Portage Plains United Way will have a new president for the upcoming year.

Sharilyn Knox will take over the role from Matthew Newham who served 5 years as president. Knox has been a member of the Portage Plains United Way for just over a year and says she's excited to be taking over as president.

"I'm excited to be a part of this organization and excited to be in a leadership role. The United Way has always had a piece of my heart even before I came to Portage Plains so I'm excited."

Knox says 2015 was a very successful year for the organization, and hopes 2016 will be even better.

"I know that we had a great year in 2015; We ran a great campaign, and we met our goals. With our new executive director, our office staff and the board of directors that we are compiling, I think 2016 is going to be fantastic...lots of new things are coming."

Knox comments on the year ahead.

"This is a fantastic organization and the groundwork that has been set out is something that we follow. Of course, we always look to do new and improved things, and we're always looking for new ideas to support our community more, and meeting our mandates set out by United Way."