Nearly 2,000 volunteers spread throughout Utah County, working on more than 80 different projects. They came from some of our largest employers and from smaller businesses. They came from municipal and county government. They represented different organizations, different professions and different parts of our community.

But for a few hours, those differences didn’t matter very much. We were simply neighbors working alongside neighbors.

Volunteers painted, cleaned, landscaped, organized, repaired and tackled projects that schools and nonprofit organizations often simply do not have the staff, time or resources to complete on their own. What struck me most was how many of the projects ultimately helped make life a little better for children. Some volunteers worked directly at schools. Others improved facilities or helped nonprofit organizations that serve children and families.

Sometimes the work was highly visible, and sometimes it was something relatively simple — a freshly painted area, a cleaned-up playground, an organized room or a project that had been sitting on a wish list waiting for someone to have the time to do it.

Photo by Nate Edwards/BYU

None of those things by themselves will solve every challenge facing children and families in our community. But together, they matter. Day of Caring reminded me of something we sometimes forget: We can accomplish an extraordinary amount when each of us is willing to contribute a little.

No one company could have completed more than 80 projects. No one city could have done it. No single nonprofit could have mobilized that many people throughout the county. But together, we could. And that idea extends far beyond one day of volunteering.

Some of the biggest challenges facing our community — helping children enter school ready to learn, supporting young people as they grow, helping families remain stable, strengthening neighborhoods — are simply too large for any one organization or government agency to address alone. They require all of us: schools and parents, businesses and nonprofits, cities and county government, faith communities and neighborhoods. They require people who have resources to share and people who have time to give. Sometimes they simply require someone who notices that something needs to be done and decides to help.

For nearly four decades of working in this community, I have watched Utah County grow and change dramatically. We are much larger than we once were, and many of the challenges facing families have become more complicated. But one thing has not changed: This is a community filled with people who care about one another. Day of Caring makes that visible.

It is easy to look around and focus on the things that divide us. We hear a great deal about disagreement, polarization and problems that seem too difficult to solve. But on Day of Caring, I saw something different. I saw people from competing companies working toward the same goal. I saw public employees and private-sector employees serving side by side. I saw people giving up part of their workday because their employer believed that strengthening the community was worth their time. And I saw schools and nonprofit organizations welcoming those volunteers and giving them meaningful ways to help.

Photo by Aaron Cornia/BYU Photo

That is community.

I often believe our best work happens when we build before things break. We strengthen children, families and neighborhoods early instead of waiting until problems become crises. Day of Caring is one small example of that philosophy in action. A playground that is cared for tells children they matter. A classroom that is improved helps create a better place to learn. A nonprofit facility that functions a little better allows its staff to spend more of their time helping people. And when employees volunteer together, they build relationships with organizations and communities they may not otherwise encounter.

Perhaps the greatest lesson from Day of Caring is that none of us has to do everything. We just have to be willing to do something. And that is true not only of those who volunteered that day but also of the thousands of people who support United Way throughout the year.

So, thank you to every volunteer, every employer, every school, every nonprofit and every community partner that made Day of Caring possible. And thank you to those who give financially to United Way every day and every month. Your gifts may not always be as visible as a Day of Caring project, but they are at work all year long — helping children, strengthening families and supporting our community. In a very real way, your gift keeps giving.

Imagine what could happen if we carried a little of that Day of Caring spirit with us throughout the rest of the year — if each of us looked around our workplace, our neighborhood, our school or our community and asked, “What can I do to make this a little better?”

Photo by Jaren Wilkey/BYU

We saw the answer on Day of Caring. When thousands of people each do their part, little things become big things. And when we work together, we can make Utah County an even better place for every child and every family to call home.

To learn more about how you can get involved, visit unitedwayuc.org.

Bill Hulterstrom is president and CEO of United Way of Utah County.