Mac Bennett honored as United Way Humanitarian of the Year
February 19, 2018
United Way of the Midlands will recognize Mac Bennett as the 2017 Humanitarian of the Year award recipient at United Way’s annual Humanitarian of the Year Dinner and Award Ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 22 at the University of South Carolina Alumni Center.
The Humanitarian of the Year Award is given each year to individuals who clearly demonstrate extraordinary leadership in philanthropic and human services. It is the highest single honor of philanthropic achievement in the Midlands.
For more than 35 years, James McCauley (Mac) Bennett has served the Midlands and the State of South Carolina. From 2005 to 2017, he served as President and CEO of United Way of the Midlands. During his tenure, United Way raised $120 million that served an annual average of more than 27,000 people in six counties.
He led the $13 million effort to build Transitions, a homeless program that has served more than 5,000 people since 2011. He brought together three local hospitals, Lexington Medical Center, Palmetto Health and Providence, to create WellPartners, a dental and eye care clinic that has served more than 6,000 Midlands residents in its first year of operation.
In 2007, he saw the need to mold a new generation of donors and led the creation of the Young Leaders Society, a group of United Way donors under the age of 40 with almost 500 donors who have raised more than $5 million to date.
Prior to United Way, Bennett spent 14 years as the President and CEO of the Central Carolina Community Foundation and worked at the University of South Carolina in various capacities from 1980-1991. In that time, he founded the South Carolina Association of Nonprofit Organizations (SCANPO, now Together SC) and served as the first chairman of the organization’s Board of Directors. Throughout his career, Bennett has been instrumental in efforts to improve training and education for people working in the nonprofit sector.
“Mac is a true servant leader who has meant so much to United Way and to the community,” said United Way President & CEO Sara Fawcett. ”We are pleased to have the opportunity to recognize him and thank him for all he has done to positively impact the health, education and financial stability of everyone in the Midlands.”
Mac holds a bachelor’s degree in finance and management from the University of South Carolina. He is a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) with the Association of Fundraising Professionals, and he was recently recognized as the USC Moore School of Business Distinguished Alumnus of 2016. He is married to Leslie Woods Bennett, and they have two adult children, Evans and McCauley.
The black tie event will begin at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $100 per person. Advanced registration is required at www.uway.org.
About United Way
United Way of the Midlands is the most organized, efficient and accountable system for investing in the community. With more than 70 Community Impact Partners, United Way works to identify and respond to the critical human service needs of Calhoun, Fairfield, Lexington, Newberry, Orangeburg and Richland counties. Funds are raised through workplace campaigns, grant writing and individual donations. For more information, please visit www.uway.org.
