Mile High United Way

Working side-by-side with the community, Mile High United Way takes on the biggest, most complex issues facing Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson counties. 

Mile High United Way is proud to be the first United Way. On October 16, 1887, a group of visionaries - including a Denver woman, two priests, two ministers and a rabbi - believed there must be a better way to meet the needs of those facing hardships during the tuberculosis crisis and the end of the gold and silver rush. The Charity Organization Society, as it was known in the beginning, was created to meet community needs by funding many charities while significantly reducing the number of appeals. Since then, whether it has been known as the “Community Chest,” “Red Feather Drive,” “United Fund,” and since 1964, “United Way,” groups of committed individuals have come together for more than a century to LIVE UNITED and advance the common good by providing the building blocks for a good quality of life for all.

Today, Mile High United Way is a catalyst for social change. We all LIVE UNITED to create a stronger and more vital community through innovative and effective programs and services in the focus areas of School Readiness, Youth Success and Adult Self-Sufficiency. We partner with hundreds of local nonprofits, government agencies, policy-makers and businesses to advance the common good by changing lives and strengthening our community.