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Members of the Palatine Literary Society (New York) and the Mohawk Valley Women’s Club (New York) contributed pocketbooks, toiletries, bathrobes, gloves, and notebooks with an estimated value of $1,078 to women’s shelters in the area. This effort is part of a national effort by GFWC to aid victims of domestic violence through a PURSE – Purses Uniting Resources to Successfully End violence against women – project done on a local club level.

For Veteran’s Day, based on an article in the August 30th News & Notes, the GFWC Seward Women’s Club (Nebraska) brought items to their November meeting to make up Military Mommy Bags, which included a small bottle of water, lotion, Kleenex, Tic Tacs, Chap Stick, and a granola bar. They were proud to report that their small group of 24 members bought enough for 24 bags! One of the goals of Nebraska State President, Louise Zimmerman, in working with the Seven Grand Initiatives is for the Nebraska clubwomen to do 1,000 projects for women in the military. This is part of the GFWC Seward Women’s Clubs’ small effort.

At a recent meeting,  15 members and 2 guests of the GFWC Achieving by Reading Club (Missouri) completed their Stuffed Mug Project for the moms and kids at Hope House Domestic Violence Shelter. They stuffed 108 holiday mugs until they were overflowing, then put each in a holiday treat bag tied with a big bow. Every recipient received candy, fruit snacks, a granola bar, or a cookie pouch. The moms’ mugs were also stuffed with items ranging from photo magnets to manicure kits. The kids’ mugs had surprises such as Christmas erasers and sticker boxes!

The event to light the Christmas tree outside town hall is an annual occasion in downtown Wake Forest, and so is the craft project offered by children by the Wake Forest Woman’s Club (North Carolina). This year, while children wait for their appointment to visit with Santa Claus, they decorated a small “chow” bag to look like a fanciful reindeer. A club member encouraged each child to set out the bag’s contents (dry cereal) at their home on Christmas Eve as a treat for Santa’s reindeer while Santa delivers toys. Club members also assisted the children in writing and mailing their letters to Santa. Approximately 200 children participated in the free activities, assisted by 11 Wake Forest Woman’s Club members.

In 2016, inspired by “Dress a Girl Around The World,” an international effort to provide little girls in third world countries a new handmade dress, the GFWC Woman’s Club of Westminster (Maryland) began the “Little Dress” Project. Many church groups, volunteer organizations, and individuals across many continents have joined this effort believing every little girl deserves the dignity of owning at least one dress. Besides providing for a practical need, village pastors have said that a new dress gives a girl an appearance of being cared for, and may discourage predators.

To date, a very talented group of GFWC volunteers, mostly from the GFWC Woman’s Club of Westminster, has sewn 645 dresses, ranging from size 1 to 12, and they’ve been hand distributed to eleven Central American and African countries. Their first shipment was sent via a missionary to Cameroon, with his children delivering them to local orphanages. Several shipments of 50 to 75 dresses have been distributed to Guatemala via a medical mission team from a Westminster church. A clinic in Malawi got 80 receiving blankets, knit caps for their NICU unit, and little dresses for siblings.

In 2017, an urgent request of 75 dresses was provided to an Operation Nehemiah representative and delivered to a Ugandan Refugee Camp, where thousands of South Sudanese refugees were camped. A former Peace Corps couple, who had served in Costa Rica many years prior, took two dress shipments on visits back to Costa Rica and Nicaragua. Yearly dress shipments are also sent to the Dominican Republic via the “Least of These Ministries,” delivered to Haitian work camps that labor in the sugar cane and banana fields in that country.  The club’s latest project expansion has come via a World Relief Representative who provides ongoing help to the peoples of The Republic of Congo and South Sudan on the African continent. Other countries which have received their “little dresses” include Honduras and El Salvador. Finally, for 2018, they will be supplying 65 dresses to the Operation Christmas Child shoe box endeavor, sending little girls throughout the world a new dress and bracelet for Christmas.

In the spirit of the Shoe Donation Grand Initiative, the Upper Allen Woman’s Club GFWC (Pennsylvania) and the community collected 1006 pairs of socks to donate to the Domestic Violence Services of Cumberland Perry Counties, YMCA Carlisle, and Bethesda Mission.

