Category: Uncategorized

By Deb Allen
GFWC Juniors’ Special Program: Advocates for Children Chairman

GFWC clubwomen will celebrate Juniors’ Special Program: Advocates for Children Week from Sunday, October 23 to Saturday, October 29, but members continue to help children all year long! One of the things that makes me proud to be a clubwoman is the passion our organization has for children. If you are looking for projects to make a difference in your community, consider one of the following:

Invite a local firefighter to bring turnout gear to speak about fire safety.
Have you seen firefighters wearing their full turnout gear? Have you heard their breathing when they wear oxygen masks? Now, imagine encountering this for the first time as a child, in the dark, when your house is on fire. Invite a local firefighter to speak at elementary schools or daycares. Ask them to bring their turnout gear to put on while talking to the children about fire safety. If appropriate, have them put on their oxygen mask so that children can hear what it sounds like. Help the children to recognize the gear that looks and sounds scary is helping to keep the firefighter safe.

Help authorities find victims of child trafficking.
Traffickers post pictures of their victims in hotel rooms as a way to advertise their business. Click here to download the TraffickCam app and then upload pictures of hotel rooms to help authorities find sex trafficking victims. TraffickCam uses these to identify the background in pictures of trafficking victims allowing authorities to identify where the victim might be. Ask your local hotels to allow you to take pictures of their rooms as well as upload pictures while you are on vacation. (Unsure how to download and upload? Ask a Junior or Juniorette to help!)

Help those who are about to age out of foster care.
Children in foster care age out when they are not permanently placed in a home or reconciled with their families before they turn 18. Identify these children and set up classes or workshops to teach them life lessons, such as managing money or cooking to prepare them for life as an independent adult. Help these children develop a plan to finish their education and consider providing scholarships if your state charges for the GED test.

Remember to report what you are doing!
Don’t wait until January to notify me of the good work you are doing. I am often asked to brag about what GFWC is doing as Advocates for Children. I would love to be able to brag about your club, district, state or region.

Feel free to share your Advocates for Children history with me as well. Do you have a project that has been ongoing for many years? How did Advocates for Children begin in your club or state? Have you won any community awards for your efforts? Were you part of GFWC’s adoption of the Advocacy for Children’s week?

Remember General, Junior, and Juniorette clubs may report under the Juniors’ Special Program: Advocates for Children category. Start writing your reports now while it is easy to remember the details of your project. Remember to explain your project in detail so that another club may be able to utilize your project in their area.

Thanks for all that you do in the lives of children during Advocates for Children Week and throughout the year! Mark your calendars for our 2017 GFWC Juniors’ Special Program Advocates for Children Week to be held Sunday, October 23 to Saturday, October 28, 2017.

That GFWC has been a powerful force in shaping national politics, legislation, and even moral standards is no secret. However, our role in molding popular culture and entertainment also presents a formidable history. From our founding in 1890, GFWC clubwomen have seen themselves as harbingers of the arts and public education. When the first motion pictures debuted in America, in the early 1900s, clubwomen saw the new medium as an opportunity for education, and as a natural fit into their already established platform for artistic standards.

The first motion picture footage was screened in France in 1895 by the Lumiere brothers. However, GFWC’s history with motion pictures is even older. In 1889, Thomas Edison developed the Kinetoscope. Unlike the cinematograph, which was used in France, the Kinetoscope was a device that only allowed one viewer to observe the film through a small peephole. Only two years later, Edison, whose wife was a clubwoman, demonstrated his invention during GFWC’s second annual Convention. By 1905, the new art form had picked up traffic, and the first Nickelodeon was opened in Pittsburgh. Taking off at a rapid pace, feature films became a major form of entertainment for Americans everywhere by the start of WWI.

