Annual Report - General Federation of Women's Clubs

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Arts Community Service ProgramYear in ReviewThe GFWC Arts Community Service Program promotes advocacy, education, and action in arts education,cultivation, and activities. Below are several examples of arts projects led by GFWC clubs.The GFWC Northford Women’s Club (Connecticut)supports a member who runs a music club consisting of vocal,piano, and flute students. The “Gailz Music Club” group wasformed for students to convene as friends and peers to meet,socialize, and perform for each other and share their love ofmusic. The students, who meet once a month for two hours, comefrom different towns and use music as the avenue for sharingand teaching each other about their different backgrounds andcultures. The club members also provide music lessons to youngpeople who have musical abilities and want lessons, but whosefamilies have suffered a catastrophicillness or have financial need.GFWC Woman’s Club of NewIberia (Louisiana) celebrated thearts by distributing an annual grant thathas been a part of its club since 1983.The grant is called the Carrie Davis Art Grant and was namedin memory of a life-long club member. This one-time grant of$250 is given to a student majoring in an art program at theuniversity level. Letters are sent state-wide to colleges that offerarts programs in order to choose the recipient. The student mustmaintain a 3.0 grade point average. Applications are received,then interviews conducted by a committee that recommends itschoice to the club members, who then vote on the nominee.The GFWC Lamoille Woman’s Club (Nevada) sponsorstwo major activities to encourage local artists’ crafts and spreadcreativity and ingenuity around its community. One of theseactivities is the Annual Chili Feed and Crafts. The club has 13tables available for handcrafted items. This year, all the tablesat the event were sold. The crafters not only had the chance tosell their art but also learn more about the club and the servicesbeing provided to the community. The second activity that allowsthe community to showcase its creative talent is the traditionof inviting the Spring Creek High School Choir to sing at itsDecember club meeting. After this invigorating performance,the club presents the choir with a $100 check to help fund choiractivities.GFWC Treadwell Community Improvement Club (NewYork) celebrated women in the arts by holding a writingworkshop with author and publisher, Bertha Rogers. Theevent was partially subsidized by Poets and Writers Readings/Arts by the NumbersDollars Donated $1,562,993Hours Volunteered 618,109Projects Completed 20,934Workshops and the club donated $50 to cover the occasion.During the workshop Bertha Rogers read to the clubwomen someof her favorite pieces. Members were also given the opportunityto fine tune their own writing skills. The women were providedwriting prompts—statements or questions designed to getwriters to think about a topic in depth and motivate them toproduce their best, most expertly expressed writing—“You Want”and “She Finds Herself.” Then Ms. Rogers provided excellentdirection and feedback on the women’s written work.GFWC Progress Club of LasCruces (New Mexico) sponsoredyouth art. The club was approached bythe Dona Ana Arts Council and askedto sponsor the Missoula Children’sTheatre production of “Robin Hood.” Inaddition to sponsoring the event, clubmembers were hands-on volunteers during the week prior to theperformance. Clubwomen registered the children and kept theproduction organized by watching the younger children duringrehearsals and performances. Members volunteered their timeand assisted with dress rehearsals, costumes, and make-up. Theysold tickets, folded programs, and managed the audience duringthe play. Additionally, to boost morale and learn more aboutthe directors and theatre staff, club members hosted a deliciouspotluck dinner the Thursday before the performance. The clubbuilt a lovely relationship with the Dona Ana Arts Council andhelped encourage the performing nature in many youth.Each year, for the past 26 years, the GFWC Country ShoreWoman’s Club (New Jersey) has celebrated children in thearts by producing an annual children’s play. The play is the club’slargest fundraiser and a very popular community cultural event.Club members are involved from beginning to end. This year’sproduction, The Little Mermaid: An Underwater Adventure,was an original adaptation of Walt Disney’s The Little Mermaidby two club members, and the most successful play to date. Theshow, which features a cast of almost 60 adults and children, wasattended by more than 1,200 people through the course of the sixperformances. The cast was comprised of theater enthusiasts inthe area including two father-daughter combos. In conjunctionwith the production, the club members produced a program, soldtickets, printed and sold t-shirts, and manned the refreshmenttable at the theater.4 2009-2010 GFWC ANNUAL REPORT
