More than 300 donors, volunteers, and community partners filled Lake Michigan College's Mendel Center on Thursday, April 23, for United Way of Southwest Michigan's Annual Celebration, a night built around one simple idea: none of this happens without people.
President & CEO Anna Murphy set the tone early, grounding the evening in the story of Tyrone, a Southwest Michigan resident whose path to stability ran through partners Michigan Works! Berrien Cass Van Buren and New Heights Auto Service. Before the awards, the games, and the applause, Murphy wanted the room to remember what all of it is actually for.
"The future of Southwest Michigan isn't something that happens to us," she told the crowd. "It's something we cultivate when we show up with our strengths."
The evening's awards reflected exactly that.
Kathy Craig received the Margaret B. Upton Volunteer Leadership Award, Berrien County's most prestigious lifetime honor for community service. Craig's work leading New Heights CCDA's Community Food Network, combined with years of volunteer service with Habitat for Humanity, the Boys & Girls Club, SMCAA, and a role in launching the Emerge Innovation Hub, made her a clear choice among past MBU recipients, who select each year's honoree. The Frederick S. Upton Foundation will contribute $5,000 to a charity of her choice. Finalists Sue Willming and Vickie Wagner were also recognized for their decades of service to Berrien County.
In Cass County, Roseann Marchetti was named the Judge Susan L. Dobrich Volunteer Leadership Award recipient. A County Commissioner since 2012, Marchetti has been involved in nearly every corner of civic life in the county, from the Edwardsburg Food Pantry to the Southwest Michigan Planning Commission to the renovation of the county's 125-year-old historic courthouse. She will direct a $5,000 grant to a Cass County nonprofit of her choice, made possible by the McLoughlin Family Foundation. Finalists Carl Ross and Tim Hulett were also recognized.
The evening introduced a new honor: the inaugural Volunteer United Excellence in Service Award. Its first recipient was Linda Thomson, recognized posthumously for nearly 30 years of service through United Way's Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program. Linda prepared more than 125 tax returns each year, logged more than 200 volunteer hours annually, mentored fellow volunteers, and helped return more than $150,000 in refunds to the people she served. Her son Kyle accepted the award on her behalf.
Alison Harrop of United Christian Services received the Excellence in Impact Award for creating Coffee Connections, a weekly gathering that brings multiple service agencies together under one roof so clients don't have to navigate the system alone. In just the final six months of 2025, 357 households attended, 281 were connected to resources, and 642 individuals were reached.
On the workplace campaign side, Gast Manufacturing took home the Whirlpool Community Commitment Award for a year that included five Feeding America Mobile Food Pantries reaching 10,000 people, 2,500 pounds of food collected for the Salvation Army, 550 assembled care packages, and a steady stream of employees showing up for Rake a Difference. Logan Autism Learning Center earned the United Federal Credit Union David J. Weichhand Award after replacing its usual single fundraiser with three creative campaign events, including a Fall Food Fight where staff paid to dump apple cider, pumpkin spice lattes, mashed potatoes, and gravy on their own leadership team. The result more than doubled what the campaign had previously raised.
Cathy Summers of Indiana Michigan Power's Cook Nuclear Plant and Jill Tooman of Western Diversified Plastics/Engineered Plastic Services were named Employee Campaign Coordinators of the Year.
Berrien RESA received the Live United Organization Award, honored for a growing campaign and deep commitment to the more than 24,000 students, educators, and families it serves. The Live United Individual Award went to Thaddeus Hackworth, United Way's new board chair, whose energy and genuine investment in the work have already left a mark on the organization and the people around him.
Between awards, guests played a community trivia round hosted by Pat Moody. Attendees also watched Hackworth go head-to-head with a panel of community contestants in a game of "Are You Smarter Than a Board Member?" hosted by Alex Gallert.
United Way of Southwest Michigan’s Annual Celebration was made possible by Whirlpool Corporation, Michigan Works! Berrien Cass Van Buren, Silver Beach Pizza, and The Southwest Michigan Regional Chamber; The David J. Weichhand Award Sponsor United Federal Credit Union; Gold Sponsor Sturgis Bank; Bronze Sponsors Kruggel Lawton CPAs and The Purpose Partners; and in-kind sponsors Competitive Edge, Lake Michigan College, and Martin's Super Markets.
