Category: Uncategorized

GFWC Woman’s Club of Raleigh (North Carolina)

Members of GFWC Woman’s Club of Raleigh (North Carolina) partnered with REACH (Resilience, Empowerment, Access for Children Experiencing Homelessness) to provide children with 130 fabric “HeART Bags” with the goal of giving children living in motels, doubled up with families, or in other modes of transition, arts and crafts supplies to encourage them to create “Art from the Heart.” REACH is a Passage Home program, which is an organization devoted to helping families transition from homelessness to housing, break the cycle of poverty, and create multi-generational self-sufficiency for individuals and families.

Members of the club’s Arts and Culture Community Service Program used a basic pattern for the bags, and many added personal touches through their fabric choices and by lining and trimming the bags. Clubwomen and other community friends also participated by donating an abundance of art supplies, including coloring books, crayons, sketch pads, markers, construction paper, glue sticks, and more. Bags for teenagers also included items such as ideas for art projects, note pads, and tissue packs, to name a few. Each bag included a tag which read, “A bunch of us put this bag together because we love to make art. We thought you might like to make art as well! Pull out the goodies. Express your heart and have fun! From our HeARTS to Yours!”

The Health and Wellness Community Service Program partners with REACH and a local food bank to deliver weekly food boxes to families living in motels, as well. These volunteers delivered 45 children’s bags and 17 bags for parents to families in motels, and another 25 bags will be used for future families residing in motels. Thirty of the bags were given to Passage Home to be distributed by case managers to children living in other transitional housing.

Club members said they are trying to make a difference one family at a time.

GFWC Battle Ground (Washington)

Members of GFWC Battle Ground (Washington) presented a $1,000 donation and several totes and bags full of young children’s clothing to the Family and Community Resource Center in Battle Ground, Washington, at the end of January. This center helps meet the needs of local families faced with housing instability and other economic challenges, and carries a limited inventory of new and gently used items to give to families in need. After the club learned of the need for specific sizes of boys and girls clothing, members staged a “tailgate meeting” as a drop-off place and time for donations. Additionally, since the club did not provide a scholarship this year due to COVID-19 school closures, those funds are being repurposed for other projects that will benefit children, such as the donation to the Family and Community Resource Center.

Another ongoing club project involves members cutting the fronts off greeting cards and shipping them to GFWC Affiliate Organization St. Jude’s Ranch for Children in Nevada. The cards are reimagined into new creations and sold by a business run by the children to help them learn entrepreneurship. The ranch’s live-in venue gives kids of all ages an opportunity to break the cycle of abuse, abandonment, and neglect they have experienced. During the drop-off event, 255 cards were gathered for shipment.

GFWC Brunswick Woman’s Club (Georgia)

Members of GFWC Brunswick Woman’s Club (Georgia) spent Martin Luther King, Jr. Day helping out at the Glynn Community Crisis Center’s Amity House. Glynn Community Crisis Center provides comprehensive services to men and women who are survivors of domestic violence and their children, and their Amity House program provides safe emergency shelter and operates a 24-hour crisis hotline.

Club members Lillie Smith, Vicky Jefferis, Kay Taylor, and Kathleen Orians Dawson went to the house to clean, replace broken dresser knobs, rearrange furniture, and help in any other way they could, including washing kitchen items, making up beds, and more. A couple days later, Pat Porto, Jeanette Pewitt, and Penny Smith joined the others to bring more items the club purchased to help make the house feel like home. Although members Peggy Tuten and Angel Porch could not come along, they too sent items to be used at the house.

In addition to this, the members made other trips to help repair broken items, hang shelves, and do more work as needed. In total, the club donated 57 hours and more than $575 to the project.

GFWC Lexington Woman’s Club (South Carolina)

Clubwomen with GFWC Lexington Woman’s Club (South Carolina) made it a point this February to let those they love know it by participating in a Valentine’s Day project for first responders. This project saw a big turnout from members, who made more than 300 assorted Valentine’s Day cards. The cards were made by active club members, family members, neighborhood children, and some local school children who all wanted to show their appreciation. The cards were sorted into piles, bundled, and tied with red ribbon before being delivered.

