Hello WGA friends!

Well, February, the month of love, is here and gone before we know it.

And when the month comes to an end, the very next day, March 1, is our annual Member Forum. Register yourself and friends now.

At Member Forum, you’ll hear about how WGA exercises our social, moral, intellectual, reputational, financial (SMIRF) capital and more opportunity for impact on helping lift women and children out of poverty! Did you know you are already a powerful community advocate just by joining WGA? Your dollars, your voice, and your influence are exponentially greater in this collective circle.

“The problem for poor people is they have no money.” - Joni Foster, former CEO, LISC Jacksonville. This was the opener by Melanie Patz, VP of Community Investment and Impact for Baptist Health, at this month’s kickoff to the WGA decision team process for our 2018 grants. She went on to paint the comprehensive picture of poverty in NEFL. She also provided solutions to help lift women and children out of poverty for WGA to consider through our grant making and our collective voice. 

Melanie is coming back on March 1st at our Member Forum to help equip us with more knowledge…

The Delores Barr Weaver 4Sight initiative started the new year strong! We currently have 14 new 4Sight members and held the second DBW 4Sight Informational Social on January 25 with over 30 enthusiastic women in attendance.

The hosts, Melanie Cost Young, Poppy Decunto and Kara Williams, welcomed our guests and talked about their WGA experience. Other presenters, Mary Pietan, Shamika Wright, Diana Donavon and Trisha Meili, covered WGA’s impact on our local communities and told of their personal engagement with WGA. Just look at the fun:

We started 2018 with a powerful and thought-provoking educational presentation on “Women Aging into Poverty in North Florida”. Our dynamic speaker was Dr. Mary Gatta, professor of Sociology at City University of New York, who shared findings from her extensive national research and personal interviews with women in our North Florida community. For example, nationally almost half of all women age 65 and older have incomes below economic security for their family and housing type.

Typically, retired elder men have annual income 71% higher than elder women ($25,914 for men compared to $15,718 for women). In Florida, the average Social Security benefit for women 65+ is about $13,100 per year compared to about $17,000 for men of the same age. Inequality of pay during working years and time out of work for caregiving are two factors that contribute to lower Social Security benefits for women.

The WGA Grants Decision Team is currently evaluating 25 grant proposals to “Break the Cycle of Female Poverty.” To fully fund these proposals would require just over $2.2 Million! Think of the how many women and children would be helped out of poverty if we could equip all of these expert groups with the funding they need for effective services.

Last year, with 409 WGA members, our Grant Pool was $447,000. It was the largest grants pool to date, and we fully funded 6 grant proposals toward breaking the cycle of female poverty. However, if we had enough money in the pool, we would have funded the other 24 fundable proposals.

Each year during the grants decision process, it’s heartbreaking to narrow the selection and cut wonderful proposals because of the limited funds available. You can help narrow the gap by inviting more friends to join WGA or by donating directly to the Grant Pool.

To donate, go to womensgivingalliance.org/donate. Select “Women’s Giving Alliance Pooled Grantmaking Fund” as the designation. Any and all donations will help! And to bring in more friends or to renew today, just click join/renew. You are helping to build the grants pool in these ways as well as growing WGA’s impact!

BREAKING THE CYCLE OF FEMALE POVERTY IN NASSAU COUNTY was the subject of the Nassau Connector spring event on February 7. Over 100 participants from throughout the county met at noontime in St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Fernandina Beach to learn more about the unique characteristics of female poverty in the area.

Panel speakers included the Homeless Liaison from the Nassau School Board, the rector of St. Peter's, the Executive Director of the Coalition for the Reduction/Elimination of Ethnic Disparities in Health, and Barnabas CEO (and WGA Member) Wanda Lanier. Kate Ligare, co-Chair of Outreach (and Nassau County resident), was Moderator; co-Connectors Pat Hayden and Adelaide Thompson planned the very successful event.

In addition to the 33 WGA members in attendance, representatives were present from Micah's Place (domestic violence shelter), Starting Point Behavioral Health, Affordable Housing Advisory Committee, Florida Department of Health, Boys and Girls Clubs, Family Support Services, and several churches. Possible follow-up actions in the community were discussed.

WGA Member Forum: Thursday, March 1, 11 a.m – 1 p.m., UNF Herbert University Center, 12000 Alumni Drive Jacksonville, 32224. $35 includes lunch (before Feb. 22); after, $45. Bring friends! REGISTER

Visit WGA Grant Recipient Gateway Community Services: Tuesday, March 13, 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m., 555 Stockton Street, Jacksonville, FL 32204. Learn how Gateway provides treatment and recovery services for people suffering from addictions and mental illness. Bring your lunch or order a box lunch when you RSVP by March 6. REGISTER