Illinois Division of United Way of Greater St. Louis names fundraising campaign chair
SHILOH — Brian Spurgeon, chief operating officer for Songfreedom Inc., has been named the 2017 fundraising campaign chair for the Illinois Division of United Way of Greater St. Louis.
United Way’s Illinois Division serves the counties of Clinton, Monroe, Randolph and St. Clair and helps more than 100,000 people within this area each year. The annual fundraising campaign, which supports 30 local health and human service organizations, officially begins on September 7 with an annual golf tournament.
“For me, some of the most meaningful and purposeful work I do is with and through the United Way and so I am very proud to serve as this year’s campaign chair,” noted Spurgeon, a Valmeyer resident. “The mission of United Way to help local people and its work in the community is vital to the people in need.”
Prior to joining Songfreedom this year, Spurgeon served in a variety of roles for Allsup Inc. in Belleville for 27 years, including director of continuous improvement, director of internal sales and call center manager. He is a graduate of Southwest Baptist University in Missouri.
Spurgeon has served in several roles with the Illinois Division of United Way of Greater St. Louis throughout the past few years, including being a member of the auxiliary board of directors since 2013 and a member of the allocation’s committee evaluating United Way’s partner agencies since 2014. With his new appointment as the 2017 Illinois Division campaign chair, Spurgeon will also serve on auxiliary board’s executive committee and United Way of Greater St. Louis’ overall campaign team.
In addition to his work with United Way, Spurgeon is also involved with his church, First Baptist Church of Columbia, Ill.
“Brian is a great example of generosity and kindness, and his commitment to the community, his dedication to helping people and his leadership are great assets to United Way and our campaign this year,” said Jerilyn Sinskey, vice president of United Way – Illinois Division.
In 2017, the Illinois Division campaign raised over $1.4 million. Regionally, United Way of Greater St. Louis raised a total of $75 million, its most successful campaign to date. Michael Neidorff, president, CEO and chairman of Centene Corporation, and Mark Burkhart, managing principal of Burkhill Real Estate, will serve as co-chairs of the 2017 United Way of Greater St. Louis campaign.
United Way of Greater St. Louis helps one in three people in a 16-county region in Missouri and Illinois. For more information, contact (314) 421-0700 or visit www.HelpingPeople.org.
