From Legacy to Transformation

On January 19, 1927, members of the Fargo Commercial Club gathered for their annual meeting. That evening, E.J. Schonberg, President of Fargo Glass and Paint Company, was elected president of the organization. Following the meeting, attendees gathered for a banquet where a guest speaker, Hugo Koch, director of St. Paul’s “Community Chest,” spoke about the necessity and operations of a Community Chest, a model that would soon take root in Fargo.

Less than a year later, on September 20, 1927, The Fargo Forum reported “First Steps in Community Chest Organization Taken.” Community leaders came together to establish what would become a lasting commitment to collective action. H.W. Gearey was unanimously nominated as chairman, committees were formed, bylaws were drafted, and community members stepped forward to build something larger than any one individual or organization could accomplish alone. Some of those first committee leaders included Miss Clara Richards, J.A. Burger, C.C. Wattam, H.E. Reynolds, A.R. Bergeson, Pierre W. Clemens, A.J. Clark and Ray D. Warner.

By November of that same year, the first Fargo Community Chest campaign was underway.

What stands out about those early moments is not simply the history itself. It is the vision behind it.

Community leaders recognized that progress would require collaboration. It would require listening. It would require people coming together around a shared purpose.

Nearly a century later, those same principles continue to guide our work. While the challenges facing our community have changed, the belief that lasting progress requires listening, collaboration and shared purpose remains as relevant today as it was in 1927.

Today, United Way of Cass-Clay finds itself at another important moment, one that calls us to look ahead while remaining grounded in the values that have always defined our organization. Through our strategic planning process, we are asking many of the same questions our founders once considered: What does our community need most? Where can we create the greatest impact? And how do we bring people together around a shared vision for the future?

At United Way of Cass-Clay, we believe strategic planning is about more than setting goals. It is about listening deeply, understanding what our community needs most and creating a path forward that reflects both today’s realities and tomorrow’s possibilities.

Over the past few months, we have been in the Listen Phase of our strategic planning process, gathering perspectives from across Cass and Clay Counties through community roundtables, surveys, research and organizational assessments. We have engaged nonprofit partners, business leaders, volunteers, donors, community members, team members and our Board of Trustees, all of whom care deeply about the future of our region.

Before we go any further, we simply want to say thank you.

Every conversation, survey response and shared perspective has strengthened this process. Your willingness to share your experiences, hopes, concerns and ideas is helping shape the future direction of United Way of Cass-Clay and, ultimately, the impact we can create together.

What We’ve Heard

While every conversation was unique, several themes emerged time and again.

We heard concerns about housing affordability and stability, the growing importance of child care as economic infrastructure and the financial strain facing some of our working families. We also heard about the increasing impact of mental health challenges, the importance of early childhood and educational success, and the barriers people face when trying to navigate systems and access resources.

Across every conversation, one message surfaced again and again: no single organization can solve these challenges alone.

The future of our community depends on collaboration, shared leadership and collective action.

Bringing Community Voices Together

One of the most valuable parts of this process has been bringing together perspectives from across the community.

In addition to gathering input from residents, nonprofit partners and community leaders, our Board of Trustees has played an important role in helping us challenge assumptions, validate findings and think boldly about what comes next. We are incredibly grateful for their leadership and stewardship throughout this process.

As we move forward, we are now in the important work of triangulating what we have learned. We are comparing what the data tells us, what our community shared through surveys and roundtables, what our partners are experiencing firsthand and what our organizational leaders see as opportunities for the future.

Across those perspectives, clear themes are emerging. Some have affirmed what we believed to be true. Others have challenged us to think differently. All of them are helping us better understand where United Way can create the greatest impact in the years ahead.

That collective wisdom is now helping us move from listening to envisioning the future.

What’s Next

We are now entering the Envision Phase of our strategic planning process.

This is where the insights, voices and lessons gathered along the way begin to converge. Together, we will focus on defining our North Star: the vision, values and direction that will guide our work into the future.

This phase is about asking bold questions:

What does our community need from United Way?

Where can we create the greatest impact?

How can we strengthen our role as a partner, convener, and catalyst for change?

What future can we build together?

The answers will help shape our strategy through 2030 and beyond.

Looking Ahead

We do not take this responsibility lightly. As we move into the Envision Phase of our strategic planning process, our commitment remains clear: to listen well, lead thoughtfully and build a strategy that reflects the aspirations of the people and organizations who make this community so special.

As we look ahead, we are reminded that the leaders who gathered in 1927 could not have fully imagined the challenges or opportunities that future generations would face. Yet they had the courage to begin. They believed that by bringing people together around a shared purpose, they could create lasting impact for their community.

Today, we have the privilege of carrying that work forward.

As we enter the Envision Phase, we do so with gratitude, humility and optimism. The opportunities ahead belong to all of us.

Because just as it was in 1927, the future will not be built by any one organization.

It will be built together.