Child Abuse Leading Concern in Survey

Asked by the local United Way where the agency should focus its charity, Ventura County residents have said they have two main areas of concern: child abuse and gang violence.

Now officials for the United Way of Ventura County plan to increase the money they put toward preventing both forms of violence against youth, said Beverly Viola, the agency’s director of allocations.

United Way collects donations from individuals and businesses, and distributes them to nonprofit groups dedicated to alleviating hunger, homelessness and other sorts of distress.

For the 1994-95 fiscal year, the agency has allocated about $2.7 million to 55 member organizations.

The United Way decided to survey donors after hearing that people who contribute money wanted more say in where the agency distributes funds.

“We’ve been told our donors want to have a voice,” Viola said.

A consultant hired by the agency randomly picked 1,200 names from a list of the more than 25,000 donors in the county and sent those selected a survey.

Listing topics ranging from child care to AIDS education to programs for the elderly, the survey asked people to rank the areas where they would like United Way to focus its efforts.

About 350 donors returned the questionnaires. The goal of preventing child abuse and neglect was their first priority and cutting down on gang violence came in second.

Of the money United Way allocates to member agencies, about 40% already goes to programs targeting child abuse and gang violence. The agency is considering raising that to 50% for the 1995-96 fiscal year, Viola said.