One of the clubwomen with GFWC Lexington Woman’s Club who sews face masks also supplied about 170 masks that were included in the packages that were delivered to first responders. The packages also contained large bags of chocolates and individual snacks.

Three club members, along with two of their family members, delivered the packages to the Lexington Police Department and Fire Station No. 10. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the personnel at Fire Station No. 10 were tasked with distributing some of the packages to other local fire stations.

Club members said everyone had the chance to get in on the fun of creating!

GFWC North Myrtle Beach Woman’s Club (South Carolina)

GFWC North Myrtle Beach Woman’s Club (South Carolina) started an initiative last year to bring Little Free Libraries to residents and visitors alike. Club members said these adorable libraries can be accessed anytime and are a perfect fit for their community and for the many visitors to the area’s beaches. While kids are playing in the sand, visitors can sit back, relax, and have a great book to read.

Their most visible library is at the end of a city beachside parking lot, where the club’s Conservation and Environment Committees also do beach trash pickup once a month. Last fall, the club planted some trees behind it, and this year they added an environment education aspect to the library, by rolling several ongoing projects into one. They did this by adding bookmarks to the library that help spread the word about local and global environmental issues. One bookmark pertained to recycling and another educated people on turtle conservation.

The five libraries in North Myrtle Beach usually manage to self-sustain, but members make sure they are stocked by bringing used books to general meetings. Club members also sustain the four additional Little Free Libraries in the area. Clubwomen said the Little Free Libraries have been a huge success for the club both before and during the pandemic.

GFWC du Midi Woman’s Club (Alabama)

Members of GFWC du Midi Woman’s Club (Alabama) came together to make and donate two sleeping mats to the city of Huntsville’s Operation Green Team, which will be given to people without homes. The two waterproof sleeping mats represent 1,400 plastic grocery bags that have been eliminated from a local landfill.

To construct one mat, clubwomen flattened 700 donated plastic grocery bags, cut them into one-and-a-half inch strips, looped the ends together to form a ball, and bagged them. The materials were then given to clubwoman Nell Fisher, who crocheted them into the mats. She said it took about 35 hours to crochet the plastic together.

This project is part of GFWC du Midi Woman’s Club President Cherie Byrne’s project “Unity in Biodiversity – Protect Our Planet,” which includes waste reduction in landfills.

GFWC Ossoli Circle (Tennessee)

Clubwomen with GFWC Ossoli Circle (Tennessee) have been busy with two projects to help people in need. For the first project, “Hugs for Hope,” club members filled donated handbags with toiletries, makeup, scarves, and jewelry, which will go to the women at the McNabb Domestic Violence Shelter. Members paid $10 each to fill the handbags and wrote a note of support and encouragement for the women who will receive the handbags as survivors of domestic violence. Club members said the project was fun and successful, and appreciated by the representatives from the shelter.

The second project clubwomen worked on was collecting items for GFWC Affiliate Organization Operation Smile “smile bags.” All of the items for the bags were purchased by a member and the bags were sewn shut.

Operation Smile is an international children’s medical charity focused on restoring children’s smiles through preforming surgery on facial deformities such as cleft lip and cleft palate.

GFWC Woman’s Club of Winter Haven (Florida)

GFWC Woman’s Club of Winter Haven (Florida) spread the love by crafting Valentine’s Day cards for recipients of the local Meals on Wheels organization. The club’s goal was to make at least one handmade card for each participant in the program – a total of 500 cards. Clubwomen worked hard and were able to reach this goal! Members of the local Girl Scout Troop No. 5101 also helped make handmade items for the Meals on Wheels donations.

Pat Davidson, Sheila Leavey, Cheryl Menser, Cheryl Price, Suzanne Sherry, Bev Wallner, and Jane McGinnis were the contributing members for the Valentine’s Day cards, and as a result of this project, Bev and Attilia Gogel are now driving and delivering meals for the Winter Haven Meals on Wheels program!