Despite reservations about the film industry, GFWC clubwomen primarily regarded the advent of film as a major educational force. Attending movies got people out of the saloons and into the theater, and was seen to have positive potential. However, the early film industry was unregulated, and clubwomen had quandaries about inappropriate materials. In 1916, GFWC President Anna Pennybacker proclaimed that “no question has aroused more interest among the homes of our land than that of the motion picture. We realize that this institution has come to stay… we realize that it can be made into a great educational force. We also realize that the average motion picture tends to degrade rather than uplift the moral status of the spectator…”

Acting on their concerns, GFWC joined forced with the National Board of Review (NBR) in 1916. A Motion Picture Survey Committee was created, and women were sent into their local communities to take stock of and rate the motion pictures which were available there. However, after campaigning across the country with the NBR for censorship of the movies, GFWC clubwomen realized they fundamentally disagreed on the means of censorship and proclaimed that the NBR was using the support of women’s clubs as a way to provide “camouflage to the industry’s evils.” In 1918, GFWC clubwomen were rocketed into a debate about the dangers and necessities of censorship. In a 1918 Clubwomen edition women debated their stances on censorship in personal opinion pieces, and even solicited the opinion of famed director D.W. Griffith.

After a unanimous vote to split with the NBR in 1918, clubwomen continued to campaign for federal censorship of movies on both the local and national levels. Despite its split from the influential NBR, GFWC continued to put pressure on the Motion Picture Industry, and pushed towards a cohesive and unified ratings system. Forming committees, clubwomen regularly screened and reviewed movies, and their recommendations were often printed in the magazine Moving Picture Age. In the 1920s, William Hays, founder of the Moving Picture Association of America, commissioned 10 organizations to sit on the Film Board of National Organizations. Members of the Board, GFWC helped to give recommendations for how to incorporate a unified ratings system. The Hays code, the first national ratings system, was developed to ensure that offensive material was not included in movies.

Under the influence of GFWC, the code remained in place until 1968, when it was replaced with the current ratings system, which granted artists and directors more artistic freedoms. GFWC remained active participants in film review, and in advocacy for educational merit through the 1960s, and its impact is felt daily by the millions of movie-going Americans.

Domestic Violence is something that many people don’t want to talk about. Instead of addressing this devastating issue, some would rather stay away from such a heavy topic and claim it doesn’t happen in their community. But the truth is, domestic violence can happen anywhere and to anyone, regardless of age, financial status, race, religion, or education. According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence, more than one in three women has experienced rape, physical violence, or stalking by a partner, and three women are killed by a current or former partner every day in the United States.

We need to talk about domestic violence, not only in October, but every day of the year. We owe it to survivors of domestic violence whose stories need to be told. We owe it to the women who are currently experiencing physical, emotional, sexual, or financial abuse. And we owe it to those victims of domestic violence who were tragically killed by an intimate partner.

GFWC is not afraid to be a loud voice in the fight to end domestic violence. We’ve made that clear by making Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention our Signature Program, giving clubs across the country the resources they need to create change. Whether sending notes of encouragement and care packages to women at local domestic violence shelters, writing letters to the editor, or planting purple flowers around town, members are committed to spreading awareness and ending violence against women.

On both a local and national level, GFWC supports victims of domestic violence. The GFWC Success for Survivors Scholarship provides funds for women who have experienced abuse, allowing them to attend college and continue their journey of recovery. Through the GFWC Legislative Action Center, members advocate for laws that protect victims of domestic violence.

Sadly, domestic violence will continue if we don’t speak up. That’s why we refuse to back down and will show the world that we as GFWC members are united in the fight to end domestic violence. Use Domestic Violence Awareness Month as a platform to begin talking about this issue in your community. Encourage members to wear purple, whether to your next meeting, around town, or on Purple Thursday, which takes place on Thursday, October 20.

Become familiar with the Signature Program section of the GFWC Club Manual, which is filled with important statistics about domestic violence, as well as project ideas. You can download it by clicking here. The National Network to End Domestic Violence also offers valuable information about domestic violence, including frequently asked questions, factsheets, and the impact on the economy as a result of domestic violence.

By supporting GFWC’s Signature Program and organizations in your community, you are making it possible for survivors to return to school, for victims to receive help through domestic violence hotlines, and for shelters to provide a safe refuge for women with nowhere else to go. The Signature Program Committee is extremely proud of the efforts of our members as we come together to end domestic violence. We know GFWC will continue to make strides in this fight throughout the 2016-2018 Administration.

