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May 5, 2022
View our Important Dates page for upcoming events and milestones.
Take Care of Yourself
By Beth Smith, Health and Wellness Community Service Chairman
May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Many of us would like to forget the last two years, but instead let’s pause and reflect on our lives and the current state of our mental health. The National Institute of Mental Health says that nearly one in five Americans lives with a mental, behavioral, or emotional condition.
The goal of Mental Health Awareness Month is to increase public awareness and educate communities to expand the understanding of the effects that mental health can have on all age groups. As an organization deeply rooted in our local communities, GFWC clubs can impact how mental health is viewed and spread the word about assisting anyone in need—children and adults.
How can clubs engage the community in an open discussion on mental health?
- Mental Health America, www.mhanational.org, has a toolkit called Back to Basics that provides free, practical resources to introduce mental health topics like recognizing warning signs, knowing the factors that can lead to mental health conditions, maintaining mental wellness, and seeking help for mental health. The toolkit contains project ideas, posters, images, and social media posts for clubs to use locally.
- National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), www.namiwalks.org, offers a great way to actively participate in your community by supporting a local walk to raise awareness. Create a club team and recruit members by sharing the video found on the site encouraging “Mental Health for All — and Always.”
Sometimes just starting a conversation about mental health can help someone. The green ribbon is the international symbol for mental health awareness. By wearing a green ribbon every day during May, you can show people you walk past that you care about their mental health, and possibly help someone needing to talk. Clubs can make ribbons for their members and for community distribution at places like schools, businesses, and government centers.
Mental health awareness = increased conversations = improved mental health outcomes. I look forward to reading about your community service projects that raise awareness about the importance of mental health on the GFWC Blog. Submit your stories to PR@GFWC.org.
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
By Angela Cutrera, Arts and Culture Community Service Program Chairman
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month is celebrated annually during the month of May. Asian Americans have origins in any of the original peoples of East Asia, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent. Pacific Islanders are descended from the islands of Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia.
Beginning in 1979, presidential proclamations were issued annually recognizing Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week in May. In 1990, President George H.W. Bush issued a proclamation designating May 1990 as the first Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month. Congress passed a law in 1992 that permanently designated May of each year as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month. In 2009, it was renamed as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
The month of May was chosen because it commemorates the immigration of the first Japanese people to the United States on May 7, 1843, and because it recognizes Golden Spike Day on May 10, 1869, marking the completion of the transcontinental railroad that was built using Chinese labor.
This annual celebration recognizes the contributions of individuals of Asian and Pacific Islander descent to the history and culture of the United States including art, literature, music, dance, science, and sports.
Take time this month to learn more about Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and their origins, which include Korea, India, and Thailand, and Samoa, Tahiti, and Fiji. Discover more details about the first arrival of Asians in America, which is documented as 1587 when Filipinos arrived in California. Celebrate the history, the journey, and the traditions of these citizens in the United States during Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
Cares & Concerns
GFWC extends its sympathy to GFWC Membership Committee Member Jen Nowak, whose mother, Suzanne Woytych, passed away on April 19. Please keep Jen and her family in your thoughts.
Volunteers in Action
This week’s GFWC Blog features GFWC Oregon City Woman’s Club (Oregon) and GFWC Rotonda West Woman’s Club (Florida). Read how clubwomen hosted a community paper shredding event and formed a partnership with their local Guardian Ad Litem Foundation to provide handmade bags and personal-care items to children entering the foster care system.
Have a success story to tell? Email PR@GFWC.org to have you club project considered for the GFWC Blog.
New Annual Program Statistics Report Released
The most recent data is available in the 2021 Annual Program Statistics Report, published within the News & Publications section of www.GFWC.org. Each year, GFWC calculates the total amount of projects, volunteer hours, and both in-kind and dollars donated for the work of its clubs. In addition to the total calculations, the data is broken down among each of the GFWC Special and Community Service Programs and the Advancement Plans that were active in the 2021 calendar year. We are excited to share the hard work of clubwomen throughout the past year with you.
For questions about this data, email Programs@GFWC.org.
