Winning Charities
We encourage our 100+ members to support any or all of the charities introduced at our meetings.
100+ member Sue Simmons presents the checks totaling $9,033 to Deborah Poland and her staff from Faith in Action.
100+ Women Who Care - October 2024 Recap
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the fourth quarterly meeting of 2024 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. And, she recognized the many guests and first-time attendees by show of hands. We now have 225 active members, with 14 new members joining since July. Since our inception in April of 2011, we have raised just over $486,000 for Medina County charities. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the significant impact made via our grassroots, philanthropic social giving circle.
We keep hitting new record donation amounts since our inception in 2011. Medina Personal Care Pantry received $12,670.
We hope you enjoy the space our new location offers. Kimberly Valco helped us so much in acquiring and setting up the space.
Cathy reviewed a few myths and questions regarding the 100+Women Who Care- Medina County. We have found that sometimes members don’t nominate non-profits because they don’t want to speak in public on their behalf. We certainly don’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable. And in those moments, should a member wish to nominate but not speak, we would like to be able to have another member speak on the non-profit’s behalf. Membership agreed that we should keep a list of women who would gladly step up and speak on a non-profit’s behalf if someone else has nominated them. A little coordination will need to take place, but it’s well worth the effort. Thank you for agreeing to that, ladies. It helps everyone involved.
July 2024 Winning Non-Profit
Medina Personal Care Pantry’s Kris Mog and Alicia Steinmetz shared where their donated funds were applied.
They increased homebound distributions by 40-50%! They were able to re-stock on many personal care items such as detergent, toilet paper, body wash, incontinence products, and more. And they will be working alongside Medina County Home in November 2024.
With our donations, the awareness of Medina Personal Care Pantry grew. Since July, other organizations have awarded Medina Personal Care Pantry funds to continue their mission. The domino effects are real and strong.
October 2024 Nominations
Non-profits picked from the bowl were: Free Clinic of Medina County, Medina Senior and Adult Foundation and Anchor of Hope
Nancy Peacock- Free Clinic of Medina County Free Clinic of Medina County is a free medical clinic that has served the residents of Medina County since 2004. Their mission is to provide free medical care to the working residents of Medina County who meet our income qualifications. Free Clinic of Medina County is staffed by 9 dedicated physicians, 11 nurses, and support staff who volunteer their time to provide care and assistance. Monies donated will go directly toward prescription costs for the 400 people the Free Clinic serves annually.
Mishalene Wasmer- Medina County Senior and Adult Foundation organizes events for older adults and offsets funding for the Medina Office of Aging to keep seniors independent for as long as possible. Last year, the foundation provided over 44,000 meals and personal wellness check-ins, similar to that of Meals on Wheels. Monies donated will primarily be applied to the meal program offered Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week for those with limited funds.
Anne-Marie Potemski- Anchor of Hope was established in 2023 to benefit those who have been displaced as refugees, widows or those suddenly out of work requiring life-caring assistance. Anchor of Hope provides furniture, home goods, clothing and food. Currently, Anchor of Hope is supporting 85 families with 20 families on the waiting list. Mattresses are the greatest need and donation dollars would go toward purchasing them.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Free Clinic of Medina County. If you haven't already done so, you may mail your check payable to Medina Personal Care Pantry to Peggy Andryszak, 3563 Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call, text, or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
We did mention an online portal was available for donation; however, it does need some adjustment to accept donations. If and when it is corrected, we will advise via email and Facebook communication. Until then, please mail checks Peggy’s address and any questions to [email protected].
Guests
If you attended as a guest last night and would like to be a part of this wonderful giving circle, you can join by completing the membership form here: https://www.100womenwhocaremedina.com/forms.html Please email your completed form to [email protected]. After your first meeting as a member, you too can nominate your favorite eligible Medina County charity!
Facebook Posts
We share updates via Facebook and those posts are shared by you- A LOT OF YOU! Because you’re doing this, women and non-profits are hearing about us and increasing awareness for the nominated non-profits.
