Opening Doors…Changing Lives. This is the campaign theme of United Way of Central Virginia (Lynchburg, VA). Driving around Lynchburg, it’s hard to miss bright yellow doors that are placed around town.

I was on my way to meet with United Way of Central Virginia last week, when I stopped to take a picture of one of these doors. These doors represent the people being served in the community and were put up in place of thermometers this year.

These doors were originally placed throughout United Way of Central Virginia’s region with nothing on them. These blank, bright yellow doors were left up for a week, in order to start a buzz in the community. It wasn’t until campaign kick-off, that the words “Live United” were added to all of the doors throughout the region.

While United Way of Central Virginia’s doors open each time they hit a dollar amount, their focus is also on serving people. These doors are used to communicate that no one can fit through a crack in the door, but as the door opens wider, more people can be served and more lives are changed in the community.

We are strong proponents of United Ways taking down their thermometers and using different mediums to show the impact they are making in the community. People don’t choose to donate to an organization because of how much money it raises; they choose to donate to make a difference in the community.

These doors are a great visual representation of how donors’ dollars make an impact in the community. Show your community why their dollars matter. Show them that they are “openings doors and changing lives” in your community, just as United Way of Central Virginia has done.

P.S. – We want to thank Keena Wood for sharing this wonderful campaign idea with us. Keena is the Director of PR & Marketing at United Way of Central Virginia and is the mastermind behind the door campaign. If you would like more information about the doors or United Way of Central Virginia's campaign theme, contact Keena here.