Annual Letter to WPIG's Friends and Supporters

January 2011

Dear Friends and Supporters of WPIG,

Happy New Year!  We wanted to take some time to share with you the progress that the Women's Philanthropic Investment Group of Seattle has made over the past year. 

At the beginning of the year, we welcomed six new members to our group:

Becka Hardy, Julianna Yamamoto, Megan Thomas, Meghan Wagner, Nicole Demmon and Tiffani Lee.  These new members bring intelligence, insight and incredible dedication to our cause of helping women and children move from a place of need to one of self-sufficiency.

In addition to welcoming new members, our marketing committee unveiled a fresh new website in 2010 as well as starting a WPIG blog and Facebook page.  No tweeting yet but this could be our New Years resolution.  Please visit and follow us regularly at www.wpigseattle.org. 

In 2010 we officially kicked off the lengthy application process to be recognized as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.  The Women’s Philanthropic Investment Group of Seattle’s application has been submitted and is currently being reviewed.  We owe a very gracious thank you to attorney Andy Aley with Garvey Schubert Barer for the generous pro-bono help in administering and submitting the application.  We are all eagerly awaiting 501(c)(3)  status and have our fingers crossed for a BIG announcement in 2011! 

Our 2010 focal charity was Ryther Child Center; a local 125 year-old non-profit focused on treating troubled children through innovative and proven therapeutic techniques.  In June we invested our time with Ryther for a full Saturday of service.  Much to the delight of the Ryther staff, we washed all of their vans and also did some painting.  In October, our philanthropy committee put on a wildly successful fall art festival for the children with five craft stations ranging from spooky stain glass windows to yummy frosted cookies! This partnership with Ryther, allowed WPIG of Seattle to invest time, donate money, and gift art supplies for each cottage.  We are also very honored with the opportunity to celebrate Ryther’s125 years of service at their annual luncheon.

In addition to partnering with Ryther, we have continued to make volunteering and investing our time in the community a commitment.  To that end, in month, we volunteered at Westside Baby donation center in White Center.  This non-profit serves families in need throughout our community by providing food, clothing, supplies, toys and diapers. We thoroughly enjoyed the enriching evening of service.

2010 marked the first annual WPIG of Seattle retreat in the lovely Roslyn, Washington.  The ladies of WPIG enjoyed an evening out of Seattle to bond and re-energize for the coming year. 

This holiday season the little WPIG elves were busy “making” one Seattle family’s holiday a little bit more cheerful with gift sponsorship through the downtown YWCA.  We were happy to see many of your faces at Targy's on Queen Anne where WPIG of Seattle collected $1122 of generous donations from the Mark Fox Christmas Gala. 

WPIG of Seattle is especially proud to have partnered with Ryther as our 2010 charity.  Together with your investment in WPIG of Seattle, we were able to truly make a difference in the lives of local children and families. It has been a genuine pleasure partnering with Ryther this past year, so much so that we have committed to having them as our 2011 charity!

We want to extend our warmest thanks to all of you who have supported us in so many ways this past year.  We could not have accomplished so much without you; our investors! 

With gratitude,

Women's Philanthropic Investment Group of Seattle www.wpigseattle.org

Meet Alisha Eastman!

A few weeks ago, during a WPIG retreat in Roslyn, I was fortunate enough to sit down and learn a little more about Alisha Eastman. Alisha was one of the six founding members of WPIG. She was drawn to the group because she liked the idea of a women’s organization focused on educating its members and giving back to the community. Alisha currently chairs the Marketing Committee, and as chair, she created our fantastic new WPIG website (http://www.wpigseattle.org).



After endless hours of hard work and dedication, Alisha will be graduating in December with her Masters in Social Work (MSW) from Eastern Washington University (Everett Campus). Her education doesn’t stop there though. Next, she will begin her training to become a Doula, and then she will start the three year process of earning her LICSW (Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker License). With all of that education, I couldn’t help but wonder, what is her ultimate professional goal? Without hesitation, and with contagious enthusiasm, she tells me that her dream is to eventually open up a comprehensive services clinic where prenatal and postnatal women (and families) will have access to doulas, midwifes, pediatricians, counselors, and more. Although some years out, I have no doubt her dream will be realized, and I cannot wait to witness her future success.