The GFWC Florida District 8 Annual Meeting and Fall Tour of Officers was hosted in federated unity by the GFWC Temple Terrace Woman’s, Junior, and Juniorette club members. Dist. 8 members learned about the 2018-2020 Administration’s Seven Grand Initiatives and the GFWC Florida President project Operation Smile as well as the Florida Junior Director’s project Book Heroes. GFWC Treasurer Jolie Frankfurth shared information about Strategic Planning Meetings. It was a morning packed with food, information, fun, and fellowship, and these volunteers are ready to take what they learned and put it into action!

There were so many incredible Veterans Day projects completed by GFWC clubs this month that we had to dedicate another Volunteers in Action post to them! The GFWC Wamego Study Club (Kansas) had their Annual Workshop to benefit veterans on Monday, November 12. They worked together to sew bright red, green, and white felt stockings, and then decorate them and fill them with candy for veterans’ dinner tray favors at the Topeka Colmery-O’Neil Veterans Hospital. Members donated many pounds of candy to stuff the stockings and Christmas decorations to make them bright and festive!  Study Club Veteran’s Committee Chairperson, Joyce Blanka, was happy to report that a total of 249 stockings were completed on Monday.

Their Annual Workshop also netted $395.89 in donated items this year. In consideration of the list from the VA Hospital in Topeka of needed items, members brought individually wrapped crackers, cookies, popcorn, granola bars, and personal hygiene items for the veterans. The Club enjoyed a photo display of the War Memorials in Washington, D.C., lit a candle in honor of all veterans, and had a reading of the WWI poem “In Flanders Fields,” by John McCrae, which began the use of the Remembrance Poppy in 1915 for Veteran’s Day.

November’s hostesses Pat Frey, Madge McDonald, Lauranell Stewart, and Patsy Eckart, served a hot and delicious luncheon of soup, Hawaiian slider sandwiches, fruit cups, and dessert. A beautiful autumn theme was used to decorate the tables. The GFWC Wamego Study Club would like to thank members Mary Jean Peterson, Patricia Strohmeyer, and Joyce Blanka for their hours of work prepping the stockings before the meeting, which made the work go smoothly during the workshop.  Club members of WSC worked, visited, and enjoyed the time together while completing their project with a record number of stockings completed this year. Many hands really do make light work!

To honor retired military veterans for Veteran’s Day, the High Springs New Century Woman’s Club (Florida) visited K9s For Warriors- Gold Family Campus. The organization trains rescue dogs to help veterans who are coping with post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, military sexual trauma, post-9/11 issues, and other psychological challenges associated with military service. Gift cards for a local pet store were given to each resident along with a thank you card. The gift card will help the veteran with the supplies needed when they graduate and go home with their service dog. The dogs were not forgotten, and neither was the staff! Each dog received a big bag of treats, and the staff members, also retired from the military, were presented with cookies and a thank you card.

Lastly, GFWC Minnesota State President Jean Walker brought visibility to GFWC when she was featured in the Crookston Times in an article titled: “Walker dedicates her life to volunteering, honoring veterans.” It detailed the projects she has chosen to support during her presidency: the Veterans Honor Flight of North Dakota/Minnesota and the Eagle’s Healing Nest. The article highlighted her advocacy efforts and dedication to veterans.

GFWC clubs didn’t let Veterans Day pass without doing incredible work to support the women and men who have served. In this blog post we’re featuring GFWC Maine, the Covina Woman’s Club (California), the Woman’s Club of Madisonville (Kentucky), the Hoover Juniorettes (Alabama), and the GFWC South Baldwin Woman’s Club (Alabama), but that is a small fraction of all the projects that clubs dedicated in honor of Veterans Day this year.

At the GFWC Maine Fall Conference, clubs donated 11 “Veterans House Warming Baskets” to homeless Veterans transitioning into their new apartments. Each basket consisted of 21 specific items needed to get set up in their new home. Also donated were new blankets, sheet sets, toaster ovens, coffee pots, air mattresses, and more.

