GFWC Women’s Citizenship Club of Alamosa 
Members of GFWC Women’s Citizenship Club of Alamosa (Colorado) are continuing to offer small acts of appreciation to those who have been dedicated to caring for others during the COVID-19 pandemic. GFWC Colorado Membership Chairman Theresa Rudder said 17 clubwomen decided to put together platters filled with cookies for the staff at six nursing homes in San Luis Valley, Colorado. She said they contacted each of the nursing homes to determine how many staff members they have and to discuss the proper format in which to deliver the cookies. The members then spent one morning putting together more than 500 homemade cookies along with words of encouragement for the staff members, thanking them for all that they are doing to bring comfort to their residents.
“We know that COVID-19 took a toll on the people that were in the frontline,” Theresa said. “Their jobs are rough as it is in a normal time, and it increased exponentially during COVID-19 time. We wanted to show them that their efforts did not go unnoticed.”
Theresa said the trays of cookies were delivered to the area nursing homes by members and they received many comments of thanks from the respective staff.
She added the club has been working on similar projects to show appreciation to people throughout the past year, including creating gratitude boards for hundreds of employees at hospitals and schools.
“It was a small act of kindness that made a big difference,” Theresa said.
Collinsville Woman’s Club
The Collinsville Woman’s Club (Illinois) presented a donation check for more than $10,000 to the Collinsville Food Pantry in June. GFWC Illinois District 22 President Janice Housden said the club raised the money partially through donations in place of their annual “Empty Bowl” event.
Janice said for this event, clubwomen rent out a hall and charge attendees a small entry fee to come enjoy soups donated by local restaurants.
“It’s not a big town, but we get a lot of support from the people,” she said.
Janice explained the “Empty Bowl” project started nine years ago as a way to raise money for the food pantry to help people experiencing homelessness. All of the money from the event goes to the Collinsville Food Pantry.
She said the members of the Women’s Club of Collinsville have always tried to help the food pantry and give back whenever they could.
“We have to. It we don’t, there will be a lot of families who will be hungry,” Janice said.