Despite a sluggish local economy, United Way of Greater Cincinnati has set a $62.025 million goal for its 2010 campaign – the same amount collected last year.

The official announcement will be made Aug. 25. The agency will hold its second annual virtual campaign kickoff at www.liveunitedgc.org beginning at 11:30 a.m. Aug. 25. The campaign runs through October.

“It would be an extraordinary accomplishment,” campaign chair David Dougherty told the Enquirer. “We hoped to have a tailwind, and signs certainly looked that way a year ago, but we’re still facing a headwind.”

The flipside to the economic problems is greater need on part of the community.

“It’s a jobless recovery,” Dougherty said.

The Freestore Foodbank, a United Way agency that helps to supply 450 food banks in 20 regional counties, is facing record demand for food and services.

Dougherty, former president and chief executive of Convergys Corp., said he and his staff had made 160 calls to CEOs of leading local companies and completed multiple campaign projections.

He said he is confident that $60.5 million can be reached but is concerned about the $1.5 gap between that amount and the $62.025 million goal. That difference gap that could mean funding or not – or reduced funding – for nonprofit agencies.

To close that projected gap, United Way has secured $2 million pledges from private and corporate donors – including Cincinnati Bell and Procter & Gamble – that will be used as a match for new givers. The goal is to gain 20,000 new donors to a pool that totals a little more than 100,000.

Almost 15,000 new donors gave in 2009.

“We love big donors, but even a dollar a week is important,” he said.

Another incentive is a donation contest between Ohio and Kentucky.

United Way distributes money to agencies and programs in Hamilton, Clermont, Brown and part of Butler counties in Ohio and Boone, Campbell, Kenton and Grant counties in Kentucky, as well as Dearborn and Ohio counties in Indiana.

Donors from Ohio can text UWOH and donors from Kentucky to UWKY. Then hit 85944. Donations for the state’s contest will be counted from 6 p.m. Sept. 3 through 10 p.m. Sept. 6.

Money donated in 2009 went to three key areas – education, income and health.

One priority is preparing children for success in kindergarten. In 2009, 53 percent of children entering kindergarten in Cincinnati Public Schools were assessed as “ready to read,” up from 44 percent in 2006. The goal this year is 59 percent.

In the past year, 1,738 people obtained jobs through United Way-funded workforce programs. The new goal is 1,800.

Last year, 3,427 elderly people received home-delivered meals through funded agencies, up from 2,042 in 2007. The goal this year is to exceed 3,500.