SOUTHERN MARYLAND — After years of meetings between representatives, the Board of Directors for United Way of Calvert County, United Way of Charles County and United Way of St. Mary’s County merged to create the United Way of Southern Maryland.

Their new mission statement for the combined organization is: “To impact lives in Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s Counties by mobilizing the caring power of our community to advance the common good.”

The United Way of Southern Maryland hopes to continue the premium human services of the three organizations, so they can expand the success of each organization while decreasing the operating expenses and making sure donors’ investments meet the most critical systemic needs.

“We see this as an opportunity to serve more families through our combined forces,” Joshua Cockerham, chairperson for United Way of Charles County and UWSOMD board member said in a press release.

Currently, the United Way of Southern Maryland is hiring employees for its organization and is looking nationally for leadership.

“[The Board Members of the United Way of Southern Maryland] are still determining the layout and staffing for what the organization is going to look like,” Michael Bellis, executive director of United Way of Charles County said. “There will also be new leadership coming on board that will lead the regional entity.”

Although the United Way of Southern Maryland is seeming to make a smooth transition, this decision to join forces did not come lightly because each county has its diverse needs and cultures. As a result, a merger committee made up of representatives from the three charities met regularly to discuss the potential merger for years.

“They have talked about this for years well before I even got here. And, I have been here seven years,” Bellis said. “But, we have three different counties. Even though Southern Maryland is largely looked at as a collective, there are still unique aspects of each community.”

After the requisite meetings between board members of the three organizations, they made a unanimous decision to merge their organizations.

“I think all three boards understand the value that this is going to have for each community, and the region,” Bellis said. “The fact that they did not do this hastily made this process transparent. This process highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of a regional entity.”

As a way for this larger organization to understand the various needs of the local communities, the United Way of Southern Maryland will have a system where every county can voice its concerns.

“There is going to be an equal voice at the table. We are also going to have local groups that serve each county,” Bellis said. “Those local groups are going to be like steering committees. They are going to be made up of civic leaders, nonprofit leaders, government officials and citizens in each county.”

Additionally, the board did not agree to this merger just because they planned out everything to the smallest detail. The board agreed to this because it was perfect timing for a team-up.

“I think COVID-19 kind of highlighted the need for more nonprofits to work together collaboratively,” Bellis said. “COVID-19 lit the proverbial fire under us because it showed how profound our impact can be in the community if we work together.”

Currently, each organization is working on its individual projects until the merge becomes official on Sep. 1, 2021. The organization has not announced any specific programs or bylaws, but the organization already has ideas for different programs or bylaws for each county according to Bellis.

For more information, visit uwsomd.org.

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