Countywide : Lawyer to Add Clout to United Way Drive

Irvine attorney Roy Brown has been named chairman of the United Way’s 1994-1995 fund-raising campaign in the county.

Brown, a managing partner with the Ernst & Young law firm, will be in charge of planning the campaign and selecting volunteers to help coordinate the effort, which last year netted $19.3 million.

“His primary function is to bring the business community together and rally for the needs of the community,” said Jeff Urbaniec, senior marketing manager for the United Way.

Brown must “pull the business resources together to make a difference,” Urbaniec said.

About 23% of the money raised by the United Way comes from corporate donations. About 70% come from donations by company employees.

Urbaniec said that Brown’s position as the managing partner of a prestigious law firm gives him the status and contacts needed to reach out to the business community.

“I think this is a peer-to-peer process,” Urbaniec said. “He is a community leader and a business leader. He is asking other business leaders to (have) the same commitment to the community that he does.”

Brown could not be reached for comment Friday.

The new fund-raising campaign gets underway in September. Contributions are used to support more than 1,000 service organizations that provide everything from child care to meals for homeless people.

The theme of the 1994-1995 campaign is “Be A Local Hero.”

“What we’ve heard in the community is that (people) want their money to stay in Orange County,” Urbaniec said. “The idea behind (the slogan) is that the (donations) are used locally.”