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, nearly 20 people per minute on average are physically abused by an intimate partner in the U.S. The goal of GFWC’s Signature Program is to increase awareness of and help prevent the widespread occurrence of violence against women in communities across the nation – and the globe. Areas of focus include Intimate Partner Violence, Child Abuse, Teen Dating Violence, Campus Sexual Assault, Elder Abuse, Violence Against Native American Women, Military Sexual Assault, and Human Trafficking. While there are many ways to work toward this goal, some clubs are helping their communities by donating resources and providing support to their local domestic violence shelters and the women and children who go there for help.

One of these clubs is the Maquoketa Woman’s Club (Iowa). Throughout the pandemic, clubwomen have continued to support their local survivor services center as the stress of COVID-19 has increased the number of women and children needing safe housing as a result of domestic violence or sexual abuse. Club members said the counselors at the shelter do a wonderful job of preparing women as they transition to their own residence, and they are proud to provide women with necessities to get their homes set up as their begin new lives free from violence.

The Maquoketa Woman’s Club provided two grocery gift cards to ensure that the residents at the shelter could enjoy a Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner, and they also organized a donation drive so that families moving into their own apartment or home would have essentials such as towels, laundry soap, toilet paper, food containers, children’s books, and more. In total, the donation drive raised nearly $1,000 worth of household items or monetary donations for families.

Another local club is doing what it can to help survivors of domestic violence is GFWC Greater West Palm Beach Women’s Club (Florida). In December, clubwomen donated 37 pajama sets in all sizes for the children living at the domestic assault shelter at Harmony House in Palm Beach County.

In addition to the pajamas for children, members also provided 50 new mascaras to the women living at the shelter. Club members said they were informed by a social worker that mascara can make a big difference to these women, and decided they wanted to do what they could to help.

GFWC Woman’s Club of Madison (Connecticut) also helped local survivors of domestic violence this year by donating 80 new and gently used women’s and children’s winter coats, jackets, gloves, and hats to the Umbrella Center for Domestic Violence. Danielle Morfi, with the Umbrella Center for Domestic Violence’s communications department, spoke during the club’s October Zoom meeting and expressed the need for warm clothing, and clubwomen were more than happy to help out, adding it would be a simple but necessary way to assist during a difficult time.

GFWC Woman’s Club of Fairfax (Virginia)

GFWC Woman’s Club of Fairfax (Virginia) kicked off 2021 with a socially-distanced Drive-up, Drop-Off, and Drop-in Social. This event continued the club’s commitment to staying connected with members while maintaining its role as an important volunteer organization during the COVID-19 pandemic. Echoing the theme of Martin Luther King Junior’s Day of Service, the event provided an opportunity for clubwomen to drop off items collected for the club’s Foster Care Program.

During the Drive-up, Drop-off, and Drop-in Social, 135 Valentine’s Day cards were dropped off to go to children in foster care and child protective services in Fairfax County, as well as for youth in college who have recently aged out of foster care through Foster Care to Success. Along with the cards, 24 “Comfort Cases,” filled with comfort and personal care items for youth entering the foster care system, and 15 birthday kits, consisting of cake mix, icing, a birthday banner, streamers, candles, balloons, a card, and a modest gift, also were donated.

Comfort Cases is a nonprofit organization that aims to bring dignity and hope to youth in foster care by providing a backpack filled with personal care items to children entering the child welfare system.

Foster Care to Success is a nonprofit organization that works with college-bound youth in the foster care system to help them transition from care to adulthood through education.

GFWC Woman’s League of Lowcounty (South Carolina)

Edie Autuori and her committee are heading up the Hunger Initiative for GFWC Woman’s League of the Lowcountry (South Carolina). The committee kicked off the New Year with “Breakfast for a Better Day” to support Mercy Mission in Hardeeville, South Carolina, by collecting and delivering healthy breakfast food items throughout the month of January. Mercy Mission, directed by Sister Mary Francis, provides a food pantry as well as a thrift store for Jasper County families. Throughout the last year, this organization has served more than 17,000 individuals.