When you have a moment, please share this post on your personal Facebook timeline. Send it via text or through messaging services to a friend. And if you have something inspirational to say about why belong to 100+ Women Who Care-Medina County is meaningful to you, write it in the post. It makes the post have greater impact. Thank you. https://fb.watch/v6plzXN9lh/
Mark your calendars for our first 2025 meeting: Tuesday, January 14, 7 pm.
July 9, 2024
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the third quarterly meeting of 2024 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 216 active members, with 15 joining since April and another 15 added to our membership just last night. Since our inception in April of 2011, we have raised just over $474,000 for Medina County charities. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the significant impact made of our grassroots, philanthropic social giving circle.
And, Cathy made special mention noting Yahab received yet another highest dollar amount of donations since our organization’s inception. During the meeting, donations exceeded $12,170. The trajectory of record-setting donations was celebrated. Thank you, all!
This meeting was greeted by welcoming even more new members and guests. Ladies.. thank you for bringing guests. Your stewardship toward extending our group’s mission will never go unnoticed.
ALERT: NEW MEETING LOCATION: Due to space constraints at the Blue Heron Room, the membership agreed by a show of hands moving to the Western Reserve Masonic Center Community Room, offered by our member Kimberly Valco, is a good idea. We will send out more details before our next meeting. This new venue provides a sound system, more parking, the ability to bring in beverages, easier access for all Medina County women, and dining options close by for before and after the meetings. We are very grateful for this offer and for the many years Blue Heron has hosted us. There is no cost for us to use this new meeting space, so we will no longer need sponsorships to pay for our meeting space.
For clarity, Cathy referred to our April meeting when two current members, Janet George and Cindy Maxwell, spoke on behalf of Yahab. Questions were asked as to whether this fell without our chapter guidelines, and it does. The presenters were offered a few minutes to gather their ideas and shared a thoughtful presentation. And we wanted to address comments made by a member of the leadership team during the Q&A time for Yahab; for future, the leadership team has chosen not to comment on non-profits to prevent any appearance of influence toward voting members.
Cathy thanked Lisa Scott of Sable Asphalt and Concrete for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. Last quarter’s nominations included: Spark Medina, Medina County Senior Foundation, and Yahab (winner).
April 2024 Winning Non Profit
Yahab’s Valeria Long and Sandy Smith shared where the donated funds will be applied.
RENT!! Our donations will cover Yahab’s rent for the remainder of 2024. Valeria shared her gratitude and complimented the 100+ Women Who Care-Medina. She has been impressed with how we work as a unit and that we really do like each other. (Yeah.. we really do.)
July 2024 Nominations
Non-profits picked from the bowl were: SustainEd, Medina County Arts Council, and Medina Personal Care Pantry.
Liz O’Grady spoke on behalf of SustainEd. SustainEd supplies the community garden and outreach programs for sustainable living. Monies donated to SustainEd would be used specifically to build a paved driveway to the community gardens. This will ease accessibility and offer a safer option to reach the gardens, especially for those who are disabled, those who have mobility issues, and for trucks delivering necessary items for the gardens’ continuation.
Jane Back and Janet George spoke on behalf of the Medina County Arts Council. The Arts Council is primarily supported via fundraising events throughout the county including the Chocolate Walk. Our donations would be applied to students seeking education and vocation in the arts. Recently, 22 applicants applied for scholarships, and only 6 were awarded monies. The goal is to supply arts scholarships to as many students as possible.
Kris Mog and Alicia Steinmetz spoke on behalf of Medina Personal Care Pantry. Located on the 2nd floor of Medina Presbyterian Church, the pantry supports 200 families and 600 individuals each month with personal care goods. Each monthly distribution for those who pick up or have items delivered costs $3,000. Donations would be used toward purchasing personal care goods; the need has greatly increased in our county. If they do not receive financial donations, the pantry will likely close in early 2025.
