Boards of United Way of the Greater Seacoast and United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley vote to merge

(Boston, MA and Portsmouth, NH) – In a move aimed at leveraging strengths and resources to create the greatest impact in the community, the volunteer boards of directors of both the United Way of the Greater Seacoast and United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley unanimously voted to merge their respective organizations at their Board meetings held yesterday. The two non-profits anticipate that the merger will be legally finalized on July 1.

“We see great potential for the people and the communities we serve to benefit from a more efficient and strengthened United Way organization serving our region,” said Michael K. Durkin, president and chief executive officer of United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley.  “The issues facing children and families today know no geographical boundaries.  As a more nimble organization with streamlined, centralized backroom services, we can focus our resources on achieving greater impact on these issues at a greater scale.”  Durkin also noted that a regional United Way trying to address larger community issues is more attractive to national foundations considering grant applications.

“We are excited about the potential benefits and synergies that we expect to see as a result,” said Andrew Smith, Ph.D., Board chair of United Way of the Greater Seacoast. “Our more efficient administrative capability will allow us to put an even higher percentage of donor dollars to work creating long-lasting change in the community.”

The two boards anticipate that the merger will enable the newly combined United Way to leverage each United Way’s strengths and resources to create the greatest impact in the community. For example:

• United Way of the Greater Seacoast expects to leverage United Way of Mass Bay and Merrimack Valley’ s successful efforts to engage women and young leaders.
• Mass Bay and Merrimack Valley anticipates leveraging Seacoast’s volunteer action center to engage more people through volunteerism.

The merged entity will encompass 134 cities and towns with net assets of $52 million. Funds that are raised in the Seacoast will continue to be invested in the agencies and programs in the Seacoast region; the new entity will also maintain its deep commitment to the areas in its existing footprint.   

To ensure that Greater Seacoast maintains a strong voice in decisions, a regional council will manage the governance and investment decisions of the area.  The council will consist of 15-24 individuals chosen from the community and current Board members of UWGS.  Five members from the regional council will sit on the Board of Directors of the new entity. Andrew Smith, the current UWGS Board Chair and newly-appointed Chair of the regional council will sit on the new entity’s Executive Committee of the Board of Directors.  United Way of the Greater Seacoast will continue to do business under that name in the region and will maintain its office in Portsmouth. 

Over the next weeks and months, United Way staff and board members will be meeting with community leaders to discuss how this new and strengthened United Way organization can best serve both the people of the Seacoast and the region as a whole.