GFWC Community Club of Collegeville (Pennsylvania)

Members of GFWC Community Club of Collegeville (Pennsylvania) donated more than $700 worth of items to the Southeastern Veterans’ Center in Spring City, Pennsylvania, on February 12. Items included gift cards, batteries, storage containers, personal care items, art supplies, adult coloring books, puzzle books, two new DVD players, and more.

GFWC Woman’s Club of Fredericksburg (Virginia) 

Members of GFWC Woman’s Club of Fredericksburg (Virginia) said “thank you” to healthcare workers in COVID-19 units at Mary Washington Hospital and Stafford Hospital by sending them more than 1,000 Valentine’s Day cards and a poster expressing their appreciation. Club members said they are proud to honor the healthcare workers for caring for the Fredericksburg community during the pandemic.

GFWC Windsor Woman’s Club (Connecticut)

Throughout the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, GFWC Windsor Woman’s Club (Connecticut) has continued to host monthly and special Zoom meetings to promote camaraderie in the areas of social and charitable endeavors. Club members recently developed an arts and crafts project during which craft kits were made available to members at a minimal cost. As a result of this craft project, along with additional donation from members, the club raised $185 for the Windsor Food and Fuel Bank, which they donated in the form of gift cards for grocery stores in the area. The club has hosted different fundraisers each month of the pandemic.

GFWC Mesquite Club of Las Vegas (Nevada)

Members of the GFWC Mesquite Club of Las Vegas (Nevada) brought in more than 500 pieces of winter clothing to be donated to people in need. Clothing included hats, socks, sweatshirts, and coats, most of which had hardly been worn and was in good condition.

The coats were taken to The Catholic Worker, an organization that helps feed people without homes in downtown Las Vegas. The organization had been distributing coats this winter, but ran out, and expressed an ongoing need. Fortunately, club members were able to fulfill that need. Organizers with The Catholic Worker have expressed their gratitude for the donations. The Catholic Worker will distribute these coats to people in need of warm attire as they line up for food.

Another recipient of the coat and winter clothing drive is The Embracing Project (TEP). January was National Human Trafficking Awareness Month and TEP is a Rite of Passage program, which advocates peace and healing for youth survivors of violence, sexual exploitation, and trafficking, through the development of specialized programs, trauma-informed care, and unconditional support. This is in line with GFWC Nevada State President Cherie Lee Williams-Dewitt’s Signature Project. Some of the coats also were donated to the Faith Lutheran Thrift Store.

These nonprofit organizations each serve the community in different ways. Overall, this project was devised and completed in two weeks.

GFWC Battle Ground (Washington)

GFWC Battle Ground (Washington) hosted its own “Souper Bowl” this year with a fun twist to bring in nonperishable items to be donated to local food banks. Points were scored according to the number of food items, mainly soups, credited to each team that was brought in by club members. Clubwomen Valerie Huey and Ginger Crabtree served as referees to help keep the record straight. After the game was over, 230 pounds of food was taken to the North Country Community Food Bank.

GFWC Woman’s Club of South County (Rhode Island)

Through the Community Outreach Team of GFWC Woman’s Club of South County (Rhode Island), club members Maggie Hayes-Cote and Jane Tutko made their idea of collecting items for elder adults in nursing homes a success. Due to the generosity of club members, along with their friends and families, residents of 12 nursing homes in Washington County, Rhode Island, were provided with fun activities and gifts. Items including music, games, coloring books, puzzles, and magazines were provided to more than 400 residents to wish them a happy holiday and remind them they are in the club members’ thoughts. Maggie also offered a special “thank you” to club members Pam McCullum, Mary Logan, Peg Schembre, and Deb Brown for collecting and putting the packages together.

“We leave you with a thought that drives our group: Kindness is a bridge between all people. If you are ever down and want to lift yourself, then do something kind for somebody,” Jane said.

GFWC Millville Woman’s Club (New Jersey)

While the GFWC Millville Woman’s Club (New Jersey) has been supportive of the New Jersey Department of Child Protection and Permanency (DCP&P) through their involvement with Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and by donating books and duffel bags, the club’s Creative Arts Committee has been contributing in another way. EllenBeth Nappen, the chairperson of this committee, has been busy making blankets for children in need. Crocheting the squares and then sewing them together is a time-consuming endeavor, but she said it is more than worth her while.

