United Way Week at Keeley Companies!

Earlier this year, Edward Jones CEO, Penny Pennington, and our very own Rusty Keeley were named as co-chairs of the United Way of Greater St. Louis’ 100th annual community campaign. Edward Jones and the United Way of Greater St. Louis positively impact our communities every day. We are inspired by the example that they set and are grateful to work with them to continue to bring change and help people live their best possible lives. The United Way of Greater St. Louis proudly serves over 160 agencies and organizations across the region and we are proud to announce that our Keeley’ns, along with the #KeeleyCares Foundation, raised over $150,000 for the 2022 campaign!

To celebrate this incredible organization and everything they do for our St. Louis community, we held our “United Way Week”, bringing awareness to some of the incredible charities the United Way of Greater St. Louis supports while learning more about the goals of the 100th anniversary campaign. On Monday, October 24, we kicked off United Way Week with a donation challenge – the first 50 Keeley’ns to donate would get the chance to pop a balloon for various swag and prizes. We also engaged with Keeley’ns across the country in a crowd-favorite game of virtual bingo! Every time a number was emailed out, it included fun information about the services provided by the United Way of Greater St. Louis along with what each donation means. Finally, to end our kick-off, we were joined by Michelle Tucker, CEO of the United Way of Greater St. Louis and Crisis Nursery for a happy hour as they discussed the mission of their organizations and the work that they do. Jim Lee, Executive VP, serves on the board of Crisis Nursery and we were grateful to hear from him about why he is passionate about Crisis Nursery and ways to get involved. Click here to learn more about Crisis Nursery.

On Tuesday, October 25, we spent our lunch with an amazing individual, Nicholas, who spoke about his time with Covenant House and why he is proud to support the work that they do. He lived at the Covenant House for many years and the incredible people, support, and services helped get him to where he is today. Mike Rupinski, Vice President, is proud to serve on the board of Covenant House and take part in their annual sleepout. Click here to learn more about this special event and the work of Covenant House.

Wednesday, October 26, was all about our people! Our CEO and Marketing team took time to visit jobsites across St. Louis to drop of donuts and share the mission of United Way with our craftspeople. It was amazing to see the projects our people are working on and how they are changing the face of our communities. In the afternoon, we were grateful to welcome back the American Red Cross for a blood drive. We are in awe of the Keeley’ns who continuously donate every time we welcome them to our office. Thank you for your lifesaving gift! Lastly, Rusty was welcomed to the St. Louis Blues game to speak about the United Way of Greater St. Louis campaign during intermission!

We started Thursday, October 27, with breakfast and a side of giving. Keeley’ns joined us for a delicious breakfast and had the opportunity to take part in packing hygiene bags for St. Patrick Center. These bags were full of necessities from toothpaste and deodorant to hats and socks. The St. Patrick Center serves the homeless throughout our community and we are proud to make a difference in their lives. After lunch, the 50 Keeley’ns who pledged their donations got to pop their balloons for prizes! Click here to learn more about St. Patrick Center.

Finally, to closeout United Way Week, we held a Coat Drive for the children at Southside Early Childhood Center and announced our raffle winners. Every single Keeley’n who pledged a donation was entered into a raffle for the chance to win a variety of prizes – from a PTO day to Blues or Cardinals tickets! Thank you to every single Keeley’n who participated in our events, donated, and spread the word about the incredible mission of the United Way of Greater St. Louis. We cannot wait for what else is left in store and are proud to support this incredible organization. To learn more about the United Way of Greater St. Louis, click here!