Phoenix—UMOM New Day Centers embarked on an $18 million fundraising effort in 2007 and hired McMurry to create a campaign theme and the supporting marketing and advertising plan and elements. Little did either party know then that the relationship would be so successful that in 2009 they would be recognized as Most Outstanding Partnership at the Phoenix Business Journal’s “Volunteerism—The Heart of Business Awards.”

Titled H.E.L.P. by McMurry—for housing, employment, learning and purpose—the campaign achieved its $18 million goal entirely through local sources, which allowed UMOM to move 403 homeless people from its rundown central Phoenix location to a remodeled, larger facility last month.

“The goal of the McMurry/UMOM partnership is to help UMOM become a leader in breaking the cycle of homelessness by raising awareness about UMOM within the community,” says Preston V. McMurry Jr., Chairman and Corporate Values Shepherd of McMurry. “Raising awareness through the advertising and marketing programs helped to bring in more donations of all kinds to support UMOM’s operations and help it complete its mission.”

McMurry won gold and silver local, regional and national ADDY Awards, one of the highest advertising honors available to agencies in the U.S., for the elements it created for the campaign, specifically the “Build It and They Will Become” brochure, and the public service television and multimedia campaigns.

McMurry staff members spent 1,504 volunteer hours on the campaign, and Preston McMurry volunteered an additional 500-plus hours fundraising and campaigning. His personal efforts and outreach contributed to at least $2 million in donations from Valley leaders and influencers. Visit umom.org/support to discover all the varied ways individuals and organizations can help UMOM complete its mission of providing homeless and low-income families with food, shelter and tools to build a bridge to self-sufficiency.

At the recent awards ceremony, McMurry also was honored as a finalist in the category of Most Outstanding Company Project for a Midsize Business for its work organizing monthly volunteer projects for staff. In 2009, McMurry Charities organized volunteer projects that benefited nonprofits such as St. Mary’s Food Bank, Save the Family, Emerge! Center Against Domestic Abuse, Aid to Adoption of Special Kids, St. Joseph’s Hospital, Cardon Children’s Medical Center and San Carlos Apache Reservation.

About McMurry
McMurry (mcmurry.com), with three offices in Arizona and New York, offers a complete line of marketing communications services to a variety of clientele, including GlaxoSmithKline, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co., Amtrak, CBS, Aon, CVS Caremark, Waste Management, Liberty Mutual, PNC, 24 Hour Fitness and Thomson Reuters, as well as resources to more than 10,000 corporate professionals. The company has specialized practices in healthcare, finance and insurance. It is among the largest independent marketing communications companies in the U.S. and is recognized by the Great Place to Work Institute and Society for Human Resource Management as one of the top five “Best Small Companies to Work For” in the U.S.