WGC Founders - Story #1
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What?
It all began in the fall of 2000. Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz organized a meeting on behalf of the Maryland Philanthropy Network (formerly Association of Baltimore Area Grantmakers) and asked Barbara Lawson, at that time the head of the organization that is now the Community Foundation of Howard County (CFHoCo) to invite local women to attend.
Yolanda Bruno, Jean Moon, and Linda Odum accepted that offer, and became fascinated by what they learned about the incredible power of collective giving inherent in the giving circle model.
Upon returning to Howard County, the five women invited eleven others to join them as they embarked upon an intensive 18 month planning and implementation process that culminated with the launch of the Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County (WGC).
So What?
The WGC formally launched on February 26, 2002 - 20 years ago this year! - under the leadership of 16 extraordinary founders:
Their vision? To improve the lives, the health, the future, and the personal authority of women and girls.
How does it work?
The WGC is a fund of the Community Foundation of Howard County. However, under the giving circle model, the Advisory Board and Committees are responsible for all spending decisions.
All member gifts support our grantmaking, our core strength, and/or our endowment.
Now What?
As we celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the WGC, there are a variety of reasons and ways to donate today.
For 20 years, the WGC has dedicated itself to leveraging our collective dollars, to amplifying the power of collective giving, to building a community of philanthropists and creating a permanent legacy to address the needs of women and girls in Howard County.
Will you join us? www.womensgivingcircle.org
Be a part of our story.
#WGC20Years
#WGC20Years20Stories
- 16 diverse women join together to create a philanthropic group targeting the concerns of women and girls.
- The founders emphasize inclusivity, offering an array of donor levels to allow all women to participate.
- They create an endowment to ensure that the legacy of every donor carries far into the future.
It all began in the fall of 2000. Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz organized a meeting on behalf of the Maryland Philanthropy Network (formerly Association of Baltimore Area Grantmakers) and asked Barbara Lawson, at that time the head of the organization that is now the Community Foundation of Howard County (CFHoCo) to invite local women to attend.
- “Buffy called me and said you know we're going to be doing this presentation in Baltimore and we're really wanting to gather together a group of women philanthropists that might be receptive to this idea of a different way of giving, and expanding on women's philanthropy - leveraging different ideas about how that could happen.” - Barbara Lawson
Yolanda Bruno, Jean Moon, and Linda Odum accepted that offer, and became fascinated by what they learned about the incredible power of collective giving inherent in the giving circle model.
- "There were no known giving circles in the area, no women's giving circles.” - Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz
- "I think that we were all ready for a message about philanthropy because all three of us were already involved in philanthropy in one level or another, and we were all feminists. The idea of bringing together a circle of women was so appealing to us." - Jean Moon
- “I don’t think any of us was a stranger to charitable giving, to the idea of giving back to the community in various ways, but the excitement of being able to target that work and that effort on the needs of women was galvanizing.” - Linda Odum
Upon returning to Howard County, the five women invited eleven others to join them as they embarked upon an intensive 18 month planning and implementation process that culminated with the launch of the Women’s Giving Circle of Howard County (WGC).
So What?
The WGC formally launched on February 26, 2002 - 20 years ago this year! - under the leadership of 16 extraordinary founders:
- Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz
- Maggie J. Brown
- Yolanda Bruno
- Beth Sandbower Harbinson
- Dorothy V. Harris
- H. Elizabeth Horowitz
- Barbara K. Lawson
- Cathy Lickteig
- Jane Vance McCauley
- Darlene Miller
- Jean F. Moon
- Shelley Mulitz
- Linda Odum
- Migsie Richlin
- Joanne Maria Saltzberg
- Arlene Sheff
Their vision? To improve the lives, the health, the future, and the personal authority of women and girls.
How does it work?
- "Women can come in at any level. It allows them to join a larger pool. I can't help 13 women get scholarships at Howard County Community College, but I've contributed to a fund that has allowed 13 women to get scholarships. With relatively small dollars, I can effect change and express my values in a way that makes me very happy." - Jean Moon
The WGC is a fund of the Community Foundation of Howard County. However, under the giving circle model, the Advisory Board and Committees are responsible for all spending decisions.
All member gifts support our grantmaking, our core strength, and/or our endowment.
Now What?
As we celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the WGC, there are a variety of reasons and ways to donate today.
- “As women, we need to be able to be there for one another and learn from what's happened, and I think my daughter's really don't have a full appreciation at this time or understanding what generations before us have gone through as women. And so given that that's the focus of the circle, and in a small community like this, I think we have a great opportunity to raise strong women and raise strong girls.” - Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz
For 20 years, the WGC has dedicated itself to leveraging our collective dollars, to amplifying the power of collective giving, to building a community of philanthropists and creating a permanent legacy to address the needs of women and girls in Howard County.
Will you join us? www.womensgivingcircle.org
Be a part of our story.
#WGC20Years
#WGC20Years20Stories
