Dec. 10, 2021

Longtime Sioux Empire United Way president Jay Powell plans to retire next year.

He will leave his role in May.

Powell has served as president of Sioux Empire United Way since 1999. The organization funds 40 agencies across the Sioux Falls area.

In that time, the organization has met or exceeded its fundraising goal each year, raising more than $190 million. Under Powell’s leadership, the annual campaign has increased from $5.5 million in 1999-2000 to more than $10 million. The current campaign goal is $10,050,622.

The funds raised through Sioux Empire United Way support local organizations that provide assistance to children, vulnerable adults and people in crisis. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, an initiative launched by United Way in 2001, made the Sioux Falls community the first outside of Tennessee to embrace the program. In 2002, Sioux Falls partnered with other United Ways in South Dakota to make the state the first with Imagination Library available statewide – and led the national United Way network to partner with the program. Locally, Imagination Library has distributed more than 2 million books to children from birth to age 5.

“One thing our local United Way has done during Jay’s time is to find innovative and successful health and human services programs from across the country and introduce them to our community,” said Chris Kray, Sioux Empire United Way board chair. “Girls on the Run, Challenge Day and PATH are all examples of services our community has embraced that were made possible due to our United Way’s innovative and proactive approach in introducing new opportunities to our community.”

Powell’s career began at Sioux Empire United Way, where he served as the planning and allocations director for the organization. He then served as the president of Greater Mankato Area United Way for nine years before returning to take on his current role.

The Sioux Empire United Way is operated through a 33-member board of directors, nearly 800 volunteers and nine staff. The organization’s annual campaign is supported by 700 businesses and 23,000 individual givers.

“The work of this organization in the past 22 years was made possible through the thousands of volunteers that dedicate their time and expertise in their volunteer role, the generous support of our community each year and the terrific staff that I’ve had the pleasure to work alongside,” Powell said.

The board has named a search committee, which has started to look for a new president and CEO.