GWR Clubs Programs of Service - Award Winners

These Projects reflect the Soroptimist International
Program focus objectives and Goals

Goal:  Meet the needs of women and girls during and after armed conflict and disasters

On June 20, 2010, an abandoned camp caught fire and took 10 days to contain the blaze in the Flagstaff area.   Over 1,000 homes were evacuated and 23.5 square miles of forest was destroyed. There was significant flooding in the neighborhoods downstream from the wildfire with one confirmed fatality, a 12 year-old girl.

The breakfast raised over $4,500.00 which was distributed to organizations that provided shelter and meals to evacuees that were affected by this major disaster.

Goal:  Ensure equal access to education and training for women and girls throughout their lifespan

GWR Club:  SI of Bullhead City, AZ/Laughlin, NV

Teaching girls about teen dating violence and Cyberbullying? I know several and this club held a bullying and Internet safety day with their S-Teen Club. They met with the local police station to tour the facility and learned Internet safety and how to spot and avoid becoming a victim to bullies. The S-Teen Club learned that Cyberbullying is most often perpetrated by girls their age. This project provided new opportunities to develop self-esteem, self-respect and confidence in 7th and 8th grade girls that might otherwise not have access to this vital and important information.

        Project Title:  "Sharing Healthy Experiences Workshop"

Counselors and administrators at the school district came together to have breakout sessions focusing on the dangers of current drug trends, and cyberbullying. The program also focused on how to maintain meaningful and respectful relationships between mothers and daughters. Funds were raised to provide lunch and have some fun raffle giveaways and end of the day music tribute.

    Project Title:   "Community Assistance Program Food Pantry"

Members donate money each month through cash donations earmarked for this program when paying dues and fundraising throughout the year. Clients are homeless or live in low-income household's, the majority are women with dependent children.

This money buys food to fill the food pantry, pay utility bills, purchase clothing and other household items. In December, toys are provided to children to help make their holiday season more joyful. SI members also volunteer time to sort, stock and distribute food to CAP clients, which stands for Community Assistance Program.

Goal:  Mitigate the effects of climate change and integrate sustainability into personal choices and government policies and program

They produced and printed thousands of flyers and distributed them to businesses on ways to stop receiving unwanted catalogs, giving up plastic and paper bags and how to check for water leaks. The title of their flyer was "Ten Simple Steps to follow that ACTUALLY make a Difference"

    Project Title:  "Domestic Violence Solutions for Human Resources"

Helping human resource directors and managers identify the effects of domestic violence on their employees and workplace was the "hot topic" for this project. SI members sponsored a meeting with the local Victim/Witness Services and gave the participants the SI "hot line" cards with local help numbers. This project benefited hundreds of employees and provided important training to local employers.

GWR Club:  SI of El Paso, TX

   Project Title:  "Teen Challenge Women's Shelter Funding Raising"

These SI ladies showed their artistic talent by painting and adding cosmetic touches to this women's shelter. They held a silent auction with over 40 theme baskets with donated items that raised $24,000.00!  This money helped to remodel the Teen Challenge Women's Shelter with enough left over to start a Women's Teen Challenge Residential Center.

Goal:  Support programs and policies that eliminate HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis and other major diseases

Through fund raising and donations, personalized layette bags filled with infant items and personal care gifts for each new mother are given to recognize their achievement.

Goal:  Eliminate poverty and gender discrimination through ensuring women's full social and economic rights

The jewelry was then donated to "Save the Family", a program for homeless families with 80% of the women being victims of domestic violence. The women at Save the Family were able to select something to match outfits they chose to wear at a job interview. Over 200 women were helped through this project.