The Covina Woman’s Club (California) delivered 60 hygiene bags for homeless veterans in September and October, and continued to prepare them throughout November. They also donated eight blankets to keep them warm during the coming winter.

The Woman’s Club of Madisonville (Kentucky) celebrated by singing at the Veterans Day Program at the Veterans Center. They sang “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “We Gather Together.” Additionally, they participated in the annual Veterans Day Parade, the largest in their state. They used UTVs to transport one member from each branch of service in the parade, and other club members walked along side veterans.

The GFWC Hoover Juniorettes (Alabama) had Erin Lyon, member of the US Army reserves and the Alabama Army Band, speak at their last meeting in honor of Veterans Day. Erin has a great story of how she became an oboe player in middle school, then a middle school band director, and finally joined the army at age 29 so that she could be in their band. She inspired the Juniorettes to persevere through the tough times to get to the reward at the end. They thanked Erin for her service and for sacrificing time with her husband and small children to serve in the Reserves. She told them about a great organization called Grace After Fire which helps women veterans with PTSD and other problems they may have after serving in the military. The club plans to bring toiletries and to make cards to send to them at their next meeting.

The GFWC South Baldwin Woman’s Club (Alabama) partnered with Edward Jones to bring extra joy and appreciation to their local veterans through a new card program. The objective of the program is to get classrooms to commit to decorating and signing Veterans Day cards. It can be as simple as putting their first name, grade, and school in the card. The children are also welcome to write a short note and/or draw a picture. The club appreciates giving children a chance to thank those courageous veterans who serve and are serving our great nation.

We always have Volunteers in Action to showcase because GFWC clubs are constantly on the move, planning new ways to improve their community and executing it with wonderful results. We treasure the opportunity to share events and projects that clubs do, so if you have something to share, send it to PR@GFWC.org for the chance to be featured on our blog. In the meantime, check out some of these great ideas!

The October meeting of GFWC Greater Ocala Woman’s Club (Florida) was focused on Breast Cancer Awareness Month. They were extremely honored to host two guest speakers. Dr. Wingard, Deputy Director of cancer research for the University of Florida spoke about ongoing cancer research programs. He emphasized that many people in their region don’t seek cancer treatment early enough, so new programs are being established to reach people sooner. Their second guest speaker represented All About You, a women’s boutique specializing in post-breast surgery aides. Lori Timmreck spoke about the compassion and products her boutique offers, such as custom breast prostheses. She said many breast cancer patients smile for the first time after their surgery because of the services from this boutique. Of course, not all was solemn at the meeting. There were occasion-inspired cookies and origami bookmarks. The hosting committee greeted members by wearing cardboard sandwich breasts, which Dr. Wingard found hilarious and said it was a first for him.

GFWC Potpourri Glenwood (Minnesota) had a fundraiser with an added benefit! They held a garage sale of donated items for local charities and it was a big success despite cold weather. Over $980 will be given to community needs, and the added benefit is that one of the shoppers thought she’d like to be a part of the club and she joined!

Pictured: Colleen Gandrud, Judy Golberg, Darlene Femrite & Carolyn Rust with some interesting sale items!

The Woman’s Club of Vista (California) helped put on the tenth Fall Fun Festival, a free event for the community at the Alta Vista Botanical Gardens. They sponsored scarecrows and contributed clothes and bling for the scarecrows to wear for the scarecrow contest. Club members helped families create the scarecrows and helped judge the contest. The event brought in 540 visitors and 50 student volunteers!

GFWC Advocates for Children Week is a time of year when there’s no shortage of Volunteers in Action! Clubwomen in every corner of the country dedicate their time, energy, and resources to make an impact in children’s lives. In this blog post we’re featuring GFWC Greater West Palm Beach Women’s Club (Florida), GFWC Wisconsin, and the GFWC Southern Region, but that’s just a small glimpse into the immense influence that GFWC had during the week.

