News Releases

CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwired - Mar 18, 2014) - United Way of Metropolitan Chicago (UWMC) today announced it will receive a $1.5 million donation from BMO Harris Bank to support its LIVE UNITED Neighborhood Network initiative, which convenes, coordinates and integrates education, income and health programs through central locations within underserved communities.

This donation builds on BMO's annual support to UWMC, which last year totaled more than $2.6 million, in addition to the thousands of volunteer hours BMO employees dedicate to social service agencies through United Way.

United Way's first Neigh borhood Network is in the Brighton Park community on Chicago's southwest side. Programs and services there include parent-mentors assisting in the classroom, after-school mentoring and tutoring, counseling for students and their families, healthy lifestyle classes, tax assistance and English as a second language instruction. United Way works with a lead agency to manage the services of 19 organizations including middle schools, churches, social service agencies, public offices, community organizations, UIC and City Colleges.

United Way, long known as a funder of quality human service programs, has reinvented its approach to service delivery in the region by focusing on specific strategies in education, income and health, and targeting communities with both significant needs and existing strengths, in which to bring additional expertise, partners and investments.

"This cornerstone donation will accelerate our ability to bring highly coordinated and custom solutions to more neighborhoods across the city and suburbs," said Wendy DuBoe, President and CEO of UWMC. "We are tremendously grateful to BMO Harris Bank for their generosity and vote of confidence. Our ability to convene the right resources toward the right goals means we can ensure the kind of outcomes we all want: high school graduates who go on to higher education and careers, more financially secure families and healthier communities."

"We seek out partnerships and initiatives which can translate our community investments into sustainable change," said Mark Furlong, CEO, BMO Harris Bank. "It was important to us to come to the table as the first Cornerstone Investor in United Way's comprehensive 10-year plan. Strong public-private collaborations such as this one deliver needed new resources that will create access to health care and education, make families strong and build opportunities for better futures."

This spring, UWMC will launch its second Neighborhood Network in the suburban community of West Chicago. By 2020, the organization's goal is to have 10 Neighborhood Networks throughout its 58 partner communities to provide an intensified level of support and accelerate sustainable results.

To learn more about United Way's LIVE UNITED Neighborhood Network or to get involved, please visit LIVEUNITEDchicago.org or contact Brigid Murphy at Brigid.Murphy@uw-mc.org.

About United Way of Metropolitan Chicago
United Way advances the common good, creating opportunities for a better life by focusing on the three key building blocks for strong families and healthy communities: Education, Income and Health. LIVE UNITED 2020 is United Way of Metropolitan Chicago's community-impact plan, focused on channeling education, income and health resources into 58 communities of greatest need.

About BMO Harris Bank
BMO Harris Bank provides a broad range of personal banking products and solutions through more than 600 branches and approximately 1,300 ATMs in Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota, Arizona and Florida. BMO Harris Bank's commercial banking team provides a combination of sector expertise, local knowledge and mid-market focus throughout the U.S. For more information about BMO Harris Bank, go to the company fact sheet. Banking products and services are provided by BMO Harris Bank N.A. and are subject to bank or credit approval. BMO Harris Bank^® and BMO Harris ® are trade names used by BMO Harris Bank N.A. Member FDIC. BMO Harris Bank is part of BMO Financial Group, a North American financial organization with approximately 1,600 branches, and CDN $593 billion in assets (as of January 31, 2014).