Friday, March 29, 2013

Projects for 2012-2013

In preparation for our April 2nd General Meeting, please review our list of projects for 2012-2013 and come prepared with any questions you might have about them.

CSA - ARTS
  • Celebration of Youth – Short Story, Poetry and Art Contest and Reception for winners
  • Music Department Donations – Donations to high school choral departments (Brentwood High and Ravenwood High)

CSA - CONSERVATION
  • Keep Williamson Beautiful – A $150 donation that helps them with their mission to partner with volunteers to keep our community clean, green and environmentally aware.
  • Owl's Hill – A $350 donation that helps protect and preserve 160 acres of green space (and the wildlife that live there) in northwestern Williamson County.
  • Beautification Project – A $100 donation to the Brentwood Garden Club for the Owen’s Chapel Garden Fund.
  • Kind News Subscriptions for Smyrna Elementary School – A subscription ($75) to Kind News, an 8-page, bimonthly magazine for elementary school-age children published by the Humane Society.
  • GFWC 1734 Society – A $174 donation to preserve and maintain the GFWC Headquarters building in Washington, D.C. as a National Historic Landmark.
  • Living Green Expo – In Augusts past BWC members have supplied and served snacks and drinks for vendors at AG Expo Park in Franklin as our sponsorship of Keep Williamson Beautiful’s environmental expo.  No longer will be held as a separate expo.
  • Environmental Reading Program – In April volunteers read to elementary classes.
  • Adopt a Mile – Twice a year we pick up litter on Murray Lane between Granny White Pike and Franklin Road on our designated “Adopt-a-Mile”.
  • Brentwood Tree Commission – Once a year we help with the annual bagging of tree saplings for distribution to school children in recognition of Brentwood’s designation as a “Tree City” and Arbor Day.

CSA - EDUCATION
  • School Library Donations – Donations of $100 each to eleven school libraries in Brentwood.
  • Library Books on Women – A $150 donation to Brentwood Library for books on women.
  • Literacy Council of Williamson County – A $300 donation to support the mission to enrich and transform the lives of adults by teaching them how to read.
  • Scholarships – Three $1000 college scholarships for female high school graduates.
  • Unicorn Fund Scholarship – A $1000 donation for scholarships to the Unicorn Fund in Wartburg, TN.
 
CSA - HOME LIFE
  • Bingo at Grace Health Care – The 2nd Monday of each month BWC members host a Bingo game for nursing home residents.  Prizes are supplied through a $500 budget and through in-kind donations from the members.
  • Canine Companions – A $300 donation to provide highly trained assistance dogs for children and adults with disabilities.
  • Women's Health Issues – A $1000 donation to an annually designated charity that promotes an area of women’s health, for example the American Heart Association.
  • School Supplies for Unicorn Fund – A $165 donation to buy school supplies for the needy children in Morgan and Scott Counties.
  • Snoopy’s Closet – We make in-kind donations to Williamson Medical Center for low-income mothers to go home with baby supplies.

CSA - INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH

CSA - PUBLIC ISSUES
  • World Food Day – In October we buy food for the GraceWorks Ministries Food Pantry with member donations and $150 from the budget.
  • Camp Hope – A $400 donation to sponsor campers who are burn victims.
  • Fisher House – A $300 donation to support America’s military veterans.  The Fisher House is being built in Murfreesboro to provide housing for veterans’ family members in their time of need - much like the Ronald McDonald House houses families of hospitalized children.
  • Sew Much Comfort – A $300 donation to help provide free adaptive clothing to support the unique needs of wounded and disabled service members.
  • TN Valley Healthcare – A $275 donation to support our women veterans in their healthcare.
  • Happy Tales Humane – A $150 donation to help improve the quality of life of animals in Middle Tennessee by rescuing, caring for, and finding adoptive homes for unwanted pets.
  • Candidate Forum – Every other year, we present the candidates running for the Brentwood City Commission in a press question/answer forum for the public’s education and provide a reception afterwards for one-on-one discussions.
  • Women's Legislative Forum – Each year women’s groups present their non-partisan issues to the Tennessee Legislature.  We have not participated before.
  • Unicorn Boutique – Twice a year we donate household goods and clothing for resale in the Unicorn Boutique in Wartburg, TN (run by Unicorn Fund, Inc.), assisting them in raising funds to benefit Wartburg area residents in need.
  • Ronald McDonald House – We collect and donate pop tabs that are converted to cash and used for fundraising.
  • Veteran’s Hospital – We collect and deliver magazines and books to Veterans’ Hospital in Nashville.

SP - Domestic Violence
  • Save Our Sisters – A $100 donation to GFWC’s Music City District “Save our Sisters” fund to be accessed by women in dire need.
  • Purple Education & Job Training Grant – For the past four years we have given at least a $1000 grant to a domestic violence survivor who is enrolled in an approved education program.
  • Bridges Domestic Violence Center – Each December we “adopt” a surviving domestic violence family and provide them with their Christmas presents.

SP - Advocacy for Children
  • Davis House – A $500 donation to help combat abuse by coordinating services to children and their families in crisis and providing community education focused on early intervention.
  • Williamson County CASA – A $500 donation to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children within the court system.

CSA = Community Service Area
SP    = Special Project

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

March 2013 Fundraiser

We had a wonderful fundraiser this year, held at the Brentwood Country Club.  There were about 100 women who joined in the festivities to help us raise money for our 2013-2014 budget.  Lots of club members pitched in to help pull off this huge event.  A special thanks goes to Paula for heading up the event for the 4th year in a row!

Of course, there was a silent auction.  Lots of members put together fun baskets or brought lovely things from their homes to be auctioned off.

There was lots of serious bidding going on.  There was one intense bidding war going on over a Bluebird Cafe hatch print.

The tables looked gorgeous and the meal was delicious.  There was lots of socializing with long-time friends and new acquaintances.



The Redd Hot Mamas energized us with their enthusiasm and talent.  Paula really knows how to throw a party!

Wait, a dude!?  What's he doing in here!?  Paula wisely suggested that we needed a sound guy to help pull this thing off.


Dillard's sponsored a fashion show and our club members and their friends strutted their 'stuff' down the runway weaved through filled-to-capacity tables.  Check out all these cute ladies in their very well-coordinated outfits.








Of course we had to invite the press.  Our former and new publicity people, Nora and Mary, are really on the ball when it comes to publicity.

Take a look at a few more shots of just a fraction of the women who came out and supported our fundraiser.  Thank you so much!  We really appreciate all your support.







A special thanks goes to Lawrence Taylor for taking all these wonderful pictures for us!  For more pictures of the event go here.