EllenBeth made seven colorful blankets last summer that were picked up by a representative from the DCP&P. Nancy Booz, another club member, joined EllenBeth in the fall and they made 13 more blankets. These went to the DCP&P during the holiday season. With the help of club member Nuha Hababo, the three clubwomen all are continuing to make blankets for children.

DCP&P is New Jersey’s child protection and child welfare agency within the state’s Department of Children and Families, and CASA is a national association that supports and promotes court-appointed advocates for abused or neglected children.

GFWC Cosmopolitan Club of Petal (Mississippi)

Members of the Education and Libraries Committee with the GFWC Cosmopolitan Club of Petal (Mississippi) helped develop a lending library called “Rinse and Read” at a local laundromat in Petal. The library was made out of a re-purposed newspaper dispenser, which was purchased from a vintage store and transformed by the Petal School District maintenance department. A shelf was added to fit inside and it was filled with children’s books. The collection includes both Spanish and English books to reach the growing Hispanic communities in the area and school district. Club members began collecting the books early last year.

Children are encouraged to return the books to the lending library, and books will be replenished or repaired each month as needed. A sticker also will be adhered inside each book with information about the importance of reading and visiting the public library for more books.

The “Rinse and Read” project was made possible by a partnership between the GFWC Cosmopolitan Club of Petal and Excel By 5, an early education program that promotes early childhood education, resources, and parent education.

GFWC Valamont Woman’s Club (Tennessee)

On Martin Luther King Junior Day, GFWC Valamont Woman’s Club (Tennessee) hosted an outdoor, socially distanced, and masked event to try to bring joy to residents of a local care facility. During the event, members assembled packets for a coloring contest for residents of the facility. The judges for the contest will be a class of kindergartners, and the winner will receive a framed cross stitch design that was created by a past member who passed away last year. Clubwomen also made kits for other members to make tray favors for the residents of the care facility and planned treats for the kindergartners.

GFWC Woman’s Club of Arlington (Virginia)

The GFWC Woman’s Club of Arlington (Virginia) provided free handmade scarves, hats, gloves, and face masks to families assembled for food donations at the club’s parking lot on December 10, and January 14. The monthly Mobile Market of fruits, vegetables, and other groceries began taking place at the club in October, and is a collaboration between Barcroft Elementary School, Communities in Schools of Northern Virginia, and the Capital Area Food Bank. When a club member had the idea of placing hand knitted items in convenient areas for those in need, the food donation event seemed like the perfect opportunity, and the idea took off! The items were hung on trees near the parking lot during the Mobile Market with a card attached which read, “I am not lost. I was handmade for you. If you are cold or need me, please take me.”

During the second event in January, the club expanded their “Chase the Chill” project and offered new socks, small new blankets, and some used clothing in addition to the handmade scarves, hats, and gloves. In both December and January, club members gave out more than 100 scarves, hats, face masks, and more. Ten club members participated by knitting, crocheting, or sewing items, and working the day of the event. The members said they hope to continue this project in February, weather permitting.

GFWC Woman’s Club of Paramus

The GFWC Woman’s Club of Paramus (New Jersey) has made more than 18,000 masks since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Masks have been donated to 15 hospitals, 15 nursing homes, more than 20 elder adult care centers, two veteran’s homes, special education students in Paramus, homeless veteran’s through GFWC New Jersey State President Jan Hansen’s special project Operation Chillout, and more than 40 sister clubs. The sewing brigade has been Paramus’ own “Rosie the Riveters” on the war against COVID-19.

The sewing brigade was started by New Jersey State Federation of Women’s Clubs District Vice President Marie Sullivan, and includes club members Loretta Bayarski, Anna Perrone, Linda Buccino, Stacey Bukowski, Carol Cameron, Lisa Corrado, AnaLiza DeLeon, Pam Duke, Joyce Geils, Peggy Hickey, Dana Powers, Palisades District Vice President Debbie Cibelli, and GFWC Woman’s Club of Paramus President Shelley Rothstein.