Send photos of your activities during Domestic Violence Awareness Month and your club wearing purple to pr@gfwc.org and we’ll share them on the GFWC Pinterest page.

Storms bringing more than 7 trillion gallons of water, 145,000 homes flooded and destroyed, tens of thousands left homeless or rescued from rooftops and trees, 20 parishes destroyed, not to mention 13 deaths. Louisianans will not forget 2016 any time soon.

While the economic impact to Louisiana was still being evaluated, Federation Sisters from across the nation began organizing relief efforts. One of the many who immediately headed to Louisiana was Helen Lamberth, from Liberty Woman’s Club GFWC Texas. “Texas began a fundraising effort to help our sister state, but that was just beginning. I had personal knowledge of what these families would be dealing with and I knew I could help.”

Helen contacted Louisiana State President, Cathie Ryan and learned that Tish Sedlin, a long-time Lagniappe Woman’s Club member had a very short window of time to remove debris from her home before it was destroyed with only her two children to help. Helen immediately left for Baton Rouge with a truck load of supplies. The next day, Diane Gretencord and Linda Lang of the Woman’s Civic Club of Jasper followed with another load of cleaning supplies and linens. Helen, Diane, Linda and additional volunteers located by President Ryan salvaged what they could, and shoveled the rest of the Sedlin’s belongings to the curb. Family, friends, and strangers were knee deep in mud and debris for days.

It will be years before the people of Louisiana recover. GFWC Texas will present monetary contributions and donations to GFWC Louisiana at the South Central Region Conference in Lafayette, Louisiana in mid-October.

In the early 1990s, the Women’s History Resource Center (WHRC) launched a nationwide effort to verbally collect the histories of our illustrious clubwomen. The project resulted in an impressive collection of over 200 oral histories, ranging from International Past Presidents and region presidents to members of local committees and average clubwomen. These tapes and transcripts are an invaluable resource to clubwomen and researchers alike who are looking to garner a more personal account of over 100 years of GFWC’s history.

While this effort was an admirable start, the project is still underway. The WHRC would like to continue to expand this collection of personal histories.  However, we can’t do it without your help! If you would like to share your GFWC experiences, please contact WHRC Manager Alyssa Constad at aconstad@gfwc.org to set up a date and time. Histories can be given over the phone, so location is not an issue. Our history is important and we need you to help tell our story!

By Laura Bergman
GFWC Communications and Public Relations Committee Member

You may already know that elevator or sales pitches are important tools that help facilitate a quick conversation about a subject. Pitches are generally 20-30 seconds long and are designed to capture the immediate interest of your audience.
Practicing your pitch will ensure you are prepared to respond to the next person who asks you “What is GFWC?”

Let’s be honest—many of us may freeze up or fumble as we search for the words to explain all the awesome work we do as an organization. Here are some key points to help you establish a winning statement to engage potential members or supporters.

1. MAKE IT PERSONAL!
GFWC motivates us all in different ways, so think about what makes you excited to be a member. There are several aspects to choose from, including service projects, fundraising, community involvement, or social interaction. If you believe strongly in what you are conveying and are sincere, it will make your pitch more effective.

2. KEEP IT SHORT AND TO THE POINT.
We don’t always have a lot of time to talk about GFWC. Often, we are asked while in an elevator, working on a service project, or standing in the hotel lobby at Convention. When you only have a brief moment to raise awareness, your message needs to be concise and quick!

3. END WITH AN ACTION OR YOUR “HOOK.”
This will give you an opening to either continue the conversation or get the potential member’s contact information. A great example is to ask, “If you could improve one thing in your community, what would it be?” Making the question personal will hopefully encourage a meaningful conversation.

4. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!
This is perhaps the most important factor of all, because when someone asks you “What is GFWC?” and you fumble and freeze, the opportunity to recruit a new member or supporter may be lost. Use your family or a mirror, or give your speech to your casserole in the oven—whatever works for you. Practicing will ensure that the next time you get to talk about GFWC, you’ll be prepared to rise to the occasion!

There are countless articles on the internet with many more tips and tricks on building a great pitch, so please use any resources you have available. Keep in mind that you won’t always have time to give a 20-30 second pitch, so be sure to
always have a GFWC business card ready to hand out.

