Thank you to all the women who came out tonight for our third quarter meeting! We heard from three great causes including the Oakland-Hindsboro Charitable Foundation, East Central Illinois CASA and the food pantries at the Charleston and Mattoon high schools.
100 women member Mary Anne Hanner spoke on behalf of and as a board member of the Oakland-Hindsboro Charitable Foundation, whose mission is “private giving for public good”. They provide grants to causes within the Oakland School district such as meals for students, library programs, the high school musical, flags for veteran graves and local scholarships.
East Central Illinois CASA was our second presentation, brought to us by member Jill Nilsen. CASA advocates for the best interest of children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. A CASA advocate is assigned to each child, builds relationships with them and evaluates their living arrangements. They then work with the court system as a voice for that child’s welfare. East Central Illinois CASA is currently working with 168 children, and has a need to increase their volunteers to meet increasing case loads and also to expand to serve additional local areas.
Our final presentation tonight was chosen by member Lynda Nance. Representatives from both Charleston and Mattoon high schools spoke about their food pantry programs. Each of these programs provides food and personal hygiene items to students in need, helping provide for suppers and weekend meals when students are not at school.
The votes were close and ended in favor of the food pantries. The funds raised tonight will be split between the Charleston High School program and the Mattoon one. If you missed the meeting, please make your check payable to the “Mattoon High School Food Pantry”, who will then cut a check for half the funds to the Charleston program. If we did not receive your funds tonight, you will be receiving an email with instructions on where to send your check.
Come join us for our next meeting October 24th and bring a friend! Guests are more than welcome to come see what we do before joining. Our presenters for the next meeting will be chosen by these members/groups:
- Tonya Morton, Becky Boske, Paula Kroencker
- Cay Kolling, Linda Ghent, Emily Walk, Sheryl Wayne
- Wendy Miller