|
WOW WOW WOW! We did it! On Thursday, September 7 we held our 23rd annual Women's Fund Luncheon and it was an incredible success. Thank you to all who were able to join us to celebrate the women who broke the glass ceiling in their careers and in life through our Issue Spotlight panelists and Keynote Speaker, President of Lawrence University Laurie A. Carter.
We're excited to share that we raised over $210,000 that will benefit women and girls in our community!
Now that our 2023 Luncheon is complete, what's next for the Women's Fund? Other than planning for the 2024 Luncheon, we have two events in October, The Monthlies An Event, Period, and Connection Matters, both of which you can read more about below.
We're continually humbled by the support of our community for the Women's Fund and appreciate everything you do to uplift women and girls.
| |
|
On Thursday, September 7, we held our biggest fundraiser of the year, the 23rd Annual Women's Fund Luncheon. The Luncheon brought awareness to the issues facing women and girls in your community and supports our vision of a community of equality where power and opportunity are not limited by gender.
The work of the Women’s Fund cannot happen without your support, and this year you supported us in a record-setting way! Over $210,000 was raised to specifically benefit women and girls in our community.
At the Luncheon we shared that giving to women’s and girls’ organizations, like the Women’s Fund, represents only 1.9% of total charitable giving. We are so grateful you recognize the important role of the Women’s Fund in elevating women and girls in our community. Thank you!
We are also thrilled to announce that new donors stepped up in a meaningful way and we exceeded the $10,000 match from the J.J. Keller Foundation.
Thank you to all who made a donation, purchased raffle tickets, took home a centerpiece, volunteered, and sponsored the Luncheon. Without your support, we wouldn't be able to help uplift women and girls in our community.
If you were not able to attend the Luncheon, you can view photos and a video here!
| |
|
Teen girls experience record high levels of violence, sadness and suicide risk amid “significant” and “heartbreaking” declines in youth health and well-being overall, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most teen girls (57%) felt persistently sad or hopeless in 2021, double the rate for teen boys (29%). Nearly one in three teen girls seriously considered attempting suicide.
The data shared is distressing and was a focus of Girl-Power Giving participants for the past two years. Girls are struggling and their mental health is deteriorating. Studies, surveys, and their peers all see it.
The Women’s Fund is focusing our next community education opportunity, Connection Matters, to help address the growing need and breakdown the stigma of mental health services for girls and young women, on World Mental Health Day, Tuesday, October 10, 2023, at Catalpa Health in Appleton.
Connection Matters was created for the exact name of these educational sessions, connection matters. A panel of providers in our community who hear what young women face every day will join us for the conversation and share how we can best support those struggling.
Featured panelists are experienced professionals who deal first-hand with girls and young women's mental health. We're excited to welcome counselors and therapists from the Boys & Girls Club of the Fox Valley, Us 2 Behavioral Health Care, Fox Valley Technical College Counseling and Advising Services, and Catalpa Health.
Seating is limited for this event, so save your spot today! October’s program is sponsored by Barb Merry, who we thank for continuing to support women and girls in our area.
Join us on Tuesday, October 10 at Catalpa Health, 4635 W. College Ave., Appleton. Registration begins at 8:30 am with the panel starting at 9 am.
| |
|
Reserve your spot now at this year's An Event, Period. 2023!
On behalf of The Monthlies Project steering committee, we invite you to join us to bring awareness to the issue of period poverty at the 2nd annual An Event, Period. to benefit The Monthlies Project, which funds a growing need to distribute period products to schools and organizations that serve young menstruators. Get ready for an evening of gut-busting comedy, featuring Appleton's very own, Tracy Schroeder. Enjoy hors d'oeuvres, reimagined craft cocktails and mocktails, and unapologetic empowerment.
| |
|
|
September is recognized as Recovery Month, and one of our Grant Partners, Apricity, leads our community in supporting those in recovery.
This year, Apricity received a $5,000 grant from the Women's Fund's grant cycle for their Sober Living for Women program. This program provides a safe home with support services to help women in recovery from substance use disorders move from instability and uncertainty to independence and self-sufficiency.
Krissa is one of those who have benefitted from what Apricity does in our community. Before coming to Apricity, Krissa had been to multiple treatments -- inpatient, prison, outpatient -- all leaving her with negative experiences and outcomes in receiving help with her opioid addiction that began in her early 20s.
When she came to Apricity, their full spectrum of care helped her obtain treatment, have a recovery-supportive job-training/employment and be able to live in sober living transitional housing. Krissa, now 35, is grateful to be pursuing her dream to become a Substance Use Counselor and is enrolled at Fox Valley Technical College.
"Recovery means a second chance at life worth living. Recently I was asked what I was grateful for. My answer is multifaceted. I am grateful for the staff at Apricity’s Casa Clare Residential Treatment for women. They give me hope. I strongly feel that the work we do here, like the coping and communication skills we are taught, really helps us in the long run. Casa Clare has helped me learn how to be optimistic. When I came here I was very negative, but the staff helped me realize that and turn it around for the better. I have found a purpose in life. I’m going back to school to be a counselor so I can pay it forward. I appreciate this opportunity that I had, being able to go from Casa Clare to Apricity’s semi-independent living transitional housing program to Sober Living." - Krissa
While Krissa is attending school she also serves as a House Manager at one of Apricity's Sober Living women's houses and works as a part-time House Manager at one of Apricity's Residential Treatment facilities.
When you give to the Women's Fund, you support women and girls in our community. Seeing women like Krissa succeed with the support of Apricity and their programs makes all the difference. We encourage you to follow their journey on their website and Facebook.
| |
|
Their Secret Sauce
The world’s most powerful women leaders in social impact share the ONE skill they wish to pass on to leaders working in social change: their secret sauce 🌶️ Hear from influential grassroots activists, social media creatives, tech leaders, Prime Ministers – women around the world leading change from gender equality to sustainability and politics.
| |
|
LFG, a no-holds-barred, inside account of the U.S. women’s national team’s ongoing fight for equal pay
The USWNT has been the most celebrated team in women's football for a decade, but until last year, its players were locked in a legal battle with the U.S. Soccer Federation over the governing body's unfair pay practices. Their fight takes center stage in LFG, a film that uses the team's 2019 World Cup victory — its fourth overall win — as a backdrop for an examination of gender discrimination.
| | | | |
