Danny Avery is the new executive director for the United Way of Lowndes County.
The Columbus native fills the position as of this week after selection by the United Way board of directors. Avery takes over following the March departure of Patricia Brock, who was executive director since 2013. United Way of Lowndes County serves as an fundraising and support arm for about eighteen non-profit agencies in the Golden Triangle.
Avery said he decided to take on the position as part of his commitment to service.
“The reason I took on the position is that my lifelong purpose is to utilize my gifts, talents and experience to invest back into the lives of others, and I don’t think that there’s any better way to do it in a more tangible way,” he said.
Avery said he plans to evaluate where needs exist in Lowndes County as he begins in the role.
“We directly or indirectly impact every citizen of the county, plus people who commute into the county in our industry base,” Avery said.
Avery is recently retired as pastor of Canaan Baptist Church in Columbus, and later served as a hospice care consultant with Compassus Healthcare. He served on United Way’s executive committee and board of directors in the past, and has more than 18 years involvement with the allocations process. He’s worked as a human resource management consultant for a regional advertising agency, and as a corporate director of administration for a multi-location manufacturing company.
In 2004, he received the “Spirit of HR” award the Mississippi Chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management, recognizing the top human resources professional in the state serving in a support role.
Brock stepped down from the position in order to move closer to family in Texas.
The year before Brock arrived, United Way had $530,000 in revenue. In 2015, it had $626,000 and managed to reduce operating expenditures by $40,000. In the same timeframe, United Way increased donations to area nonprofit agencies by $60,000. Beyond that, United Way garnered pledges for $6440,000 — which Brock told the Dispatch was the highest in its history — for 2016.
“I feel really good about the financial improvements we’ve made,” she told the Dispatch in March.
United Way works by hosting annual campaigns to raise funds, and then reviewing those agencies through an allocation committee to determine how much funding to provide. It also markets for agencies and assists non-United way affiliated agencies through its venture grants program.
Sam Luvisi is news editor and covers education for The Dispatch.
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