. Dodds, Jr.

M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Chair and Head, Civil & Environmental Engineering