“We will continue sewing until there is no longer a need; and unfortunately, there is no end in sight. I haven’t stopped sewing since March,” Marie Sullivan said. “We will do all in our power to help.”

The Woman’s Club of Paramus is also now selling masks to the general public for $10 each so it can continue to donate masks to those in need.

Village Improvement Association of Rehoboth Beach (Delaware)

Plastic bags are non-biodegradable and can take hundreds of years to decompose, which poses a threat to animals and other wildlife. To combat this problem, the Delaware state legislature passed a bill to ban single-use plastic bags starting January 1, 2021. The Environment Committee of the Village Improvement Association of Rehoboth Beach (Delaware) spent 2020 getting the word out to members to encourage the use of reusable totes.

As a result of the bill, the Village Improvement Association took on another major project in 2020. Club members signed up for the Trex Furniture Recycling Challenge, during which participants were tasked with collecting a total of 500 pounds of unwanted plastic materials in a six-month period. The list of collectable plastics included items that are not permitted in curbside recycling, such as plastic grocery bags, newspaper bags, case plastic wrap, bubble wrap, and more. Seventy-three club members logged 91 hours gathering plastic from their homes and from friends and family. The plastic was then collected, sorted, weighed, and dropped off to participating grocery stores. The Village Improvement Association completed this challenge in 10 weeks during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Trex awarded the club with a bench made from recycled plastic for reaching their goal, and club members volunteered again to create a new memorial garden featuring the bench, a steppingstone walkway, and butterfly bushes.

GFWC Millville Woman’s Club (New Jersey)

Life has not been normal for the GFWC Millville Woman’s Club (New Jersey) throughout the past year, but their giving spirit has remained alive. Since many of the club’s members are retirees from the Millville Board of Education, the club invited board members to use the club’s parking lot to gather donations during their December meeting. Contributions including pillows and pillow cases, towels, body wash, shampoo, and more were collected and donated to the Cumberland County Shelter for the Homeless. Donations of underwear, Snack Packs, and other non-perishable food items also were given to Code Blue, a local “warming center” which provides overnight shelter to homeless individuals in the community. Due to COVID-19, all the donated items were purchased new. Club members said the donation event was a good opportunity to work together for the benefit of the community.

GFWC Stella Research Club (Nebraska)

Although hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic, the GFWC Stella Research Club (Nebraska) continued their community service efforts in December with a variety of projects. One of the projects club members participated in was a food collection drive to donate to a local food bank. Members were provided a list of suggestions for collecting food items for each day of the month of December. Each box of food weighed more than 30 pounds and contained non-perishable boxed and canned items. Total, the club collected 275 pounds of food, which was given to Southeast Nebraska Community Action on December 21.

GFWC Woman’s Club of Dunbar (West Virginia)

The GFWC Woman’s Club of Dunbar (West Virginia) has been working hard since September 2020, to make local nursing home residents feel loved. With most things shut down due to COVID-19, it is hard for residents to feel as if they have anyone thinking about them. To help remedy this issue, one of the club member’s daughters started making homemade greeting cards with hand-written messages for the nursing home residents with her Girl Scout troop. When she asked if the clubwomen would like to help, the ladies jumped into action. Between September and the end of December 2020, club members made more than 1,500 cards to be distributed to 14 different nursing homes throughout the area. The cards include birthday, holiday, and “pick-me-up” cards. Club members have decided to continue this project throughout 2021.

GFWC Woman’s Citizenship Club in Alamosa (Colorado)

The GFWC Woman’s Citizenship Club in Alamosa (Colorado) surprised more than 800 employees of the local hospital and health clinics with San Luis Valley Health and 20 employees of the DaVita Dialysis Center by creating and donating 21 “Gratitude Boards” as a way to thank healthcare workers for their dedication this year. The boards were placed in the breakrooms of every department. Each board included a variety of snacks and a pair of scissors to snip each snack free when needed.

