Northwest Montana United Way is well on its way to the organization’s ambitious campaign goal of $4.2 million after an out-of-state foundation agreed to match up to $300,000 worth of donations made between now and the end of March 2021.

The organization silently launched the first phase of the Gateway 2 Miracles campaign earlier this fall. Campaign funds will go toward retiring the Gateway Community Center’s mortgage, finishing interior build-outs for agencies in the center, much-needed repairs to the campus parking lot and more.

According to an announcement from United Way, the generous $300,000 grant came from an anonymous organization based in Stamford, Connecticut, that “focuses on helping nonprofit organizations achieve sustainability.” The organization’s mission aligns with Gateway 2 Miracle’s campaign goal, which is ultimately centered around ensuring the long-term sustainability of the west Kalispell building and its many partners.

“Being able to offer this incentive is meaningful to donors,” said Carol Nelson, chair of the Gateway Community Center’s steering committee. “Contributors can see how their donation will go even further because of the generous grant.”

The grant also comes on the heels of a $100,000 contribution from a local anonymous donor and a growing number of “local corporate bequeaths,” the announcement states. Between those donations and others gathered through the match grant, Nelson said United Way has already secured nearly $150,000 in about two months’ time.

“This is a good start and we are moving forward,” she said.

Gateway 2 Miracles is the first major campaign United Way has launched since the umbrella organization’s longtime former executive director, Sherry Stevens, stepped down in 2019. Stevens spearheaded the purchase of the Gateway Community Center in 2015 — an undertaking that is largely viewed as her legacy project for United Way and the community.

The center houses multiple Flathead Valley nonprofits including the Flathead Food Bank and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). It also boasts a gathering center for meetings and other community needs and is also home to several for-profit entities.

The building cost United Way $2.4 million when purchased in 2015 and according to Nelson, there is about $2 million left to pay off on the mortgage, which is the primary goal of the Gateway 2 Miracles campaign.

In a recent interview regarding the campaign, United Way’s Executive Director Roxanna Parker said, “paying off the mortgage will not only allow us to make needed improvements to the Gateway, it will allow us to have the means to provide additional support, financial and in-kind to our partners, and ultimately provide more support to those in-need in our community.”

For more information on Northwest Montana United Way and the Gateway 2 Miracles campaign, go to unitedcares.org or call 406-752-7266

Reporter Kianna Gardner can be reached at 758-4407 or kgardner@dailyinterlake.com