GFWC Cyber Clubs are designed for women who want to make new friends while making a difference in their communities through volunteer service, but for whatever reason, cannot attend regular club meetings in person. To learn more about how Cyber Clubs function and the advantages of belonging we asked Sara Castelli, webmaster for GFWC Fabulous Florida Flamingo Flock cyber club to answer a few questions.

GFWC: How does your cyber club differ from a traditional club?

Sara Castelli: We differ in that we do not “meet” regularly. Instead of traditional meetings we send email blasts, post photos and project ideas to a Facebook page, and provide project updates on a webpage. The webpage also tells potential members how to join, and allows existing members to find out how they can contribute to various projects.

GFWC: Why do your members prefer a cyber club?

Sara Castelli: We currently have 81 members and they have selected to join a cyber club for a variety of reasons. Many members live in areas without a traditional club, others simply cannot get to meetings, and some like the concept of the “cyber” connection. While we do not hold typical clubhouse meetings, we do encourage lunches or get-togethers at locations where many members can easily go. Since these get-togethers are not official meetings, no one who is unable to attend misses out on information vital to a project. The lunches simply provide a fun chance to gather and brainstorm project ideas that can later be shared with the entire group via social media.

GFWC: Do you have members from across the state?

Sara Castelli: We accept members from anywhere, not just Florida. The sharing of ideas has been great and some of the out-of-state members have been very supportive of our projects, often involving additional community members in the projects. Many cyber club members are also members of “brick and mortar” clubs, this allows them to share what they learn from us with their more traditional club.

GFWC: What projects has the cyber club selected to support?

Sara Castelli: Our Holocaust Stamp project is ongoing and has been a resounding success! We also collect old nylons for recycling into park benches and write letters to Veterans for Honor Flight. In the future, we plan to write letters of encouragement to Cancer patients with the assistance of a clearing house for delivery.

GFWC: Is there anything else you would like your fellow clubwomen to know about cyber clubs?

Sara Castelli: When there is a poll to be taken, a notice is sent out via email with a time limit for submitting responses. Only the responses received within the required timeframe are counted. It requires some adjustment from the usual method of quorums. We also don’t set term limits on leadership positions due to the need to learn our electronic systems and the fact that many members are interested in participating without taking on the responsibilities of leaders. The idea is to reach as many women as possible, involve them with our projects, and acquaint them with Federation. We encourage members to join “brick and mortar” clubs if they wish and attend state, region, and national conferences if they are able. For those unable to attend Federation meetings, we make sure to report on all that happens via our website and social media exchanges.

By Deborah Allen, GFWC Juniors’ Special Program: Advocates for Children Chairman and Jolie Frankfurth, GFWC Director of Junior Clubs

What do GFWC clubwomen do when you ask them to reach a goal? They meet that goal and reach even higher! Since launching the GFWC National Team to help raise funds through the St. Jude Walk/Run to End Childhood Cancer, clubwomen have exceeded the 2016 goal set for GFWC by starting over 25 teams nationwide in over 17 markets. By hosting teams in multiple markets, GFWC has helped raise awareness for St. Jude in their fight to end childhood cancer, the leading cause of death by disease for U.S. children past infancy.

GFWC began a partnership with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital during the 2015 GFWC Annual Convention in Memphis, Tennessee. Treatments developed at St. Jude have helped increase the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to 80 percent since the hospital opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude freely shares the breakthroughs it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. Although families never receive a bill for treatment, it cost nearly $1 billion to operate St. Jude in 2016 with more than 75% of those funds raised by public contributions with an average individual donation of $35.

