Newsletters
Highlights from the September 2008 Newsletter
The Changing Face of Philanthropy - by Helen Smart of GWG
Colleen Willoughby is "one person who is profoundly changing the face of philanthropy today", according to Town and Country magazine. Scores of women agree, as her unique philantrophic model has helped them experience the joy of becoming actively involved in strengthening their communities through their collective giving and through becoming better educated about philanthropy.
Colleen is the founder of Washington Women Foundation (WWF), a non-profit organization established in 1995 to give women an organized forum for community building through their shared giving.
Today WWF has nearly 500 members and has invested more than $8 million, to benefit more than 860 non-profit organizations.
Greenville Women Giving is one of the many organizations throughout the United States that was inspired by Colleen's successful model at WWF. Our founders learned of this model by reading Colleen's book, Something Ventured: An Innovative Model in Philanthropy, which is a helpful reference for women interested in forming their own collective giving organization. They knew this was something Greenville women would embrace, and therefore followed Colleen's advice: "Venture something! Be confident. Think smart. Act big."
GWG owes much to Colleen Willoughby for her insight, her inspiration, her example.
Therefore, it is with great excitement that the Board of GWG announces that Colleen Willoughby is coming to the Upstate November 11th.
The co-host for this event is our "sister" organization, Women Giving for Spartanburg, another newly formed women's philanthropic organization that is experiencing great success.
Don't miss this chance to meet this amazing woman and get to know our "sisters" from Spartanburg.
Some of Colleen Willoughby's other community service: She has volunteered with Junior League, Planned Parenthood, and the Seattle Art Museum. She has chaired boards of Seattle Children's Home and United Way of King County. She is the founder of City Club Seattle, an issues forum for local professionals, and has served as a Trustee at Whitman College. She was hte 2007 recipient of the LEAD Distinguished Leader Award and the Childhaven Mark Matthews Service to Children Award in 2006.
Specialty Care Expanded for the Uninsured - by Lezlie Barker of GWG
If you found yourself uninsured and unable to afford medical care for yourself and your family, where would you turn?
Since its founding in 1987, the Greenville Free Medical Clinic has sought to provide a "medical home" to Greenville County's low-income, uninsured patients.
The volunteers and staff of the Greenville Free Medical Clinic provide Greenville County residents with the health services they so desperateley need. Residents can receive care at the clinic's main location in downtown Greenville, and also at three satellite clinics. These additional clinics are located at Northwest Crescent, Greer and Golden Strip. All four medical clinics provide free primary medical care, free dental services, free health education, and free prescription medications to eligible patients.
Patients of the Free Medical Clinic face many barriers in their pursuit of quality healthcare. Transportation challenges and time away from work are major obstacles to accessing healthcare. The time away from work and travel expenses required for an additional trip to the downtown clinic for specialty care are impossible for most patients. Until recently, patients from the three satellite clinics requiring specialty care had no choice but to travel to the downtown clinic or be referred to care they could not afford outside the Free Medical Clinic system.
The $25,800 grant awarded to the Free Medical Clinic this spring by Greenville Women Giving will enable the clinic to purchase items that will improve and upgrade the tools that volunteer physicians will have to diagnose and treat the low-income, uninsured patients.
According to Suzie Foley, Executive Director, "We either had very old, donated pieces of equipment that were not nearly as modern or precise as volunteers were used to in their private offices, or more likely, we did not have certain instruments and pieces at all. A couple of the items will allow us to significantly expand screening and early detection options, as well as to offer better educational offerings to our patients on a variety of health topics."
Patients of the Greenville Free Medical Clinic have limited opportunities to enjoy the healthcare choices that so many of us take for granted. The GWG grant, however, will help these patients receive the specialty healthcare they need to live healthy, productive lives and will, according to Suzie Foley, "encourage ongoing and additional donated professional services from very kind and generous volunteer healthcare providers."
Keys to Home and Hope - by Rev. Tony McDade, Executive Director of GAIHN
The Greenville Area Interfaith Hospitality Network (GAIHN) is grateful to the members of Greenville Women Giving for investing your grant funds in our guest families.
Thanks to your generosity, paired with the dedication of the members of St. Michael Lutheran Church, homeless families are finding their way to home and hope through the Kay Melloms Hospitality House.
The Melloms family envisioned a home that would illustrate the compassion and hospitality that characterized their dear late Kay's life.
