The excitement is palpable!
A few weeks ago, Christine Hull, Founder and Admin of the Mississauga and Area Women in Business (MAWB) networking group, announced a new initiative she was launching. She had applied for and been granted the right to create a new chapter of the 100 Women Who Care. While the roots of the chapter will be starting in the MAWB, the membership will consist of any women in Mississauga (and area) who are interested in giving back to our local community. A steering committee has been formed, and this new group is the 100 Women Who Care Mississauga*.
What is the 100 Who Care Alliance?
In 2006, Karen Dunigan found out about a critical need in her community: portable cribs for single mothers to reduce infant death rates from unsuitable sleeping conditions. The cost to supply them was estimated at $10,000. As a prominent member of her community, Karen knew she could reach out to 10 friends who would donate $1000 each, but she soon realised she could more easily reach out to 100 women and get them to donate $100. She arranged a meeting, presented the need to women in attendance, and in an hour she had raised $12,800, easily surpassing the immediate need. From this initial meeting, the idea of creating a quarterly “Giving Circle” was born, with the goal of $10,000 donated to a different local charity each time.
Let’s Get Giving!
On Thursday, April 1, 2021, 100 Women Who Care Mississauga will officially launch their website, www.100womenwhocaremississauga.com, as well as their Instagram, Facebook Page, and LinkedIn page. We will be looking for members to register and make the commitment to giving. The standard commitment is quarterly meetings with a $100 per person donation at each meeting, for a total of $400 per year. (For those who would like to participate with a lower financial commitment, it is also possible to register in a 2 or 4-person team with the same $400 total donation.) Leading up to the quarterly Giving Circle, nominations can be made via our website for local charities. The criteria for a nominated charity is it must be a local (ie, in Mississauga) and the need must be immediate. Three charities will be selected to present at the Giving Circle meeting, members will vote, and then everyone writes their cheques to the charity selected that night. It is a fully collaborative process amongst the women gathered.
What Can I Do?
Starting April 1, go to the website to our Membership page to register and complete the commitment form. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram. Finally, please share with your friends and invite them to join, too. The faster we reach 100 members, the sooner we can start doing some real good in our city. Membership is not capped at 100, though, so the more the merrier. Also, you don’t have to be a Mississauga resident to join, but please keep in mind this chapter’s objective is to meet the needs of our Mississauga communities.
Important dates
While the website and social media go live on April 1, 2021, we will be having a virtual Grand Opening Launch event on Tuesday, April 20, 2021. Details will be available on the website, but mark it in your calendar now! Our first Giving Circle is scheduled for Wednesday, June 9. 2021, so it’s time to start planning and researching the charities you would like to nominate.
The members of the Steering Committee are so excited for this opportunity and we can’t wait to share in this experience with all of you! It’s time to do some good!
*We would like to emphasize that this is a completely new chapter of the 100 Women Who Care. While previous 100 Women and 100 People Who Care groups have existed in Mississauga, they are no longer active.
By Xanthe LeBlanc