As many of you are getting ready for your St. Jude Walk/Run to End Childhood Cancer event, other clubwomen are raising funds through GFWC Virtual Walk teams. Whether you are walking in an event or raising funds for a virtual team, there are resources available to GFWC clubwomen:

• Final Incentive Challenge: Any participant who receives ten online donations during the month of September will be entered into drawing to win 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage miles. There will be one winner per city.
• As a GFWC Clubwoman, you are welcomed to visit the National Teams Zone on race day. Check in to the race, collect your swag, and then head to the National Teams Zone! Let the St. Jude volunteers at the National Teams Tent know that you are a GFWC member. There will be snacks and goodies as well, so it is a fun place to meet before the opening ceremony!
• Listen to the GFWC/St. Jude webinar for more fundraising and events resources: https://alsacmeetings.webex.com/alsacmeetings/ldr.php?RCID=0cf2181f6189f854756256af092c5e3c
• After the walk/run events are finished, GFWC team fundraising pages will be able to accept donations until December 31, 2016. Remember to report all of your efforts in the Juniors’ Special Program: Advocates for Children category! Send pictures to GFWC of any events held as well as race day festivities!

It’s time to celebrate! Use social media to show your team’s success. Consider issuing a St. Jude Challenge to another GFWC team, state, or region to see who can be the first to raise $1,734. If you think that’s a tough challenge, ask the GFWC Junior Board who hosted a St. Jude Party at the August Board of Directors meeting.

The GFWC Junior Board was full of surprises as they hosted the St. Jude Pre-Race “Kick-Off” Party for the “Amazing GFWC Team BOD” to set the stage for other clubs and states to follow as we kicked off the September St. Jude Children’s Research Center Walk/Run to End Childhood Cancer.

Themed after The Amazing Race TV series, the black and gold invitation encouraged all 200 members of the GFWC Board of Directors and GFWC Staff to join in the pre-race festivities to help St. Jude in “Finding Cures & Saving Children.” The event was a simple gathering that included games, prizes, and a signature drink at the “Watering Hole.” In Amazing Race style, attendees ventured through ROAD BLOCKS, where they had to eat the contents in a Dixie cup in hope of finding the St. Jude logo; “Crack the Code” before getting around the DETOUR; YIELD at the “Find a Cure” table in which they selected gift boxes to help move one step closer to “finding the cure” inside; and FAST FORWARD through the printed race track while leaving their signature “thumb” print at the Finish Line.

Prizes were distributed throughout the evening from the winners at each of the game locations.  Laptops were set up with Junior Board members assisting to register walkers, virtual walkers, and state and/or club teams. This was an added plus for those members who were unsure as to how to get their teams registered.

The evening closed with a thank you from Jolie Frankfurth, GFWC Director of Junior Clubs, who announced that donations from that evening’s two-hour social event totaled over $2,400! What a simple way to accomplish a fundraising event, support a GFWC Partner, and encourage interaction between the Board of Directors.

What did your state or club plan in support of September being Childhood Cancer Awareness Month? #GFWC4Children

By Angela Cutrera
GFWC Conservation Chairman

GFWC’s commitment to conservation has been evident throughout its history as clubwomen around the country have focused on the preservation of our natural resources. This dedication is the perfect complement to the National Park Service, which works to care for natural and historical treasures.

GFWC President Mary Belle King Sherman, who served as Conservation Chairman from 1914-1920, was instrumental in the formation of six national parks, representing GFWC at the dedication of Rocky Mountain Park near her home and advocating for the GFWC resolution supporting the National Park Service Bill. On August 25, 1916, the National Park Service was officially created when President Woodrow Wilson signed the National Park Service Organic Act.

To celebrate the 2016 Centennial, the National Park Service invites visitors to “Find Your Park” and discover these historic parks located across the country. So, can YOU Find Your Park?  More than 400 national parks cover over 84 million acres, and there is at least one in every state. These parks are known by numerous names and are big, scenic areas. There are national lakeshores, seashores, and rivers. National monuments are large and small and national memorials honor a person or event.  National battlefields commemorate a military action and national historic sites preserve the country’s history. National preserves are scientific landscapes and wildlife resources.

A visit with Park Ranger Jeremy Wirtz at the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center in Eunice, Louisiana, part of the Jean Lafitte National Park and Preserve in Louisiana, gave an insight into what the national parks really are about. “We are everyone’s park,” Jeremy stated.  He is willing to work with individuals and groups to conduct programs we are interested in. His job is to pitch national parks, teach the history and culture of the area, and share how we are all responsible for the care of natural resources.

Caring for national parks takes a lot of work from each of its employees as well as the assistance of volunteers.  Jobs for volunteers include working in the visitor center, grounds maintenance, photography, helping with research, or leading hikes.

