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Jane Reports on Having a Purse of Your Own

Jane is fond of a famous quote from Susan B. Anthony, brought to our attention by a good friend, Janice Style-Hall, that goes like this, "A woman must have a purse of her own."

We can see the power of that statement, and its underlying message, in what Jane writes about daily, and what Kirsten Osolind offers in her blog at re:inventioninc. The numerous other Janes who blog also support this cause -- giving women financial freedom and independence, along with many, many Dicks we all know and love.

In the city Jane lives there is a strong women's group called The Women's Foundation of Genesee Valley. The Women's Foundation of Genesee Valley was founded in 1994, based on the belief that "philanthropy could be a powerful tool for improving the status of women and girls."

What follows is a small summary of their work over the last 10 years:

On the inside cover of their report they ask: What Happens When You Invest in Women and Girls?
Here are their Top Ten Answers (of 17) to that question:

1. Open paths to social change
2. Expand resources
3. Forge partnerships
4. Collaborate on approaches
5. Engage the next generation
6. Maintain diversity
7. Help new ideas succeed
8. Invent strategies
9. Find solutions
10. Stretch dollars

On an inner page, this quote stands out as testament to the valuable work these women do:

"When we see behavioral changes in women that make it easier for them to represent themselves, believe in themselves, and advocate for their best interests, we've succeeded. The most important thing is to see a woman moving along the path to being able to support herself and her family in a way that makes her happy and proud. That's what it's all about." Shirley King, Co-Chair, Grant-Making Committee

In this report, the foundation estimated that it will have awarded over $400,000 in grants to women in seven counties where "a staggering 62% of households headed by women don't have incomes that provide for life's basics -- food, housing, transportation, health care, and child care for preschool-age children."

This group of strong, capable, committed women continues to put their heads together to improve the quality of life for women in our area. As they say in their Ten Year Report:

"Social change begins with helping one person at a time. When thousands or millions of lives feel the impact of better opportunities, a "tipping point" is reached where whole communities and nations are safer, healthier, better off than before."

Womens_foundation2_1

Jane is working on a how-to book and will be donating a portion of the profits from the sale of this book to women's groups such as The Women's Foundation of Genesee Valley. As we approach the fun and festivities of all the holidays approaching in the coming months, Jane wonders...what are you doing, dear reader, to support the women in your region to enable them to raise above the poverty level...and have enough money to shop for their children, their families, and themselves, online, at your website?

What's not to like about that?

Comments

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Yvonne DiVita

To Jane (a fellow Jane) excellent advice. That's the kind of thing one likes to hear about. We'll be checking out our local Soroptimist Club (hope we have one here...if not, maybe we'll start one.)

To Kirsten, as always, you have the stats and the info on where to go for that much needed funding. We are always happy to hear from you. As for women and philanthropy...Dickless Marketing has a whole section on it. It's good stuff. Let's hear it for Jane and the fact that she likes to share!

kirsten

Thanks for the mention, Yvonne. According to the Center for Women's Business Research, 53% of women business owners are motivated primarily to make financial contributions through their businesses by a feeling of social responsibility. And women business owners are philanthropically active: 70% volunteer at least once per month; 31% contribute $5000 or more to charity annually; 15% give $10,000 or more. You would think this could bode well for women helping women win.

Speaking of money, the November issue of BusinessWeek Small Biz just hit the stands. Julia Cosgrove penned a great story on women and venture funding (mentioning the Venture Funding for Women Entrepreneurs Report released by re:invention and GrowThink Research this past June). Julia explored the opportunity for women-led businesses in biotechnology and healthcare and interviewed some great role models including Amy Millman of Springboard Enterprises and Jennie Mather (CEO of Raven Technologies).

Of course, its only the tipping point. The article merits a read. You just might tuck BusinessWeek Small Biz into your purse for the next time you have a free moment!

Great to have women champions like you, Yvonne, out spreading the word....

Kindly,
Kirsten

Jane

I belong to my local Soroptimist Club, part of an "international volunteer service organization for business and professional women who work to improve the lives of women and girls, in local communities and throughout the world." (http://www.soroptimist.org/)

It's extremely satisfying to be associated with such an effective and highly-regarded organization, especially because the long-time members are such valuable mentors. I recommend that any professional woman interested in community service check out her local Soroptimist Club.

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