GFWC Wisconsin State President, Deb Brossard, requested and received a Proclamation from the Governor’s Office with regards to establishing October 21 to October 27 as GFWC Advocates for Children Week in Wisconsin. The Proclamation was shared on Facebook and displayed on the state website. Great job GFWC Wisconsin for raising visibility of the observance!

That’s not all they did! Clubs across Wisconsin did a variety of projects that showcase the numerous ways to support children. Lakeland Area GFWC members participated in the Food for Kidz event held at the Lakeland Union High School, Minocqua. They joined over 300 other volunteers with a goal to package 175,000 meals in a four hour period. The meals will be distributed to local food pantries and through the organization’s main headquarters to other food insecure families outside of the Lakeland Area.

The GFWC Kenosha Junior Woman’s Club made Worry Dolls that will be donated to local shelters. There’s a zipper on the doll and children can write down their worry and put it inside so the doll can take the worry away.

The GFWC Menomonie Woman’s Club had a speaker from The Foster Closet, a non-profit in Menomonie that provides clothing, blankets, hygiene items, backpacks, stuffed animals, etc., for children who are going into foster care. Club members learned that often, when children are taken from a home, especially if there is meth in the home, they literally have nothing but the clothes that they are wearing. The club had previously donated a number of tie blankets they had made along with some stuffed animals. At their October 22 meeting, the club voted to donate $200 to this organization and to collect items for the group at their December Christmas party.

As a kick off to GFWC Advocates for Children Week, the Woman’s Club of Pewaukee participated in Positively Pewaukee’s Halloween Fun Fest  by handing out Tootsie Pop Ghosts to the costumed children. Braving wind gusts of 25 mph, a freak snow storm, and bitter cold, the ladies distributed 225 “Ghosts” to excited children and parents. Frozen fingers were warmed by children’s smiles and exclamations.

Ella Dzioba, Geri Coen, Nancy Niedziela, Carole Brinkman, Deb Koepp, Ginny Lockman

Despite it being barely 40 degrees and windy, members of the GFWC-Pleasant Prairie Woman’s Club participated in the Barth Storage Trunk or Treat free event to encourage families to engage in safe trick or treating. They distributed candy and toys donated by club members, free Texas Roadhouse kids’ meal vouchers donated by Texas Roadhouse, and club information to over 1,000 children in a controlled, safe environment. Everyone had a great time seeing all the kids dressed up in their costumes and plan on attending next year too.

The GFWC Brillion Woman’s Club collected children’s books to donate to children in area who wouldn’t have their own book to keep. The club is also collecting Dr. Suess books for one of the 2018-2020 Grand Initiatives. The GFWC De Pere Woman’s Club installed a Little Free Library! GFWC Shorewood Woman’s Club held a Rummage Sale with proceeds from the sale going back in the community. Several members have also contributed Dr. Suess books or funds specifically for the Grand Initiative.

The GFWC Woman’s Club of Greenfield did a formal presentation of a Buddy Bench that they purchased for Glenwood School. Members met with the Public Relations Representative from Milwaukee Public Schools, the school principal, and four of the students to have their pictures taken with them and the bench. The purpose of the Buddy Bench is for children to demonstrate that they care about each other.  Some children have difficulty interacting with other children at recess or they could be new to the school and haven’t made any friends as yet.  The students are told if they see someone sitting on the bench it means they are looking for a friend and they should go and talk to them.

The GFWC North Shore Junior Woman’s club is in its third year of participation in the Emerging Readers program through United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County. They are paired with two children they sponsor. They encourage their passion for reading throughout the school year by donating books quarterly that pair with their interests and reading level. The children send back hand written thank you cards after each donation. The club’s first donation occurred on October 25 and they have a great selection to drop off. This is an activity the members of the club really enjoy participating in.

The GFWC Spooner Woman’s Club collected hats, mittens, and socks and took them to the elementary school nurse, while the GFWC Amery Woman’s Club sponsored a Ticket Train at the local elementary school. Members manned a cart and visited each classroom, and children received tickets for good behavior and got to pick out a prize from the Ticket Train.

