AUGUSTA, ME — United Way of Kennebec Valley (UWKV) launched its 2025 fundraising season at the Campaign Kickoff Breakfast, announcing $1,198,949.30 in early committed support. This impressive start, a testament to the community’s dedication, comes as the organization embarks on its 70th anniversary.
Held on Wednesday morning, the breakfast gathered over 240 attendees as 20 local businesses reported their early campaign success. The 2025 fundraising efforts are led by an Augusta-based couple, Jared Mills, a retired police chief, and Vivian Mills, a nurse at MaineGeneral Health.
“For us, this campaign is a deeply personal one,” said Jared Mills. “We have both spent our careers seeing the struggles our community faces every day. This campaign is about ensuring those who work so hard don’t have to face those challenges alone.”
In 2024, about one in four residents of Kennebec County benefited from a program funded by UWKV. Over the past year, UWKV supported 62 programs, though recent requests for funding exceeded available dollars by $600,000. This gap underscores the rising need for support services not only in Kennebec County but throughout Maine.
Co-chairs Jared and Vivian Mills have issued a new challenge to the community called “70 for 70th,” in honor of UWKV’s 70th anniversary, with a goal to raise an additional $70,000 or more in new and increased donations.
The theme for UWKV’s 2025 campaign is “Unignorable,” focusing on the local ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) population.
Amanda, a local resident, also spoke at this year’s event, sharing a powerful testimony about her struggles as an ALICE individual. Despite her employment, Amanda and her family still rely on government and nonprofit supports to make ends meet, highlighting the challenges many hardworking individuals face.
“As a mother, there are days I feel defeated and even ashamed that I’ve had to ask for so much help,” said Amanda. “But I am also deeply grateful that these opportunities exist. I am extremely grateful for the local nonprofit programs that we have been able to access. If it wasn’t for the United Way, and the funding they give out to programs that help people like me, I might not be standing here today, able to share some of my own success story.”
“What you’ve just heard is the very definition of ALICE,” Vivian Mills said after Amanda’s story. “Families like Amanda’s are working incredibly hard—sometimes balancing multiple jobs, caring for children, and pursuing education—all while still being just one crisis away from not making ends meet. That’s why we’re here. That’s why this campaign matters. Because when we invest in programs that support ALICE families, we’re investing in resilience, in opportunity, and in hope.”
ALICE households are typically composed of working individuals who struggle to cover basic living expenses. Despite often being essential workers who help keep the economy running, many ALICE households lack access to the crucial resources they help provide to others. In Kennebec County, 40% of households fall below the ALICE Threshold, which is based on a modest cost-of-living budget. Certain demographic groups are disproportionately affected, with half of Black-led households and three out of four single female-headed households in Maine identifying as ALICE.
To highlight the challenges faced by ALICE, the 2025 campaign displayed six local faces of ALICE. These visuals, designed to give a human face to the data, aim to foster a deeper understanding of the struggles faced by this population. In celebration of its 70th anniversary, the event also featured a “Through the Decades” display, showcasing the history and impact of UWKV over the years.
During the event, Jared and Vivian also presented the 2025 campaign video, which empathetically illustrates the ALICE theme.
“Amanda’s story is just one of many voices that represent ALICE in our community,” said Jared. “These stories remind us that the challenges faced by ALICE households are not confined to any single group — they can affect anyone at any time. The hardships of living paycheck to paycheck, struggling to cover basic needs, are experiences that could touch any of us, illustrating that ALICE is not just a statistic but a reality for our neighbors and even ourselves at different times in our lives.”
United Way of Kennebec Valley encourages everyone to participate in this year’s campaign — whether by donating, advocating, or volunteering — to make these often ignored issues UNIGNORABLE.
