Other News
Membership reaches 300!
Great news from GWG. We are at 300 members as of November 2008!!!
Membership is open throughout the year to any woman who wishes to join our efforts . Please visit the Membership and Organization section to find out how to join.
Colleen Willoughby Visits the Upstate - November 11, 2008
On November 11, members of Greenville Women Giving and Women Giving for Spartanburg co-hosted a gathering at the BMW Zentrum to hear Colleen Willoughby speak.
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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.
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.
"Greenville Going Green" - March 14, 2008
This educational session, held in the Garden Room beneath the Furman University Chapel, addressed a number of current environmental initiatives in our area. Our thanks to Furman for providing our lunch.
Frank Powell, Furman's Environmental Liaison, spoke about the Cliffs Cottage at Furman and the "green" building techniques being used on this remarkable prototype. He graciously conducted a tour of the cottage after lunch, and answered many of our group's questions. The Cliffs Cottage is expected to open to the public sometime in mid-June. A link to their extensive website, currently in the works, will be posted on this page as soon as it becomes available.
James Wilkins, also of Furman, discussed organic gardening in our area, as well as the organic garden planned for the grounds of the Cliffs Cottage.
Ty Houck, Director of Greenways, Natural and Historic Resources, Greenville County Recreation District, provided an update on the Swamp Rabbit Trail and Greenways Initiative. Please visit the link for more information on the project, and to find out how to purchase a section of the trail for yourself or as a gift:
http://www.gcrd.org/swamprabbit/index.html
A Special Evening with Paula Harper Bethea - "Women and Giving" - January 28, 2008
This evening, Paula Harper Bethea spoke to a group of nearly 100 GWG members and guests at Canal Insurance . Her inspirational life story and her positive remarks served as welcome validation for our efforts. It was especially motivating to hear from this remarkable woman that she thinks GWG is "on the right track".
Following are some highlights about Mrs. Bethea:
Paula Harper Bethea is Director of External Relations for the McNair Law Firm, P.A., and is active in numerous local, state, and national organizations.
Mrs.Bethea serves as chair Emeritus of the United Way of America's Board of Governors, having been chair in 1996-97. She is a former chair of the United Way of South Carolina and the United Way of Beaufort County. She is past Chair of the Boards of the SC Chamber of Commerce, Columbia College, the Heart and Vascular Center at MUSC, and the Hilton Head Island Chamber of Commerce.
Currently, Mrs. Bethea chairs the Boards of the Drummond Center at Erskine College, the Hilton Head Regional Medical Center, and the Caring Coins Foundation. She is a founding Board Member of the Palmetto Institute, where she serves as secretary. She is a member of the Boards of Trustees of the MCI Heritage Classic Foundation, the MUSC Foundation, and Presbyterian College.
Having served as a member of the SC State Chamber's Task Force for Restructuring State Government and the Governor's Commission on Restructuring, Mrs. Bethea is now a member of the Board of the SC Competitiveness Council.
Paula is married to William L. Bethea, Jr., and they live in Bluffton
GWG Education - Program I, Arts and Culture, October 3, 2007
For their first education session of the 07-08 program year, GWG members had the chance to experience Greenville County School's Fine Arts Center, on the campus of Wade Hampton High School. We were first treated to the talents of four FAC student musicians, performing in the well-appointed recital hall. After, FAC Director Roy Fluhrer gave us a short tour of this remarkable facility, which houses studios and performance spaces for visual arts, music and dance. Three hundred and fifty-six high school students spend half days at the FAC under the tutelage of accomplished and dedicated faculty members. In addition, four hundred and fifty middle school students participate in the FAC's after school program. After listening to Dr. Fluhrer and seeing the facility, we understand why students arrive early and stay late. Excellence is compelling.