The GFWC Woman’s Club of Monroe’s annual Christmas Stocking Program is well underway. The program’s main purpose is to give children in need a merrier Christmas. Last year they touched more than 900 children’s lives.  Club members devoted volunteer hours this week by either calling people to shop, gathering names, meeting with local businesses for the toy drive, and other steps that need to be completed before the beginning of November.

The GFWC Blanchardville Woman’s Club delivered personal care items to a place that works with children who will give them to children in need. The club collected about 20 toothbrushes, 22 tubes of toothpaste, 15 containers of shampoo, 5 packages of female hygiene items, 8 deodorants, 15 soaps of different kinds, 7 bottles of body wash, 50 small container items, and a razor. Many grateful children will be able to use these items to help experience a better day-to-day life. The club intends to keep full shelves at the site for future needs.

The GFWC Southern Region showed it’s true southern charm by supporting the GFWC Advocates for Children week. Clubs across the region read to children, supported Special Olympic athletes, collected books, held milk and cookies activities for Heifer International, focused on anti-bullying campaigns, and raised money for March of Dimes. The GFWC Southern Region Conference took place during Advocates for Children Week, so the Directors of Junior Clubs from Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina co-hosted a junior fun night called “The HeartBeat Of Our Future” to support GFWC Partner March of Dimes. They played bingo and tenzies, raising $1030.00! It was a great way to kick start Advocates for Children Week, and they hope to continue the fun next year.

The GFWC Rhinelander Woman’s Club has an ongoing commitment to advocate and educate children. During the month of October, some club members read in local daycare centers and then donated the books through a program called “Food for the Mind.” Others met with middle school Language Arts teachers and school principals to initiate a new endeavor, their first involvement with the GFWC Youth Writing Contest. Several members made plans and reserved dates for their 22^nd Helen Mears Art Contest exhibit to be held in April at their public art gallery, ArtStart. October is their big month for sending out donations, many of which will benefit the community’s youth and the youth in their international outreach. Some of these donations included: Kids in Need Youth Program, Girls on the Run of the Northwoods, Trees for Tomorrow scholarships, Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin-Community Services, Potency of Poetry middle school poetry workshop, Food for the Mind, YMCA of the Northwoods, Rhinelander District Library, KIND science news magazine for grades 3-5, Operation Smile, Shot @Life, and UNICEF.

Members of the GFWC Greater West Palm Beach Women’s Club (Florida) delivered 41 pajamas to the children in Harmony House, the Domestic Assault shelter in Palm Beach County, to mark Advocates for Children week. The club hopes the new pjs will bring smiles to the children.

Pictured from left to right: Member Linda Ferris; Mary Cauthen, Director of Domestic Violence Services at YWCA; and members Linda Walker and Sharon Bounds.

We always have Volunteers in Action to showcase because GFWC clubs are constantly on the move, planning new ways to improve their community and executing it with wonderful results. We treasure the opportunity to share events and projects that clubs do, so if you have something to share, send it to PR@GFWC.org for the chance to be featured on our blog. In the meantime, check out some of these great ideas!

GFWC Paradise Valley Woman’s Club (Arizona) donated 1,000 pencils to Sweetwater Community School in Phoenix., and mailed 500 pencils to President Brock for a DC school. “USA Today” had results of a poll in September that pencils were the most requested by teachers, so the club decided collecting pencils would be a fun project. At the next meeting, members brought pencils by the package and already reached their goal after only one meeting!

Pictured: Joan Stempski, President of Paradise Valley Woman’s Club; Diane Silvestri, Principal; and Doris Berry, GFWC Arizona President

In preparation of November as Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, the GFWC El Portal Woman’s Club (Florida) hosted the Mayor and a representative from the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network to educate members about the horrific disease, and to plan for their collaboration walk on November 4, which is a 3 mile community walk that asks the town to come out, wear purple, and join the fight. Additionally, the club will light up the Village of El Portal by selling outdoor light bulbs to raise awareness.