For over thirty years, St. Michael Lutheran Church has offered emergency shelter and support to homeless families, and this shared initiative doubles their capacity to welcome such families with excellence.
Blending together funds from the church, the Melloms family, the Hollingsworth Funds, the Graham Foundation, and the SC Housing Trust Fund, the dream house has become a reality. On a glorious Sunday last April, Pastor Robert Miles blessed this exquisite house that stands now as a living testament to the power of effective partnerships to change the world!
The two GAIHN families who have sojourned in the "Kay Melloms Hospitality House" so far are both comprised of single mothers with young sons. Both moms are working full-time. With diligence and determination they are striving to overcome the challenges of homelessness.
Before long, someone will hand each of these mothers another set of keys - keys that fit the front doors to their own houses and also to their futures.
Thank you, Greenville Women Giving friends, for sharing this opportunity for families to succeed and thrive here in Greater Greenville.
Highlights from the January 2008 Newsletter
Jean Harris Knight... A Wonderful Legacy
Jean Harris Knight was a woman with deep roots in the Greenville community, a woman described by friends as unpretentious and keenly interested in arts, history, and the environment. At her death she left the largest unrestricted bequest to date to the Community Foundation of Greenville, a gift that keeps Jean's spirit of philanthropy alive for today and for years to come.
With this bequest the Community Foundation established the Jean Harris Knight Fund, and one of its first projects was to help launch Greenville Women Giving by granting a matching gift of $50,000 for its first year. GWG has again qualified for the same matching gift, as we have enlisted over 200 members before the December 31, 2007 deadline.
It is gratifying to see the spirit of this wonderful and greatly loved woman live within the GWG organization. Exceeding the goal of 200 members before the end of 2007 means more women are committed to continuing Jean's wonderful legacy.
Thanks, Community Foundation of Greenville
Greenville Women Giving is a special initiative of the Community Foundation of Greenville. Through this relationship, GWG enjoys non-profit 501(c)3 status. GWG members appreciate the wonderful support of the Community Foundation's Board of Directors and staff. Thank you for challenging us again this year to reach a new membership goal in order to qualify for the matching gift of $50,000 from the Jean Harris Knight Fund. This additional money will significantly increase the impact GWG will have in meeting the needs of our community.
3 Become 228.... and Growing
In May 2006, Greenville Women Giving membership totaled 3 women: Frances Ellison, Harriet Goldsmith, and Sue Priester. At the time this newsletter goes to print, our number has grown to 228! We eagerly anticipate even more women joining in the coming months. Membership in GWG is open to any woman in our community who wants to become a part of a united philanthropic effort to provide funding to organizations dedicated to providing services in five areas: arts and culture, education, health, human services, and environment. Membership remains open throughout the year, allowing women to join at any time. GWG members are committed to pooling their resources in order to make high-impact grants to worthwhile civic and charitable projects in Greenville County. GWG members are delighted that in recognition of our successful growth, the Community Foundation again will contribute $50,000 from the Jean Harris Knight Fund toward our 2008 grants. This, added to our $228,000 in pooled funds, means that the minimum amount GWG will have to award in 2008 now stands at $278,000.
It is exciting to reach (and yes, even exceed) the 200 member mark - truly a remarkable story, when you consider we started as just 3.
GWG Grant Helps Abused Children - by Lisa Finley, Development Director for GRCCAC
Entering the Child Advocacy Center (CAC) at the Greenville Rape Crisis and Child Abuse Center (GRCCAC) is like entering another world - a child's world. Brightly colored tiled floor. Toys of all shapes and sizes, fun murals on the walls. Disney videos on the TV. At first glance, this appears to be a daycare center.
A short trip down the hall reveals a room possibly transplanted from the jungles of Africa. Palm leaves offer a cool, refreshing feel as the occupants, exotic jungle creatures, await tiny visitors - visitors facing experiences many of us can't begin to fathom.
Camouflaged against one wall are alien objects - a child-sized medical exam table and an oddly shaped piece of medical equipment called a colposcope. This eqipment is designed to discover physical evidence of abuse in the private areas of a child's body. It was used more than 200 times last year. And, if statistics are any indication, the demand for this equipment and the highly trained professionals operating it will continue to grow. In 2005, Greenville County reported 1,019 substantiated child maltreatment cases, the highest number in the state. In 2006, that number rose to 1,350 cases, an increase of nearly 25%.
The CAC exists to facilitate the investigation of child abuse allegations. Our mission? Reduce the trauma faced by the child during this process. And, as one might expect, the evidence discovered by the colposcope is often integral to the outcome of the investigation.