Awarded Non Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Medina Personal Care Pantry. If you haven't already done so, you may mail your check payable to Medina Personal Care Pantry to Peggy Andryszak, 3563 Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call, text, or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
Medina Personal Care Pantry also has an online portal. The yellow DONATE button is in the middle of the home page here: https://www.medinapersonalcarepantry.org/ Although there isn’t a place to note your 100+ Women donation, you can always email your donation receipt to Peggy at [email protected]
Guests
If you attended as a guest last night and would like to be a part of this wonderful giving circle, you can join by completing the membership form here: https://www.100womenwhocaremedina.com/forms.html Please email your completed form to [email protected]. After your first meeting as a member, you too can nominate your favorite eligible Medina County charity!
Mark your calendars for our final 2024 meeting: Tuesday, October 8th, 8 pm EST (please arrive by 6:45)
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
April 9, 2024
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the second quarterly meeting of 2024 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 220 active members, with 29 joining since January! Since our inception in April of 2011, we have raised just over $462,000 for Medina County charities. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the significant impact made of our grassroots, philanthropic social giving circle.
And, Cathy made special mention noting Majestic Equine Connections, LLC received yet another highest dollar amount of donations since our organization’s inception. As of the meeting, donations exceeded $11,462.00. The desire is to keep the quarterly donations growing beyond the $10,000 mark.
This meeting was greeted by welcoming even more new members and guests. Ladies.. thank you for bringing guests. Your stewardship toward extending our group’s mission will never go unnoticed.
Cathy reviewed our Social Media presence. Our organization can be found on the following social media sites, we love it when members share the meeting video clip and photos. Please SHARE your posts with us or share ours with your friends.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100PlusWomenWhoCareMedina/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/100_women_who_care_medina?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Linked In: Group- 100+ Women Who Care- Medina
Cathy thanked Tracy Bayer for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. The fee for sponsoring a meeting increased to $85 beginning January 2024. If you would like to sponsor one of our meetings, please contact Mo Wickey at [email protected]
Special Note: We have now instituted a 2-minute warning before the meeting starts. That’s when Mo turns our cool playlist music off. We want to ensure everyone has a seat and to honor our time to cover our giving in 60 minutes or less.
Last quarter’s nominations included: Spark Medina, Medina City Schools Foundation, and Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. (winner).
January 2024 Winning Non-Profit
Majestic Equine Connections, LLC’s Jennifer Stankewicz shared where the donated funds have been used:
a. Rider scholarship
b. Purchase of a new therapy horse
c. A sick horse’s life was saved with insulin paid using our donation dollars.
d. Rider helmets were purchased.
d. Needed hay was purchased.
e. Payment for a substitute instructor
April 2024 Nominations
There were four nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Yahab, Spark Medina, and Medina Senior Adult Foundation.
Jan Simmons presented for Spark Medina. Jan shared that there are 1,100 participants and the program is fully funded by donations. There are awards for acts of kindness to more than 10 local non-profits. Spark creates programs that teach empathy. The key is that small acts, compounded together in a grassroots manner, create a vast impact. Even Westfield Corporation is now using Spark’s programming within its organization.
Laura Toth presented for Medina Senior Adult Foundation. The foundation serves adults 60 years of age and older. 3,500 nutritious meals are served to seniors annually and that is determined to be the greatest need. Serving ready-made meals to seniors in locations throughout the county is their continued need and where the donated money will be applied.
Janet George and Cindy Maxwell presented for Yahab. Yahab was created during COVID. They told the story of Valeria Long, President, owning a consignment shop in town. During the pandemic, Valeria shifted gears and opened Yahab to support those who were in need of clothing at no charge. Yahab has served over 750 people. 12 local non-profits refer their clients to Yahab to receive clothing, jewelry, and housewares at no charge. Yahab pays rent at their current location, and rent is where the donated funds will be used.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Yahab. If you haven't already done so, you may mail your check made payable to YAHAB to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
Yahab also has an online portal. Should you wish to donate there, please remember to note in the memo section “100+ Women Who Care- Medina”. It will make it much easier for Valeria Long to filter donations and communicate with Peggy. https://www.yahab.org/givetoyahab
Guests
If you attended as a guest last night and would like to be a part of this wonderful giving circle, you can join by completing the membership form here: https://www.100womenwhocaremedina.com/forms.html Please email your completed form to [email protected]. After your first meeting as a member, you too can nominate your favorite eligible Medina County charity!