May Convention To-Do List
Convention is the end of next month! Here are some things you can do in May to prepare for your trip to The Big Easy.
Donate Raffle Prizes
We’ve added a door prize to the Big Easy Raffle; every Convention raffle prize purchased will include a ticket to win a gift card display door prize. We’ve therefore extended the raffle prize donation deadline until May 10 to allow for more gift card donations—and other prizes!
Support the Big Easy Raffle by submitting the Raffle Donation Agreement form by May 10.
Book Your Hotel Room
Haven’t booked your room yet? There is a new number to call for GFWC’s Group Rate at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside: 504-556-3774. When you book a room, you should only be charged $199 plus taxes (1-4 guests).
For June 28, please note that the Convention hotel is currently sold out of rooms. For up-to-date information, please visit the “GFWC’s Group Rate” section of the Call to Convention or contact Events Manager Nishu Raina at NRaina@GFWC.org or 202-628-2478. Likewise, please contact Nishu if you:
- No longer plan to use a room reserved for June 28. Please provide your Hilton-issued confirmation number.
- Would like to be added to the June 28 waitlist for a room at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside.
Buy Your Airline Tickets
If you are traveling by plane to Convention, American Airlines is offering a 4% discount on applicable flights to New Orleans. Use the promo code 3862GC and contact 800-433-1790 for assistance.
Submit Your Candidates for Office Questions
During a business session at our 2022 Annual Convention in New Orleans, GFWC will host a Q&A session with the 2022‒2024 Candidates in a contested position. We are soliciting thoughtful questions to pose to the candidates regarding their individual experiences, strategic vision for GFWC, and leadership skills. Questions will be selected at random, and the candidates will have two minutes to answer. Please send your questions by email to GFWC Elections Committee Chairman Linda Crish by May 15, 2022.
Host a Brunch Party to Support March of Dimes
This Mother’s Day, turn your celebrations into a fundraiser to honor a mom in your life. By hosting a brunch fundraiser, you can help GFWC Affiliate Organization March of Dimes ensure that parents have the tools they need to give children the best possible start in life. You can organize an in-person brunch with your favorite food and close community, host a virtual brunch and gather people from all over, share a meal with someone you care about, and more.
Sign up today to host an online fundraiser to support moms and babies!
Techie’s Tips: Using Control+F to Search Documents
Have you ever downloaded a PDF file, only to be unable to find the information you need within the document without reading it in its entirety? Whether you are looking for community service project ideas in the 2020-2022 Club Manual or tips for recruiting new members to your club, there are many valuable documents available to you in the GFWC Member Portal Digital Library. However, after you have downloaded the appropriate document from the Library, it can sometimes still be tedious or even challenging to find the information you need. To make your search easier, you can use the “Find” function on your keyboard by following these simple steps:
- Open the PDF file.
- Type CTRL+F (or Command+F on a Mac computer).
- Locate the search box that will appear in the top right corner of the screen.
- Type a keyword or phrase related to the information you are looking for in the search box.
- You will then be automatically taken to different locations within the document where the keyword is found.
- If the keyword or phrase is included in multiple places throughout the document, you can click through each instance to find the specific information you need.
Using the CTRL+F function to locate various keywords in a document will make the process of finding information much more efficient!
Johns Hopkins Webinar May 10
Johns Hopkins Medicine is offering a webinar at 7:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday, May 10, about the increased risk women face of developing osteoporosis as they go through menopause and experience significant changes in their bodies. Join endocrinologist and metabolic bone specialist Kendall F. Moseley, M.D., as she provides an enlightened discussion on osteoporosis risk factors, as well as the diagnosis and management of bone loss to prevent fracture. Visit the Johns Hopkins website to register for this event.
GFWC Marketplace: Juniorette Graduation Cord
Help your Juniorettes graduate in style with the new Juniorette Graduation Cords available in GFWC Marketplace. These pink graduation cords are a great way to represent members’ dedication to volunteer service and making the world a better place. Order yours today.
For information on mail service in your area, visit the USPS Service Alerts page. To speed up processing of your order, we request that you pay for your order at time of purchase in the Member Portal. |