In 2007, due to a generous grant from Greenville Women Giving, the CAC replaced the existing colposcope, which was outdated and difficult to use. The new colposcope makes performing this non-invasive procedure better, photographically documenting and preserving what can't be seen with the naked eye. It takes the services offered at the CAC to a new level of professionalism.
There is nothing easy about what these children are facing when they enter the jungle at the CAC. But, thanks to community partners like Greenville Women Giving, we can offer them a safe place to begin their recovery and a chance to return to childhood.
"Our goal as medical providers at the CAC is to provide excellent medical care to chidren requiring evaluations for child abuse in a manner that is child friendly and not traumatic. The new colposcope provided by GWG has improved the quality of the exam that we are able to provide these children. This piece of equipment will benefit the work we do at the CAC and the children of upstate SC for years to come."
Dr. Mary-Fran Croswell, Pediatrician and GWG Member
"This equipment enables the CAC to provide complete, accurate information in child abuse investigations, without asking the child to submit to multiple medical exams. Therefore, the end result of this investment by GWG is that we effectively decrease the trauma a child may experience when there are allegations of child abuse."
Donna Roy, Executive Director
GWG Members Learn About Community Needs
GWG members and guests meet throughout the year to learn more about our community and to gain insight into how local organizations address key issues.
The first session showcased Greenville County School District's Fine Arts Center, where attendees were entertained by student musicians and toured the facility. Session two highlighted programs addressing needs of the at-risk youth population. Speakers were Frank Holleman, Judy Snyder, and Toby Swartz.
In the early months of 2008, session topics will include "How Healthy is Greenville?", "Greenville Goes Green", and "Homelessness in Greenville".
Watch your e-mail, mail, and the GWG website for announcements of the dates and times of new educational sessions.
Fall 2007
The GWG Summer 2007 newsletter ended with this: " Keep cool until we see you in September". Little did we know what an extraordinarily difficult task that would be!! We hope you've had a relaxing summer, even if it hasn't been a cool or wet one, and that you are ready to begin a fall full of interesting gatherings with Greenville Women Giving.
As we told you in June, the Community Foundation of Greenville has once again promised us $5,000 - provided we find 50 new members by the end of the year. That would put us at 200 members, and would mean that we could return a quarter of a million dollars to our community next spring!
- It's an exciting prospect, one that has our Membership Committee working hard. They are planning a series of informational gatherings in various neighborhoods all around Greenville County this fall. The Membership Committee will invite neighbors to those gatherings. GWG members are invited to bring prospective members to all of them, of course.
- The first one will be held on:
- Wednesday, September 26th at 5:30 p.m.
And while you've got your calendar out, mark Wednesday, October 3rd at 11:30 a.m. for the Fall's first educational session. This one will be held at the School District's new Fine Arts Center at Wade Hampton HIgh School. Come see what a fabulous facility has been created by thoughtful planning with School District funding, aided by substantial private donations. We'll gather at 11:30 for a tour of the Center, and then have lunch in their Recital Hall, where we will be serenaded by a student string quartet! Roy Fluehrer, Director of the Fine Arts Center, will be our host, and will discuss the opportunities available locally for artistically gifted students. Bring guests, and bring your own lunch; we'll have drinks there.
Now, some GWG housekeeping: Frances, Harriet, Sue, or a member of the Membership Committee would be happy to speak to any group you're a part of that would like to hear about Greenville Women Giving. Your book club, your garden club, your community group, you name it. Just give us a call. We're trying to get the word out that GWG membership is available to any woman who is interested in collective philanthropy who can make the required investment with our group.
Second, GWG needs some of your homes for educational or membership events. If you would be willing to have us at your home, please click here to e-mail Lynn Brown, Chair of Special Events. Thank you!
Now, one more reminder, and one final date for our calendars: Your 2007 GWG contribution of $1,100 is due to the Community Foundation office by December 1st. Invoices will be mailed in mid-October. If you get your payment in before then, you'll save them an invoice.
An speaking of the Community Foundation, on Thursday, November 8th that organization will host its annual reception for donors, and you will all receive an invitation. It will be held at the Poinsett Club from 6 'til 8. Always a delightful evening, and always inspiring to be in a room filled with folks who give to our community.
You will hear more about additional membership and educational events very shortly.
We hope we'll see you soon. 'Til then, "keep cool"!
Frances, Harriet and Sue