Alisha with her niece & nephew



While her studies and work as a medical biller and elementary school tutor keep her busy, she still manages to find free time, and when that time arises, she enjoys spending it with her niece and nephew. To that end, she gave them each a coupon book filled with activities to do with auntie, and they are working on using each coupon - next up, bowling!

Just when I thought Alisha couldn’t get any more amazing, she divulged this final fun fact: Between 13-18 years old, Alisha arm-wrestled for the Washington State Arm-Wrestling Association. Because there were not many teens, she arm-wrestled in the women’s division; in 1998, she was both the Teenage girls and the Women’s Light Weight Washington State Arm-Wrestling Champion. In 1999, Alisha and her mom held a charity arm-wrestling tournament to raise funds for a teen homeless shelter, Teen Hope (no longer in business). Amazing!

What an incredible young woman, and I am so glad to be a part of WPIG with her!

Volunteering at Ryther Child Center

Every few months, the WPIG philanthropy committee organizes a volunteer opportunity. This month, WPIG planned and facilitated a night of fall and Halloween themed arts and crafts activities for the children living at Ryther Child Center. This is the second time WPIG has volunteered at Ryther. WPIG had a great time washing vans and cleaning up the Ryther campus this past summer. Ryther also happens to be WPIG’s charity of the year.

WPIG chose to support Ryther this year because of the essential work that Ryther does in our community.  Ryther Child Center offers and develops safe places and opportunities for children, youth and families to heal and grow so that they can reach their highest potential. Since opening 125 years ago, Ryther has become a recognized leader in providing and advocating for a comprehensive continuum of care and assistance for children, youth and families experiencing or at risk from neglect, mental illness, or emotional, physical, sexual and/or chemical abuse.  Learn more about Ryther here.

 

International Day for the Eradication of Poverty

On Sunday October 17, the United Nations observed the 24th annual International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. This day is as an essential reminder that, in times of economic downturn, it is especially important to reflect on how we can help people who are less fortunate than us.


During this year alone, the percentage of Americans living in poverty hit a 15-year high: one in seven, or 44 million. This astounding number of Americans living in poverty has given scholars and politicians new material for an old argument. In today’s New York Times, Patricia Cohen writes about the contentious term, “The Culture of Poverty”.

Cohen writes that unlike the sociologists of the 1960’s, social scientists today have “rejected the notion of a monolithic and unchanging culture of poverty”. Instead of attributing destructive attitudes and behavior to an inherent “bad” moral character, sociologists are finally recognizing the impact of sustained racism and isolation. This shift in thought is important beyond academia. Much of the research on the “culture of poverty” intersects policy debates and can ultimately influence social welfare laws.

While lawmakers and academia continue to focus on large scale solutions for combating sustained racism and isolationism, individuals and groups like WPIG can support the fight to eradicate poverty in small but powerful ways. The U.N. has suggested that groups, as well as individuals, focus on supporting organizations and ideas that lead to sustainable models for economic stability through job creation.

http://www.idealist.org/ blogged that a great place to start helping people living in poverty is through organizations that facilitate microlending. Over the last few years, WPIG members have supported microcredit organizations like www.kiva.org. Microcredit programs provide small loans to individuals living in poverty. This innovative method of empowering people, effectively breaks the cycle of poverty. Check out www.kiva.org today.

"The campaign to make poverty history-a central moral challenge of our age-cannot remain a task for the few, it must become a calling for the many. On this International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, I urge everyone to join this struggle. Together, we can make real and sufficient progress towards the end of poverty." -Kofi Annan

Giving differnces?

Today I came across an interesting link on http://www.philanthropy.com/ According to this study, over half of all young Americans (generations X and Y) are giving to charity. The amount of money donated is small, especially compared to older adults. Of course the older we get, the more able we are to donate. The fact that over half of young Americans are supporting charity, especially during time of economic downturn is encouraging. Keep up the good work!