News & Notes – August 1, 2019

Support Women in the Military

One of the Seven Grand Initiatives is to complete 1,000 projects for women in the military by the end of the 2018-2020 Administration. At 799 projects to date, we’re so close! Labor Day is a month away, and it’s a fitting time to celebrate the women who have some of the most important jobs in our country.

• Create care packages for military women. Fill them with personal care items, such as deodorant, hair-bands and bobby pins, and feminine hygiene products. You can also include snacks, books, and a handwritten note to personalize your gift. Find an organization that sends care packages to military women and brighten a servicewoman’s day.
• Create Mommy Bags for military moms-to-be. Fill them with items such as diapers, wipes, lotion, lip balm, and small Kleenex packages. This is a great way to show military mothers that you care!

Plan your projects now and use Labor Day to acknowledge the women whose work involves defending our country.

Celebrate International Youth Day

August 12 is International Youth Day. The observance was designated by the UN in 1999 to bring awareness to challenges that youth face. This year’s theme is “Transforming Education,” which challenges us to make education inclusive for all. Here are a few ideas of ways to help:

• Support low-income students. Coming from a low-income family can pose challenges that make it difficult for children to focus in school. Collect backpacks, school supplies, winter clothing, and food for after-school meal programs.
• Support students with disabilities. Check with your local school board to learn how you can help the programs in your community or even start your own.
• Raise money for Heifer’s School Milk Project. With your help, students in Tanzania can focus on learning instead of on their empty stomach.

Plan an International Youth Day project to support students who face challenges accessing education and email your success stories to pr@gfwc.org.

Volunteers in Action

The GFWC Woman’s Club of Denville-Rockaway (New Jersey), GFWC Fayette County ESO (Indiana), and the White Mountain Woman’s Club (Arizona) are featured on GFWC’s Blog.

Review Your Personal Profile

Verify that your contact information is correct in the GFWC Member Portal. And ensure the communications preferences—whether you’d like to receive GFWC mail or emails (and what types of emails you’d like to receive)—are set as you’d like them on your personal profile.

State President Project: Wyoming, Mary Lee Dixon 

In thinking about ways to help both national and local organizations, Mary Lee came up with her State President’s Project to support the March of Dimes, because after all, who doesn’t like babies?! She challenged her state to donate “a mile of dimes,” or to lay 90,000 dimes side-by-side, at the end of her tenure. There will be donation pickups for clubs that collect $500 in dimes (5,000 dimes)! Mary Lee also asked that the clubs take creative photos with dimes prior to depositing them in the bank.

Clubs have been excited to become more familiar with March of Dimes through Mary Lee’s project and learn about the other ways to help the organization besides through monetary donations. The feedback received seemed to be a win-win as GFWC Wyoming is not only helping a great cause but is educating clubwomen about the new ways “established” organizations are changing and keeping up with the current issues of today’s society.

Additionally, Wyoming clubs are supporting the state “Raising Readers” program through specific fundraisers such as “Lose a Latte-Wednesday,” putting the equivalent amount of money for a latte in a jar towards the project. This program is putting age-appropriate books in the hands of children from ages 0–6 to give them their own library by the time they start school. These books are distributed through well-baby appointments at their local doctor’s offices. They are chosen by a state-led board, purchased through monetary donations, and distributed to any pediatrician’s office that requests books.  To date, almost every club has donated money to help keep this program viable.

Parliamentary Pointers
by GFWC Parliamentarian Deen J. Meloro

We know that to end a meeting, either a member makes a motion to adjourn or, more commonly, the president adjourns the meeting. An adjourned meeting is a different thing. It’s scheduled at a regular meeting as a continuation of that meeting and takes place before the next regular meeting. There are several reasons for scheduling an adjourned meeting.

The first reason is the lack of a quorum. Without a quorum, no business can be conducted. If there were important business that was to be handled at a meeting that needed to be completed before the next regularly scheduled meeting, an adjourned meeting can be scheduled. From the time of the regular meeting that didn’t have a quorum until the time of the adjourned meeting, members have the opportunity to ensure there is a quorum.

Another reason would be to continue the regularly scheduled meeting that preceded it.  If the work of the regular meeting was not completed but there is a lot that must be accomplished that month, an adjourned meeting can be scheduled for later that day, later that week, or any time before the next regularly scheduled meeting.

An adjourned meeting takes up its work at the point where it was interrupted or with a postponed question. The minutes of the previous meeting are read and then business begins. Minutes are taken for the adjourned meeting.

If a member wishes to create an adjourned meeting, she can move to: “Continue this meeting at an adjourned meeting to be held at 6 o’clock on Tuesday the 12th at City Hall.”  The date, time, and place must be part of the motion.

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