Conservation Community Service ProgramYear in ReviewThe GFWC Conservation Community Service Program promotes advocacy, education, and action to encouragethe understanding of and appreciation for all aspects of our environment and conservation of the world’sresources, natural and manmade. Below are several examples of conservation projects led by GFWC clubs.GFWC Abington Heights Civic League, Inc.(Pennsylvania) had a vision to create a space where people cancome together to learn how to garden organically; watch theirlabor blossom and grow; provide a healthy economic source ofnutrition; and enjoy the beauty of the community. Its goal was toestablish a community garden to grow produce. Club memberssecured partners and raised funds. The community libraryheld seminars presented by Penn State Master Gardeners, whoeducated attendees on organic gardening without the use ofpesticides and herbicides, practicing water conservation, startingseeds, and making compost. News ofthe project spread fast via the localnewspaper and television stations.The library’s children’s group planteda butterfly and pollination garden. Achurch group maintained a plot anddonated the harvested produce to localfood banks. Others joined the effort and over 2,000 pounds offresh produce reached more than 200 qualified area families.Conservation by the NumbersDollars Donated $2,422,483Hours Volunteered 466,883Projects Completed 12,213GFWC Nome (Alaska) maintains the garden at Potter Station,which is considered a wonderful photo opportunity for touristsas it is a stop for tour buses.GFWC Walhalla (South Carolina) dubbed their downtowncleanup “Company’s Comin’”. Just before the town’s annualOktoberfest week, club members swept main street sidewalks,picked up litter and debris, and trimmed shrubbery. Theyredesigned the landscaping and in the spring, added plants andflowers to the town’s welcome signs, where they also wateredand maintained them—now it’s timefor company.GFWC Peterson Tuesday Club(Iowa) floated on a section of a riverto pick up trash. The participantsreported back to the club on the itemsand quantity of trash retrieved to educate and make others awareof the extent of the river trash.GFWC Livermore Falls Women’s Club (Maine) workedwith the local Betterment Group to transform a vacant dirty lotinto a vibrant color spot that made townspeople take notice andstart sprucing up their own areas. The club also made a gardendesigned to attract eyes to museum signs at their local Paper& Heritage Museum. The members learned their living historymuseum had suffered a devastating fire and had a garden thatneeded attention. The club members sprang into action, alongwith middle school students, who called looking for a projectin which they could participate. The students received printedinstructions to help them remember what they learned from theactivity as well as day lilies to plant at their own homes. From thisclub’s First Impressions Project the community benefitted andthe club gained recognition and community acknowledgment.GFWC Chamber’s Bay (Washington) adopts an apple treeevery year at a local orchard that is maintained by the city andwhere concerts and other community events are held. Memberslearn to prune the tree by attending classes, and use the applesfor some wonderful desserts. Any leftover apples are used at acommunity event called “The Apple Squeeze.”GFWC Pennsylvania worked with its state agencies to educateits members on invasive plant species as the President’s Projectwas “Dangerous Invasions,” and the first step was to educatemembers about the plant species invading our environment andthe effects on our ecosystem.GFWC Boulder Valley (Colorado) adopted a section ofCoal Creek Trail in Louisville, learned about the invasive plants,cleaned brush, cut down weeds, and dug up and bagged nonnativenoxious weeds growing in that area. A sign with the club’sname was placed on the trail.GFWC Amity Study Club of Atlanta (Texas) collected over10,000 pounds of e-waste (old computers, printers, televisions,mobile phones, and PDAs) in one day. The club used its localnewspaper, radio station, and fliers to get the word out anddrafted their family members’ help with the collecting. UNICORof Texarkana, a recycling plant that works in conjunction withthe Department of Justice, which allows prisoners in federalinstallations to receive pay and to learn vocational skills throughrecycling of disposed electronics, came with its truck, and aforklift was donated to help with the loading.2009-2010 GFWC ANNUAL REPORT 5
Page 1 and 2: 2009-2010Annual Report2009-2010 GFW
Page 3: Year in Review(January 1-December 3
Page 7 and 8: Home Life Community Service Program
Page 9 and 10: Public Issues Community Service Pro
Page 11 and 12: Juniors' Special Project: Advocates
Page 13 and 14: GFWC Haiti Disaster Relief Fund Don
Page 15 and 16: Friends of the WHRCFriends of the W

Annual Report - General Federation of Women's Clubs

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