NATCHEZ — A new — but familiar — face is taking over as director of the United Way of the Greater Miss-Lou.

Tammy Prince is making the move from business director to director at the United Way. Prince will take over the duties of executive director Tiffany Mascagni, who is on extended medical leave.

Mascagni is now executive director emeritus and will remain close to the United Way to provide advice and counsel as needed.

Prince, her husband, George, and puppy, Jack, live in the Lake St. John community.

Prince graduated from Mississippi State University with an accounting degree in 1986. She worked for Deviney Construction for 18 years and has been with the United Way for three years.

“It’s my first time working with a nonprofit,” Prince said. “I didn’t want to get back into a job with an accounting firm; I wanted something different. It was a challenge for me, because there is a lot of administrative stuff to do.”

Prince said she has learned a lot in three years and feels a deep connection with the United Way.

“It means a lot to me,” she said. “We help a lot of people who are really facing difficult times.”

Because of limited funding, Prince is the only full-time staff member.

Seventy percent of the United Way’s funding goes to local agencies that provide services, 23 percent goes to administrative costs and 7 percent to fundraising campaigns, Prince said.

The current agencies supported by the United Way are the Adams County 4-H, Adams County Court Appointed Special Advocates, Adams County Red Cross, Catholic Charities, the Guardian Shelter, Habitat for Humanity, the Natchez-Adams Council on Aging, Natchez Falcons Youth Football Club and the T.M. Jennings Little League.

The United Way plans to raise $150,000 in 2013 to assist in the delivery of programs and services provided by its partnering agencies. The primary source of funding for the United Way comes from voluntary employee contributions through payroll deductions.

“Those $2, $3 and $4 deductions from employees (of local businesses) really add up,” Prince said.

Many of the United Way’s partnering agencies rely more heavily on the United Way now because of cuts in federal and state social service programs, Prince said.

“They’ve lost a lot of their grants,” she said, “When they get a grant from the United Way, they can sometimes get a matching grant. So if I give them $4,000, they can get $4,000 from the government — not always and not necessarily all of them, but some do.”

For more information about the United Way of the Greater Miss-Lou, visit unitedwaymisslou.org or contact Prince at 601-442-1081 or email tprince@unitedwaymisslou.org.