GFWC Santa Rosa Woman’s Club (Florida)

When COVID-19 forced the town’s library to close for browsing, the GFWC Santa Rosa Woman’s Club (Florida) devised a way for area readers to continue to enjoy looking for books. The Education and Libraries Community Service Program set out to locate every neighborhood Free Little Library book box along the 16-mile stretch from Gulf Breeze to Navarre, Florida, with the goal of making a map. As each little library was located, members photographed the book boxes and posted the photo and description on the club’s Facebook page.

After locating and photographing 30 small libraries, they created and launched a Google Map of neighborhood book boxes and little libraries. The map includes a pop-up photo of each little library with tips on finding it.

In addition to creating the map, club members involved with the community service project donned Santa hats and protective masks and visited the small libraries before Christmas, donating more than 50 sanitized children’s books to encourage reading during the school holidays. They also organized a personal library book drive of specific genres for an elder woman leaving an assisted living facility due to a COVID-19 outbreaks.

GFWC Helena Woman’s Club (Montana)

The GFWC Helena Woman’s Club (Montana) has been working on initiatives to support the local Veteran’s Association at Fort Harrison in Helena, Montana, including easing the transition of some of the homeless veterans into redeveloped housing at the fort. During a recent visit to drop off some pantry and toiletry items, members learned there are 11 children living in the housing units, and decided they wanted to provide them with Christmas gifts. The children ranged in age from eight months to 15 years old. In days, the club members rallied to provide toys, games, puzzles, baked goods, gift cards, hats, and mittens to each child, along with some additional goodies for their parents. The Helena Woman’s Club dropped the gifts off on December 22, in time for the children to have presents under a tree. Club members said it was a very rewarding experience.

GFWC Shorewood Woman’s Club (Wisconsin)

Although still operating remotely, the GFWC Shorewood Woman’s Club (Wisconsin) is continuing efforts to raise funds for charity and be a positive force in the community, including hosting two recent fundraisers. The first project involved selling t-shirts, sweatshirts, and tote bags featuring artwork by a club member. The sales resulted in a $175 contribution to the USO for their “Call Home” program for the military.

GFWC Affiliate Organization Heifer International was the recipient of the money raised during the club’s second fundraiser. Members raised more than $800 for the nonprofit organization, which works to eradicate poverty and hunger, through their annual coffee sale along with personal contributions. The club also took advantage of a matching grant opportunity online to partially double some of the contributions.

PRESIDENT’S PICK: Heritage League of Lincoln (Nebraska)

The Heritage League of Lincoln’s (Nebraska) The Holiday of Trees is now available. This year, the event was remote. It’s a once-in-a-century chance to see a part of what the club does, and has done for 48 years! Gather a small group of socially distanced and masked individuals and enjoy it together.

Proceeds for the 2019 Holiday of Trees went to the LMTA Music Outreach Program offered through the Lincoln Music Teachers Association. The program offers low-cost music lessons to students who are at risk or in need. A maximum of 50 students receive lessons in piano, organ, percussion, violin, viola, voice, guitar, woodwinds, theory, and composition. Each student must be recommended by an adult who is familiar with the child’s talent and interest.

GFWC Stuttgart Junior Woman’s Club (Arkansas) 

The GFWC Stuttgart Junior Woman’s Club (Arkansas) hosted their annual Baggo Tournament benefitting Restoration of Hope and Domestic Violence Awareness on November 11 in Stuttgart, Arkansas. Fifteen teams participated in the event and raised more than $1,600. This year, the club decided to focus on the specific needs of the local women’s shelter, in addition to giving them a $500 cash donation. The club purchased more than $500 in bathroom, kitchen, and household essentials. The remaining money raised was donated to the GFWC Success for Survivors Scholarships, benefitting those impacted by partner violence.

GFWC Lowell Woman’s Club (Indiana) 

The Lowell Woman’s Club (Indiana) was happy to end their holiday season with gifting the Lowell Trustee’s Office Food Bank with nine complete baking baskets.

