September 2017 Newsletter

Warm Greetings from Our Events Chair

 

It is with great pleasure that I report the success of our Summer Social, held August 29th at the beautifully landscaped yard of member Kathleen Phelan. The afternoon was sunny and bright, the appetizers were scrumptious, the champagne flowed and the piano music was lovely. Many of our members brought guests along to introduce them to this incredible organization — which was actually the purpose of this special event. Several guests were so impressed that they joined us right there on the spot! Our next big social event is the Annual Holiday Social, which will be held on December 18. Join us to celebrate the season together. You are welcome to bring guests to this fun, surprise-filled event as it shows off just what an amazing organization WRWF has become.

–Penny Weiss, Events Chair, WRWF Board

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2017 Grantee in the Spotlight: The Hunger Coalition, Bloom youth Project, $25,000

The Hunger Coalition established the Bloom Farm in Hailey to grow vegetables, teach gardening, enhance its food distribution program, and provide service opportunities for a number of organizations in the valley. With a grant from the WRWF, the Bloom Youth Project supported 10 paid interns from local high schools to manage the farm and learn practical skills of growing and distributing food. Interns, mentors, volunteers, and donors gathered in mid-September for a joyful celebration of a bountiful harvest.

Megan Schooley supervised 10 interns, ages 14-17, throughout the spring and summer. She’ll add more interns next year, and hopes to develop the project into a year-round program for students. She loves the sense of community and family that the students have developed with one another, and is proud to see the hard work they are all doing, especially with the mobile market and donor tours.

Savannah, a paid intern, spoke to guests and donors about the meaning of the Bloom Youth Program for her. She shared her pride when she managed to save $950.50 of her $1000 in earnings this summer. Savannah called the Bloom Youth Program the BEST program in the valley!

Thanks to Judi Cahill for story and photos.

 

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2017 Grantee in the Spotlight: Sun Valley Summer Symphony Elementary Strings Program, Phase 2, $19,840

“The grant from the Wood River Women’s Foundation for the Elementary Strings Instrument Bank will ensure students of all socio-economic and cultural backgrounds will have the opportunity to learn to play a string instrument. This past school year, we nearly doubled the size of our elementary strings program. With nearly 70 students enrolling, many from families of limited means, having a quality instrument was necessary for them to be able to participate in the program. While we fully expect to have attrition during the course of the program, over 50 students were still enrolled at the end of the year. Music is a wonderful way for students to learn about team-work, cooperation and discipline and allowing access to all students is an amazing gift.”

–Kim Gasenica, Education Director
Sun Valley Summer Symphony

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Why Contribute to the Endowment? Thoughts from a Founding Member

“When the Wood River Women’s Foundation was first formed, we were just 40 members trying out the idea of collective giving in Blaine County. The future was just a dream, sustainable through the enthusiasm of our small, but motivated group. The rapid growth in membership over the past few years is fantastic, but in response, the organization must evolve. Providing social events, communication, and record keeping for this amazing group of women has taxed our all-volunteer workforce. That’s why I have invested in our endowment — to help us hire the help we need and insure our sustainability long into the future. I hope you’ll join me in this important effort!

–Charlotte Unger, Founding Member of the WRWF

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September 13th Meet and Mingle

About 50 members enjoyed a relaxed get-together at Elkhorn Clubhouse Grille in mid-September. These informal gatherings are for anyone who wants to greet old friends and make new ones. Our next Meet and Mingle is November 8th at the Senior Connection. Come join us!

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Other News

• WRWF is both proud and humbled to have received the 2nd annual Eye on Sun Valley Technology Icon award for the Best Overall Use of Technology for a non-profit. It is an honor to be recognized by the Wood River Valley as a non-profit that uses the latest in technology to not only support our Mission, but also to help raise awareness and support for all of the non-profits across Blaine County. Special congratulations go out to our Social Media Committee, Terri Bullock, Judy Cahill, Charlotta Harris, Christina Cernansky, Heather Burnett, Prue Hemmings and Lorelei Calvert.
• Since January we have enrolled 50 new members, thanks to fantastic work by the Membership Committee!
• Membership renewals for the coming year will be due on December 15th. Your generous membership renewal is what allows us to fund our grants each year. Don’t delay; download your renewal form by clicking here [https://woodriverwomensfoundation.wildapricot.org/Membership-Forms] or by sending a check to the WRWF, P.O. Box 3686, Ketchum, Idaho 83340.

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Closing Message from Peggy Grove, Ph.D., President of WRWF

Each month for the next 18 months, we will be highlighting for you each member of our WRWF Board in order for each of you to get to know them better through their written words. They are the women who serve on this working Board to help implement the policies, procedures, events, educational forums, social media, grants, endowment, membership, and all of the other aspects of this organization. Each one of them is a Chair or Co-Chair of one of our Committees to which you may belong. By placing them front and center in the opening paragraph of the News Brief, we are honoring their many hours of work donated to WRWF, and emphasizing how important women are in the world of philanthropy.

There are 18 Board members this year. Welcome to their world!

 

 

 

 

Peggy Grove, Ph.D.
WRWF President