Final Notes
Thank you for arriving at the meeting earlier. We encouraged ladies to arrive by 6:45 pm to locate open seats, find a friend or connect with someone on the leadership team.
Our membership base is growing, and we couldn’t be more excited about the financial impact this has on our county.
Nominations! If you are nominating a non-profit, please consider arriving at 6:30 pm. Our bylaws note that anyone speaking on your non-profit’s behalf must be current with their donations and that we have a moment to verify your 501(c)(3) online. We want to know which non-profits you are passionate about!
You can always email us about nominating at [email protected].
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, July 9, 2024. 7 pm-8 pm EST (please arrive by 6:45)
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
January 9, 2024
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the first quarterly meeting of 2024 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 195 active members! To date, we have raised just over $451,000 for Medina County charities since we started in April of 2011. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the impact made in our grassroots, philanthropic social giving circle.
And, Cathy made special mention noting Cups Café received the highest dollar amount of donations since our organization’s inception. As of the meeting, donations were nearing $11,000.
This meeting was greeted by welcoming more new members and attending guests.
Cathy reviewed our Social Media presence.
Our organization can be found on the following social media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100PlusWomenWhoCareMedina/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/100_women_who_care_medina?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Linked In: Group- 100+ Women Who Care- Medina
Cathy thanked Western Reserve Masonic Community for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. The fee for sponsoring a meeting increased to $85 beginning January 2024. If you would like to sponsor one of our meetings, please contact Mo Wickey.
We added 6 new members since our October meeting. Thank you.
Last quarter’s nominations included: Spark Medina, Cups Café (winner) and Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. (winner).
October 2023 Winning Non-Profit
The donated funds are currently being used for the following programs:
a. Mercy Fund - $2,000 was applied to this fund
b. Outreach Programs- The balance of the funds donated will be used to for outreach programming
And a special note: Cindy mentioned that the drywall will be going up this weekend in the basement room where the outreach program will take place.
Nominations
There were three nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Spark Medina, Medina City Schools Foundation and Majestic Equine Connections, Inc.
Jan Simmons presented for Spark Medina. Jan shared that Spark partners with other non-profits to design curriculums to give children facts to understand reason behind needs. Almost 1,200 children participate in Sparks’ programming. Money is needed to perform volunteer acts in various locations throughout Medina County.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for Medina City Schools Foundation. The foundation supports all Medina City School students and teachers within the district with gap scholarships, tutoring and mentoring programs, teacher grants and more. Funding dropped during Covid and is now needed to support these crucial, programs that connect students with one another.
Jennifer Stankewicz and Sharon McClelland presented for Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. They provide equine therapy for people ages 4-80. Since it began in 2022, the need has been so great that they are expanding to a 10.5 acre facility that will have 5 miles of horse paths. Funds needed will be used for therapeutic horse riding for those needing financial assistance to do so.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. If you haven't already done so, you may mail your check made payable to Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. also has an online portal. Should you wish to donate there, please remember to note in the memo section “100+ Women Who Care- Medina”. It will make it much easier for Jennifer Stankewicz to filter donations and communicate with Peggy. https://donate.stripe.com/cN200J78xdjncAoeUU
Social Media
If you are on Facebook, please do join our group for updated information. And, we love when membership shares the meeting video clip and photos. Feel free to click this link to take you directly to the page and then click SHARE to your page or send it to a friend who has been asking about our organization. https://fb.watch/puEu6yBlc8/
Final Notes
Thank you for arriving at the meeting earlier. We encouraged ladies to arrive by 6:45 pm to locate open seats, find a friend or connect with someone on the leadership team. If you kept track, we not only got the meeting started at 7 pm, but finished at 7:57 pm. Believe us, we know how important it is to keep to our 60-minute benchmark schedule.
Our membership base is growing, and we couldn’t be more excited about the financial impact this has on our county. And we are aware that more chairs are needed and are working on that.