The Lake City Michigan Women’s Club (Michigan) decorated lampposts with corn stalks, ribbons, and pumpkins and gourds, just in time for the homecoming parade and the beautiful fall colors. Local Centennial Farm, Ardis Dairy Farm, kindly donated over 1000 corn stalks and hundreds of pumpkins and gourds. Another local farmer, Murray’s Farm Market, drove by and immediately called the Chamber of Commerce office to express delight with the new look of downtown and to offer more pumpkins and gourds.

The Chamber took the club’s picture and posted it on their Facebook page. The photo has over 2.5k likes., which is incredible for a small town like theirs! Several local people also stopped into the Chamber office to compliment the club’s creativity, and one fine gentleman even donated to their causes. The club even made the front page of the local paper. The following week they continued their beautification efforts by cleaning up the highway just outside of town.

We always have Volunteers in Action to showcase because GFWC clubs are constantly on the move, planning new ways to improve their community and executing it with wonderful results. We treasure the opportunity to share events and projects that clubs do, so if you have something to share, send it to PR@GFWC.org for the chance to be featured on our blog. In the meantime, check out some of these great ideas!

GFWC Illinois Executive Committee and State Board members wore purple hair at their Fall Board Meeting to demonstrate support for the GFWC Signature Program Purple Hair Project.  Amee Lee, Education Community Service Program Junior Representative, has had her hair dyed purple for the month of October because GFWC Illinois members, clubs, and districts raised nearly $2,000 for the Success for Survivors Scholarship Fund.  Amee has posted a video on the GFWC Illinois’ Facebook Page.

GFWC Florida Junior Public Issues Chairman Vi Zonfrelli assembled informative posters to encourage clubwomen to support one of the Seven Grand Initiatives: Women in the Military. The posters gave visitors a wealth of ideas for how they can make a difference through volunteering and supporting veterans programs. One poster included points of contact for military and veteran related organizations. This was a great way to get everyone thinking about what they can do for Veteran’s Day!

Members of the Manchester CT Women’s Club (Connecticut) built “Superwoman,” a scarecrow for the Downtown Manchester Scarecrow Festival. It was a fun way to draw members together and an easy way to increase community awareness of the club, which was federated in March.  Superwoman will join dozens of other scarecrows on the Main Street as people vote for their favorites on Facebook. The club hopes their scarecrow has a good chance at winning bragging rights!

We always have Volunteers in Action to showcase because GFWC clubs are constantly on the move, planning new ways to improve their community and executing it with wonderful results. We treasure the opportunity to share events and projects that clubs do, so if you have something to share, send it to PR@GFWC.org for the chance to be featured on our blog. In the meantime, check out some of these great ideas!

In accordance with the 2018-2020 Administration’s Seven Grand Initiatives, members of the GFWC Service Guild of Covington (Georgia) donated Dr. Seuss books at their September meeting. Clubs like them are helping GFWC meet its goal for members to donate 1,000 Dr. Seuss books by March of 2020!

Between volunteer projects, clubs often take action in a different way— with membership events to attract more volunteers! Members of the GFWC Morehead Woman’s Club (Kentucky) held a Dress for a Mess Door Hanger Paint Party as a membership event. Attendees enjoyed the craft and plenty of food. The event proved to be a success with 12 of 13 attendees joining the club!

We always have Volunteers in Action to showcase because GFWC clubs are constantly on the move, planning new ways to improve their community and executing it with wonderful results. We treasure the opportunity to share events and projects that clubs do, so if you have something to share, send it to PR@GFWC.org for the chance to be featured on our blog. In the meantime, check out some of these great ideas!

The Woman’s Century Club of Nampa (Idaho) entered a patriotic float in the local Parade America. The date commemorated the ending of World War I. There were red poppies strewn about the bed, and members played the story of the battlefield of Flanders’ Field to educate the community.

In honor of National Day of Service and Remembrance on 9-11, many clubs paid tribute. The GFWC Temple Terrace Woman’s Club (Florida) hosts an annual First Responders Breakfast! The club members are happy and proud to show their appreciation by providing a delicious home cooked meal for the men and women who do so much for their city.

The GFWC High Springs New Century Woman’s Club (Florida) honors first responders by presenting the Fire, Police, and Emergency Medical Technicians in their local cities with baskets filled with snacks and fruit.