Community Pulse: 100+ Women Who Care nearing donation goal

We are so close! The 100+ Women Who Care of Grundy County has the goal of granting $10,000 at each of our four gatherings throughout the year. In order to achieve this, we need 100 women to donate $100 at each of our gatherings.

Currently we have 106 women in the group, but not all attend each gathering and some come as a team to split their $100.

Tuesday, October 10th, is our next gathering and our goal is to grant $10,000 that day!

Who will get this $10,000? This is decided by the women attending that day.

As women gather, each is given a slip to write the names of three charities who serve Grundy County. These slips are put into a basket and three slips are drawn randomly. If your slip is drawn, you have three minutes to explain to the women why you believe in the work of one of the charities that you wrote on your slip. If you are not good at public speaking, that’s okay – we can help!

After the three presentations, the women get a slip to vote for one of the charities just presented. The charity with the most votes gets a grant in the amount of money collected for that gathering.

There are a number of ways to donate toward the current gathering: attend and bring your $100, attend with a friend and each donate $50 (and get one vote), or donate in advance if you cannot attend. You can mail/drop off a check or donate online at https://cfgrundycounty.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=1037.

All money collected for that gathering is granted out. The Community Foundation does not charge administrative fees and if food is provided at the gathering, it’s either sponsored or paid as individual women.

Why 100+ Women Who Care? As co-founder Julie Wilkinson says, “It’s not in my family’s budget to give a grant of $10,000 to charity. But by pooling my quarterly $100 donations with the support of other Grundy women, we have the same impact.”

Past grant recipients includes: Illinois Valley Industries, Hands of Dignity and Hope, EXibit Fine Arts Center, the TaTa Trot, CASA of River Valley, Coal City Backpack Program, Habitat for Humanity, New Beginnings, Grundy Area PADS, NAMI Will-Grundy, R3claimed, Breaking Away, and Meal Ministry for Families in Crisis.

Who will be the October 10th recipient of thousands of dollars?

What can a local charity do with $10,000? For many, it will be life-changing! Think about how many meals can be delivered to seniors through Meals on Wheels. How many families can get groceries at We Care? How many homeless residents can get apartments through Grundy Area PADS and household items for that apartment via Hands of Dignity and Hope? How many school children can eat over the weekend because of the Coal City Backpack Program?

Regardless of the one charity chosen, all charities benefit because the women in attendance love to tell stories, so we learn from one another who is doing what in Grundy County and the impact all charities are making in the community.

Our next gathering is at noon on Tuesday, October 10th, at Morris City Hall with lunch sponsored by Mayor Chris Brown – thank you, Mayor Brown!

If you haven’t yet joined 100+ Women Who Care, please contact Devan at devan@cfgrundycounty.com or 815-941-0852.

I am so excited about the potential for this gathering’s grant amount and recipient! Will you please join us?? Also please follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/100WWCGC!