Bureau County United Way begins 2024 campaign Sept. 22 with new leadership

Chris Neahring named Executive Director and Kim Schute named Director of Public Relations

Bureau County United Way, along with its new leadership team, will begin its 2024 fundraising campaign with Lunch in the Park from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 22 at Soldiers and Sailors Park, 14 Park Ave. E. in Princeton.

The menu will include hamburgers, hotdogs, cheeseburgers, chips, water and soda.

During the event, attendees can also meet Bureau County United Way’s new Executive Director Christopher Neahring and new director of Public Relations Kim Shute.

Neahring worked as the Interim Director of the Illinois Alliance of Boys and Girls Clubs in Springfield and also led the organization’s grant management team.

Neahring will be replacing outgoing Executive Director Victoria Yepsen.

“We wish to thank Yepsen for her leadership these past 3 years,” BCUW Board President Sara Hudson said. “With (Yepsen) at the helm, we were able to meet our annual goals, even at the height of COVID with all the restrictions and challenges that presented.”

Shute has a decade of media experience including work as a journalist for Shaw and Miller Media companies.

“As we move forward, we are excited to work with (Neahring) and (Schute) who will bring their own unique ideas and leadership to the Bureau County United Way,” Hudson said. “We encourage everyone to come out to Lunch in the Park to meet them both.”

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