HISTORY How long has 100 Women Who Care been in Franklin County? 100 Women Who Care Franklin County was founded in November 2017 by Karyn Rocheleau, Trisha Woodward, Annette Hannah, Jacqui Hood, and Judy Ashley. The group is managed by a volunteer Steering Committee who oversee the operations. The group holds quarterly meetings, the first of which took place in February 2018.
DONATIONS How do I nominate an organization for donations? Only members who have submitted a Membership Form and are current on their contributions may submit a non-profit organization for consideration. Current Steering Committee members are not eligible to submit nominations for considerations. There can only be one nomination per organization considered per quarter. If more than one member nominates the same organization, the first nomination received will be considered the selected charity. Which organizations can be considered for donations? In order to be considered at a meeting, a non-profit organization must have a strong presence in and serve the residents of Franklin County, Vermont. We encourage any member to nominate a non-profit for consideration. No political, religious, international or national organization may be nominated. National or international organizations with a local chapter may be nominated; however, the funds must be used only for a project that serves the Franklin County area.
100 Women Who Care Franklin County is an open and affirming organization, and does not discriminate. All are welcome regardless of race, color, ethnic or national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, disabilities, age or gender identification. It is our expectation that any 501(c)(3) organization proposed as a recipient also adheres to these values.
Is my contribution tax deductible? Members who have signed up for our on-line donation option (Grapevine) will receive an email with their tax-deductible donation receipt from Social Good Fund. Grapevine partners with Social Good Fund, a 501(c)3 public charity to facilitate all donations. This is a Donor Advised Fund that distributes the donations to the nonprofits. They will hold the donations in a charitable account until we tell them which non-profit we select to receive our donations.
Checks made payable to the selected 501(c)(3) organization are written directly to local organizations, not to 100 Women Who Care, and are tax deductible. Those charities nominated agree in advance of the meeting to send tax receipts directly to each of the donating members who make their donations by check. How are organizations chosen to receive donations? Only members who have submitted a Membership Form and are current on their contributions may nominate a non-profit by submitting a completed Nomination Form. Please submit completed charity nominations by NOON on the Monday a week prior to the Chapter meeting
Three charities will be selected at random by the Steering Committee after which the nominating member will be notified that their charity was selected. The member is responsible for contacting the agency to inform them and ask for an agency representative to be present at the meeting to answer questions about their project.The member who nominated the organization or a representative from the organization will have five (5) minutes (please, no PowerPoint presentations or videos)to speak about the organization and an additional five (5) minutes for questions and answers (Q&A) from the members. Presentations can include posters and flyers, but no computers or other electronics may be used. See Presentation Guidelines for more information.
The nonprofit with the greatest number of votes is the recipient of the total funds donated and is ineligible to receive funds from 100 Women Who Care Franklin County for one year thereafter. The other two presented nonprofits (not selected) roll over to the next quarterly meeting until they are selected for a future meeting or until they have been in consideration for one year. After that time, they must be nominated again by submitting a new nomination form.
Can I donate more than $50 per meeting? Absolutely! And, in addition to your donation to the chosen organization, you can donate to the other nominated organizations, too.
Can I just send the donation to the non-profit organization myself? No. The goal of the 100 Women Who Care organization is to make a large collective donation on behalf of the whole group. We want to be able to support this endeavor and together give up to $5,000 at a time to make a large impact on our community, with each member’s donation being part of the larger donation. We also need to be able to track your donations so that you get credit for the donation and remain eligible to submit charities and vote at meetings.
What if I already donate to an organization that is chosen? You will be expected to make your 100 Women Who Care contribution to that organization in addition to any contributions you normally make. The intention of 100 Women Who Care is to make an additional impact on organizations in our community above and beyond our normal giving.
MEETINGS What if I can’t attend a meeting? If you are using our on-line recurring donation system (Grapevine) you do not need to do anything. The quarterly donation will be charged to your credit/debit card on the 15th day of the month of our meetings (Feb, May, Aug, and Nov).
If you cannot attend a meeting and are paying by check, you can do one of three things:
You can send a blank, signed check with a trusted friend to the meeting. They will write in the name of the organization that is chosen and give it to the organizers on your behalf. They do not vote on your behalf. We can only count the votes of members who are present.
or
After a meeting is over, an email is sent to all members announcing which organization was selected. You can then write your check and mail it to the designated Steering Committee member and we will present it to the organization on your behalf. Recipients will also be posted on Facebook, Grapevine and our web site.
or
Sign up for Grapevine who is managing distribution of our collectively donated funds and will direct them to our chosen charity. You can schedule automatic quarterly payments and will receive an immediate receipt following each payment.
Only members who are current in their contributions are eligible to vote. We can only count the votes of members who are present at the meeting. If you are unable to attend a meeting, please take a minute to let us know on the Meeting Intent page.
When will meetings be scheduled? In response to the pandemic our meetings are now conducted via Zoom. Zoom sign-in begins at 5:30pm and the business meeting is from 6:00-7:00pm. You will be sent the Zoom login information via email prior to the meeting.
Our meetings are held four times a year in February, May, August and November. Meeting locations are announced via email to members, on our website and Facebook.
5:30 – 6:00 pm: Check-in and Mingling
6:00 – 7:00 pm: Meeting
How long do the meetings last? Meetings are intended to be very short, generally lasting no longer than 60 minutes. However, you may come to the meeting early – or stay late – in order to spend time socializing and getting to know other members.
Can I bring a friend to a meeting? Of course, you can! However, in order to vote, they will each need to sign a Membership Form and become a member.
Can I share one membership with another woman? Although we do not encourage sharing memberships we do understand that it may be necessary for some people, so two women can share one membership. Both of you are most welcome to all meetings and can be listed separately on our mailing list, but collectively you will only have one vote. You will sign one Membership Form and be responsible for one $50.00 donation per quarter.
