United Way of the Piedmont brings local nonprofits, businesses, and community members together to tackle the biggest challenges facing our region. We go beyond temporary fixes to create lasting change in Cherokee, Spartanburg, and Union counties in South Carolina.
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RECENT NEWS
For the second year in a row, United Way of the Piedmont partner AFL has raised the bar for workplace giving in the region. The company's 2026 “Imagine That” campaign raised $1.7 million that will benefit numerous local charities . AFL is the first company in United Way of the Piedmont's history to raise more than $1 million in a single workplace campaign—first in 2025 and —again in 2026. In 2025, employee gifts and a corporate match together made this milestone possible. In 2026, employee gifts alone exceeded $1 million. Gifts from associates at all AFL locations were matched by AFL’s Community Outreach program, which provides grants, sponsorships, associate engagement projects, disaster relief and more. This year's AFL campaign focused on food insecurity among children. In Spartanburg County, 42% of households cannot afford basic needs like housing, food, childcare, and transportation. Rising costs are making it harder for families to stretch every dollar. United Way of the Piedmont connects the people, programs, and resources that make lasting change possible across Spartanburg County and our region. By funding local programs that address needs like food insecurity, United Way helps build stability for working families to get ahead. “We’re so grateful to AFL for investing boldly in our community and beyond,” shared Paige Stephenson, United Way of the Piedmont President & CEO. “Our neighbors and their children are more secure because of this generosity.” United Way also recognized AFL President & CEO Jaxon Lang with the Chairman’s Award for his visionary, community-focused leadership at the annual United in Leadership Breakfast in June. About AFL Founded in 1984, AFL is a global manufacturer providing end-to-end solutions to the energy, broadband, data center, AI and industrial markets. With products in over 130 countries, AFL specializes in fiber optic cable and hardware, transmission/compression and substation accessories, connectivity solutions, fusion splicers, and test and inspection equipment. Guided by Customer-Focused and Community-Centered values and a strong commitment to safety, the company operates manufacturing facilities worldwide and provides a comprehensive portfolio of services and solutions supporting network infrastructure, data centers, service providers, wireless and power grid modernization. For more information, visit www.AFLglobal.com .
United Way of the Piedmont's Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program completed its most productive season on record, preparing 2,394 free tax returns and returning $3,570,162 directly to households across Cherokee, Spartanburg, and Union counties in 2026. Both figures represent all-time highs for the program, which has operated since 2004. VITA provides free, IRS-certified tax preparation to households earning $67,000 or less per year. Trained volunteers prepare returns at no cost, helping families claim every credit and refund they have earned. This includes the Earned Income Tax Credit, which many eligible households miss when they go without professional filing help. "This is money these families deserve to get back and often need for stability," said April Person-Booker, VITA Program Coordinator. "Without free tax preparation, money often goes unclaimed or gets eaten up in filing fees. This season, more households in our three counties got what they were owed." The VITA program serves as a direct expression of UWP's lead strategic priority: financial security for every household. A single successful tax filing can provide a meaningful financial buffer for a family living paycheck to paycheck. These are funds that go toward rent, groceries, car repairs, or building savings. This season's results were made possible by 77 trained volunteer tax preparers who contributed nearly 550 hours of service across the tri-county area. Households interested in free tax preparation through VITA outside of tax season can email communityimpact@uwpiedmont.org or call 864-582-7556 and ask for April Person-Booker. Interested in volunteering with VITA? We’ve got a variety of options for next tax season. Find out more →
Each year, our United in Leadership Breakfast is one of our favorite moments on the calendar. It's a chance to pause, look around the room, and recognize the companies and organizations whose commitment makes our mission possible. Their generosity creates true change across Cherokee, Spartanburg, and Union counties, and we don't take that for granted. This year's honorees represent the very best of what partnership looks like. From workplace campaigns that go above and beyond to individuals who pour themselves into their communities — these are the people and organizations that make United Way work. We're proud to introduce the 2026 United in Leadership Award Winners: Circle of Excellence Awarded to best practice workplace campaigns Cate & Brough, P.A. Founders Federal Credit Union Lockhart Power McMillan Pazdan Smith Architecture Spartanburg Housing William Barnet & Son, LLC New Business Partner of the Year: Union County Schools Large Business Partner of the Year: Timken – Tyger River Small Business Partner of the Year: Hubbard-Hall Public Service Partner of the Year: Spartanburg Water Employee Campaign Coordinator of the Year: Laurel Hurtt, Spartanburg School District 5 Chairman's Award: Jaxon Lang, AFL Thank you to every winner, every nominee, and every partner who shows up for our community year after year. We are proud to celebrate you and even prouder to do this work alongside you.