Consider ways that you and your club members can volunteer and promote the National Park Service:

• Research the national parks and plan a visit to explore a park in your area.
• Plan a year-long study at your club meetings to educate your members about the National Park Service, its history, and the many parks, monuments, and historic sites throughout the country.
• Contact your local park and see if they need volunteers.
• Do they offer programs for kids? Volunteer to help or start a program of your own, such as a nature walk or a craft class using recyclable materials.
• Inquire about adopting a trail or a section of the park. Assist with maintenance, planting of trees, flowers or plants, or cleaning up litter.
• Choose to stay at a national park when traveling.
• Inquire about programs they can offer your group. Topics could include conservation, preservation, recycling, natural resources, plants and animals, or the history and culture of the area.
• Support the parks with monetary donations or by becoming a member of the National Parks Conservation Association.

Celebrate the 2016 Centennial of the National Park Service and Find Your Park.  Discover America’s parks, have fun, and become a steward of these natural and historical treasures to ensure their existence for the next 100 years!

The Jennie Award is named after Jane Cunningham Croly, the founder of GFWC who worked as a journalist using the pen name “Jennie June.” The women honored with this award are a true reflection of the spirit of GFWC’s founder, whose independence and courage led her to form the General Federation of Women’s Clubs in 1890. As the only award at the Federation level that recognizes individuals for their service, it is truly the highest honor a clubwoman can receive. Much like Jennie June, these women are committed to improving the lives of those around them. They live and breathe volunteer service, and are completely devoted to their clubs, communities, and families.

We hope you have enjoyed reading about this year’s Jennie Award Winners. To learn more about the award, please visit http://bit.ly/2bv6KTK.

Katherine (Kathy) White, a member of the Winterport Woman’s Club in Winterport, Maine, is this year’s New England Region Recipient of the Jennie Award. GFWC was honored to present Kathy with this award in front of her friends, family, and fellow clubwomen at the Wonderful, Wacky Women Luncheon during the 2016 GFWC Annual Convention.

“Living the Volunteer Spirit is not just a tagline when used in reference to Katherine White. Kathy has been a volunteer her entire life.” This sentence opens the narrative included in Kathy’s Jennie Award Nomination Form, and perfectly captures her dedication to community service.

For over 30 years, Kathy has served the Winterport Woman’s Club as a board member, leading the club in numerous successful projects. Within GFWC Maine, Kathy has held the office of State President, Executive Committee Member, District President, and Chairman of various committees. As GFWC Maine President, Kathy’s Special Project, Family Well-being, raising over $40,000 for Maine Partnership for Healthy Communities.

Kathy led the club in renovating the Union Meeting House, a 175-year-old building on the National Register of Historic Places, raising $200,000 to save the house’s steeple. She has dedicated herself to raising awareness of domestic violence, organizing the collection of 482 pairs of socks to be donated to local domestic violence shelters. As co-chair of the Winterport Community Fund Drive, she helped raise $30,000 over the course of six months, surpassing the original $25,000 goal. The proceeds from this drive were donated to the Lafayette Cancer Center. Through the club’s Community Calendar Fundraiser, Kathy has helped raise money for scholarships, town beautification projects, and the local food pantry.

“Kathy is a well-rounded lady who will do any job asked of her to the very best of her ability, and in an impeccable way,” said Jane Le Vie, 2014-2016 GFWC Maine District Three President.

On the national level, Kathy has served as New England Region President and on several GFWC Committees, including International Liaisons, Signature Program, Communications and Public Relations, and Membership.

“Kathy’s dedication and love for GFWC is evident in all the many ways she has served this wonderful organization. She will be the first to tell you that GFWC is a wonderful opportunity to enrich your life. She is also living proof of that statement,” Jane said.

In addition to her work with GFWC, Kathy has served multiple positions for the Winterport Health Council and the National Council of Alcoholism and Drug Dependency for Maine. She has been a member of the American Legion Auxiliary, Maine Partnership for Healthy Communities, and the Bangor Junior League.

Congratulations, Kathy, and thank you for Living the Volunteer Spirit in all that you do.