Awards - GFWC

GFWC gives awards for outstanding achievements on an annual or biennial basis at our Annual Convention. Awards are given to clubs and State Federations to recognize their efforts in the program and partnership areas within each GFWC Community Service Program and Special Program. In addition to the GFWC Community Service Program and Special Program awards, GFWC provides awards to recognize individual member accomplishments, club activities, and community improvement efforts. See the full list of our most recent award winners here.

State Federation awards are based on membership category, which is determined by the number of individual dues-paying members in each state.

You can download Award Entry Forms from the Club Manual.

Community Improvement Program Award

Our longest standing project, the Community Improvement Program Award is the heart and soul of GFWC and aims to meet the needs of individual communities. The Community Improvement Program Award provides a vision for the future of the relationships between clubs and their communities. You can download the Community Improvement Program Award Entry Form from the Club Manual.

National CIP Awards

First Place	$5,000
Second Place	$3,500
Third Place	$2,500
Fourth Place	$1,500
Fifth Place	$500
International Affiliate Award	$250
Total National Monetary Awards	$13,250

GFWC State Awards

First Place	$50
Second Place	$35
Third Place	$25
Total Per State	$110
Total for 50 State Federations	$5,610

GFWC Jennie Award

The GFWC Jennie Award honors one clubwoman from each GFWC Region for outstanding commitment to club, community, and family. They are chosen by their clubs to compete at state, region, and national levels for their outstanding personal commitment to club, community, and family.

The GFWC Jennie Award is named in honor of GFWC’s founder, Jane Cunningham Croly, who wrote for national newspapers under the pseudonym, “Jennie June.” The award highlights those extraordinary clubwomen who epitomize her spirit of independence, courage, and persistence in purpose through their roles as volunteers within their clubs, elsewhere in the community, and as members of a family or extended family. Although GFWC has many awards for states and clubs, the GFWC Jennie Award is the only national honor that recognizes individual members for personal excellence. In fact, it is the highest honor bestowed by GFWC.

Croly Award

The Jane Cunningham Croly Award for Excellence in Journalism Covering Issues of Concern to Women recognizes journalists who best capture the courage, vision, and spirit of Jane Cunningham Croly. Jane Cunningham Croly was a pioneering journalist who devoted her life to helping women improve their lives and expand their rights. The Croly Award winner must demonstrate a concern for the rights and the advancement of women in our society; an awareness of women’s sensitivity, strength, and courage; and/or an attempt to counteract existing sexism.

The Croly Award is a biennial competition. The next award will be granted at the 2021 Annual Convention.

Charlotte Emerson Brown Award

The Charlotte Emerson Brown Award for Excellence in State Leadership will recognize the exemplary service of State Presidents to their State Federations and the General Federation of Women’s Clubs. GFWC will celebrate the 2018-2020 honorees during the GFWC Annual Convention in Atlanta, Georgia in June of 2020. If multiple nominees meet the criteria, multiple awards will be presented. The purpose of the award is to recognize GFWC State Presidents who have demonstrated leadership and commitment that goes above and beyond basic expectations. The 2018-2020 Administration nomination form is available here.

Special Program, Community Service Program, and Advancement Area Awards

For more details regarding the Awards Program, contact the GFWC Programs Department at Programs@GFWC.org.

Blog

May 24

Volunteers in Action: GFWC Woman’s League of the Lowcountry, GFWC North Central Junior Alumnae Club, and GFWC Woman’s Club of Bridgeport

Read the Blog

Featured Member

Barbara Winingham

For more than 60 years, GFWC clubwoman and 2020 Jennie Award Winner Barbara Winingham has been making a difference in her community by volunteering with GFWC Texas and GFWC Amity Club of Bowie.

Full story

Success For Survivors Scholarship

Each year, GFWC awards scholarships to help intimate partner abuse survivors obtain a post-secondary education that offers a chance to reshape their future by securing employment and gaining personal independence.

Learn More

Featured Club

GFWC Marlton Woman’s Club

The GFWC Marlton Woman’s Club (New Jersey) has 41 members who are always trying to put a smile on the faces of others. President Lisa Levin said, “My goal has always been to work together as a club, making our members shine, and making a significant difference in the lives of others.” She also encourages leadership and engagement by motivating members to be a chairperson or to be part of a committee.