The room was buzzing with a joyful noise: the sound of our loyal supporters reconnecting to celebrate the Northwest CT Community Foundation Women & Girls Fund. Our annual reception took place at Torrington Country Club on May 11th from 5:00p.m. to 7:00p.m.

More than 100 attendees enjoyed refreshments as we proudly announced 2022 grant recipients: Prime Time House, Brooker Memorial, Housatonic Youth Service Bureau, and North Canaan Social Services.

Our keynote speaker for the evening Brooker Memorial Executive Director, Cathy Coyle, entertained and inspired with her delightful talk, Bucketful: Stories and Inspirations.

We awarded our first Women Supporting Women Award to Roshambo Hair Studios for their innovative promotion benefitting the Women & Girls Fund, and our second to Bibby Veerman for inspiring the creation of the Women and Girls Fund Helping Our Heroes Scholarship.

Women & Girls Fund executive committee members welcome feedback from our supporters because we want to be the best possible version of ourselves. In a recent interview, we asked Maggie Selby, long-time friend and Women & Girls Fund donor, why she gives.

“I donate to the Women & Girls Fund because I support the mission," said Maggie. "It’s important for women to have skills, to have a career. With no career, you’re in trouble. The Women & Girls Fund helps women get started.”

Maggie’s first and foremost support came from her mother. Maggie’s father passed away when she was just 10 years old, and her mother had to return to the workforce. She took advantage of a training program for women at Connecticut General Life Insurance Company and eventually rose through the ranks in the personnel department to become a management trainer.

“She practiced on me,” said Maggie, “so I got to learn about management skills by listening to her presentations.” 

Maggie fully appreciates the value of support for girls early in their lives.

“My mother made me feel like I could do anything,” she said.

The practice sessions with her mother served Maggie well. After earning a degree in theater from UConn, she began her career as a production assistant. In time, Maggie and two colleagues founded MJM Creative Services, a marketing and communications agency for events and meetings. She used her skill set and her talent to grow MJM Creative into a highly respected giant in the industry.

When she retired, Maggie collaborated with friends to create the Women’s Enterprise Initiative (WEI). She helped local women become entrepreneurs by sharing the skills she had gained in her career. Even though WEI no longer exists, Maggie continues to engage in civic endeavors. She currently serves on the board of Oliver Wolcott Library, and continues to support the Women & Girls Fund.

Barbara Dughi has served on the Women & Girls Fund executive committee for ten years, five of them as our chair. She has given tirelessly of her time and talent to enrich our organization, especially our finances.

Barbara worked in Manhattan at Alliance Capital as a managing director until her retirement. During that time, she weekended in Northwest CT, so she already knew how special it was when she chose to retire here.

Her retirement turned out to be very busy. She bought and managed Kitchenworks in Litchfield for 10 years. She also served on the board of the Warner Theatre, which is how she learned about the Women & Girls Fund.

“I was a woman in a man’s business. It was tough when I started my career, even though I had many advantages. I want to help women without advantages, and that’s why I joined the Women & Girls Fund executive committee. Who else is going to help women if not other women?” Barbara said.

Barbara now splits her time between her homes at Lakeridge and Naples, Florida, where she is a member of Impact 100, an organization that supports nonprofits. In her leisure time, she enjoys tennis, kayaking, cooking and reading.