Volunteer members donated time and purchases to make the baskets available to nine families in need with the help of trustee Alice Dahl.

Club President Sara Sizemore and her mother, member Kathleen Sizemore, accepted all the supplies while being conscious of social distancing and maintaining safety to assemble.

The baskets were assembled with every ingredient to make several types of cookies and included gift cards for eggs and butter, cookie sheets, and recipe cards. Then they were bagged and bowed.

Members of the Lowell Woman’s Club said they have been proud of their club’s actions during the pandemic, including hosting a Zoom meeting at the end of November, keeping up with monthly donations to the Lowell Trustees Food Bank and donating to the Coat Drive held at local Tri-Creek Lumber.

Woman’s Club of Abbeville (Louisiana) 

Pictured are members of the Christmas Committee with Amidie Shaw, Hearts for Hope Director of Volunteers & Community Engagement

The Woman’s Club of Abbeville (Louisiana) partnered with Hearts of Hope for their 2020 Christmas Project. The organization provides free and confidential individual therapy and support for survivors of sexual abuse in seven parishes, including the club’s parish of Vermilion. Members purchased teddy bears and other stuffed animals to be given to children who come into Hearts of Hope offices for interviews concerning sexual abuse cases. Donating these stuffed animals for these children make a difference by bringing smiles during a difficult time.

GFWC Needham Women’s Club (Massachusetts)

Watch this video, which features how the GFWC Needham Women’s Club of GFWC Massachusetts adapted a long-standing holiday house tour tradition for social-distancing guidelines. The club organized a drive-by tour of 34 homes and seven neighborhoods.

The tour began with a parade led by police, then a fire engine with Santa with 20 members and neighbors decked out in cars! Streets were lined with families eagerly anticipating the parade with happy faces behind their masks! People voted for their favorite home or neighborhood to fundraise for homeless and domestic violence shelters, food pantries, veterans, schools, first-responders and more.

Pines Lake Woman’s Club of Wayne (New Jersey) 

Right before Thanksgiving, the Pines Lake Woman’s Club of Wayne (New Jersey) held its annual Turkey Drive in cooperation with the Community Food Bank of New Jersey for families in need. The club worked from 9 am to 2 pm in the Wayne Township municipal parking lot and collected 96 turkeys, 905 bags of groceries, and more than $1,300 in cash equaling a value of $13,740 food for the Community Food Bank of NJ. The Community Food Bank purchased additional food for those in need with the cash donated.

GFWC Dunwoody Woman’s Club (Georgia) 

The GFWC Dunwoody Woman’s Club (Georgia) worked like elves to bring a Merry Christmas to families participating in the “Christmas for Kids” event hosted by the Dunwoody Police. Every family received a meal and gifts.

GFWC Junior Woman’s Club of Walpole (Massachusetts) 

Working with the Walpole Council on Aging and Walpole Senior Center, the GFWC Junior Woman’s Club of Walpole brought Thanksgiving meals to more than 80 seniors! The idea to sponsor a meal began in collaboration with a local restaurant, to provide 40 hot Thanksgiving meals to be collected curbside.

The Walpole Council on Aging received double the number of requests! The club was so thankful to the Conrads Restaurant staff for cooking up 80+ delicious hot meals. The club also worked with a local baker to provide a sweet touch to each meal—individual pies.

Danbury/New Fairfield Woman’s Club (Connecticut) 

The Danbury/New Fairfield Woman’s Club in Connecticut recently participated in a walking/exercise contest. Participants had the option of walking alone or with a group, socially-distanced. Those participating remotely could use a video or exercise website. They were asked to keep track of their mileage or hours of exercise for one week. Club Health and Wellness Chairman Sheila Macauley conducted this contest as a way for club members to have fun and maintain mental and physical health during the pandemic. All GFWC Connecticut clubs were invited to join in on the fun.

Kudos go to all 108 participants for doing all sorts of calorie-burning exercises: walking, Zumba, aerobic classes, tennis, pickle ball, Silver Sneakers classes online, and more. Each activity was converted to “equivalent miles walked” to provide a basis for choosing winning clubs.