SUNY Plattsburgh Employees Pledge Support for SEFA

SUNY Plattsburgh employees continued their support of the State Employees Federated Appeal, contributing more than $45,000 during the fall 2017 campaign.

Although co-chairs Cherice Granger and Carol Bleaux had hoped to reach the $50,000 mark, “we are most thrilled with the final results,” Granger said. The $45,057.30 raised was only $500 lower than 2016, she said. “These decreases we attribute to corresponding fundraising campaigns, people forgetting to donate until they felt it was too late, and, the biggest reason, they already gave elsewhere.” 

The 2017 SEFA campaign kicked off with a breakfast event Oct. 12 in the Cardinal Lounge. New this year was an online-giving option. Thirty-four the 203 total donors opted for the online method.

“This option gave individuals a way to donate from the privacy of their own home that was easy, fast and the most confidential,” Granger said.

SEFA is the only authorized solicitation of state employees in their workplaces on behalf of approved charitable organizations. Through SEFA, state employees can support charities of their choice through a single pledge, often paid through a payroll deduction. More than 60 charities in Northern New York benefit from SEFA, including Habitat for Humanity, Adirondack Mountain Club, Behavioral Health Services North, the SPCA, March of Dimes, and Literacy Volunteers.

SUNY Plattsburgh is the largest contributor to the SEFA campaign in the four-county region.

“The sense of community, loyalty, and a heartfelt desire to help others makes our campus a fundraising champion,” Granger said. “We thank you once again for another year of giving; we wouldn’t be able to do it without you.”

A list of charities serviced by SEFA in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, and Hamilton counties is available at www.sefanys.org. For more information on the SUNY Plattsburgh SEFA campaign, contact granger at [email protected] or 518-564-2384.