On Sunday December 9th, United Way of the Piedmont’s Gifts in Kind Center (GIKC) suffered catastrophic structural damage due to the weight of snow and ice from the weekend’s winter storm. The building’s roof collapsed rendering the building inoperable.
The Gifts in Kind Center is a 10,000 square foot warehouse, operated by United Way of the Piedmont (UWP), which takes donated products from national retailers and distributes it to nonprofit organizations. There are currently 158 member organizations that can “shop” for paper products, cleaning supplies, house wares, personal hygiene items, and a variety of other items at the GIKC. These supplies save the nonprofit member organization thousands of dollars annually, allowing them to dedicate more resources to their mission and programs.
Since opening in August of 2009, the GIKC has distributed $192.5 million in gifts-in-kind product. It is one of only six facilities of its kind in the country with member organizations from the Upstate community as well as organizations from North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama.
United Way of the Piedmont is already looking at new locations to move GIKC operations and hopes to have a new facility up and running by the end of January. UWP COO/VP of Finance and Administration, Warren Hayslip said, “We look at it this way. It’s a short-term calamity that gives us an opportunity to do something big. We can take lessons learned over the past 9 years and make the Gifts in Kind Center big and better than ever.”
About United Way of the Piedmont
United Way of the Piedmont is a local nonprofit that fights for the education, financial stability, and health of every member of our community. Our mission is to connect, engage, and inspire people to transform our community. We are more than fundraisers. We forge unique partnerships, find new solutions to old problems, and mobilize the best resources by inspiring others to join the fight. We believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to not just survive, but to thrive.
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