Nominations! More non-profit nominations will be coming forward in the months ahead. If you are nominating a non-profit, please consider arriving at 6:30 pm. Our bylaws note that anyone speaking on your non-profit’s behalf must be current with their donations and that we have a moment to verify your 501(c)(3) online.
You can always email us about nominating at [email protected].
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, April 9, 2024 at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center. 7 pm-8 pm EST (please arrive by 6:45)
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
October 10, 2023
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the fourth quarterly meeting of 2023 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 193 active members! Many new members joined since the start of 2023 and more added to the list last night. To date we have raised just over $441,000 for Medina County charities since we started in April of 2011. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the impact made in our grassroots, social giving circle.
This meeting was greeted by welcoming more new members and attending guests.
Cathy reviewed our Social Media presence.
Our organization can be found on the following social media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100PlusWomenWhoCareMedina/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/100_women_who_care_medina?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Linked In: Group- 100+ Women Who Care- Medina
One final note on payments- if you are writing one check for your entire team, or several people on your team, please indicate those names on your check memo. For anyone needing to catch up on past donations, please see Peggy Andryszak at the back table.
Cathy thanked Baird Financial for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. The fee for sponsoring a meeting will increase to $85 beginning January 2024.
We added 12 new members from our July meeting. Thank you.
A final note on the timeline from check collection to cashing it. We collect donations at the meeting, by mail, and when available, non-profit online portals. As a best practice, we wait approximately 6-8 weeks before we schedule the check presentation. At that point, your checks are given to the winning organization and we encourage them to cash them as quickly as possible. So, please know there may be a lag between when you write your check and the time it takes to post to your account.
Last quarter’s nominations included: H2O Foundation, Medina City Schools Foundation and Summer Reinforcement Program (winner).
October 2023 Winning Non-profitThere were five nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Medina Equine Connections, Inc., Cups Café and Spark Medina.
Jennifer Stankewicz and Sharon McClelland presented for Medina Equine Connections, Inc. This group has been in existence since March of 2022 and located on Wooster Pike. They work with disabled children to provide therapeutic horseback riding services. A key component to their program is integrating people with disabilities with those who are not. They offer small classes or 1:1 riding. The future would bring in the offer to adult riders as well and to offer scholarships as the fees range $35 for a group lesson and $400 for a private lesson. With growth comes the need for a new facility to house the therapeutic lessons and office space. This space requires every need from curtains to chairs. Our donations would be applied to the facility and possibly other needs as mentioned.
Cindy Maxwell presented for Cups Café. Cups Café has served those in need in Medina for over 15 years. Currently, 55-75 after school students and 30-40 adults are being fed there by donated food each day. The numbers are growing. There is also an after-school enrichment program located in the basement. Our donations would be directed to after school programming and supplies. The note here is that other non-profits offer after school programming, but Cups can utilize the space to bring in more organizations thereby increasing the reach for students. And donated funds will also be applied to the Mercy Fund for the homeless in need of a 1-2 hotel stay, especially as the colder months approach.
Jan Simmons presented for Spark Medina. Jan shared that Spark is an organization of Changemakers serving Medina County for 2 years. It is staffed by 3 volunteer educators who work with the local schools, and other county-wide organizations, tackling social subjects. Examples of project focus: Hunger, Social Isolation, Homelessness, Mental Health, Food Insecurity and Period Poverty. Spark’s forte is building programs centering on the emotional components of what these issues look like from the asking group’s demographic. It is funded with cash donations, corporate sponsorships and in kind donations. Our donations would fund more projects in the area and give Sparktacular and lasting project results.
Awarded Non-ProfitThe membership cast their votes and selected Cups Cafe. If you haven't done so already, you may mail your check made payable to Cups Cafe to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
Cups Cafe also has an online portal. Should you wish to donate there, please remember to note in the memo section “100+ Women Who Care - Medina”. It will make it much easier for Cindy Maxwell to filter donations and communicate with Peggy. https://cupscafe.harnessgiving.org/donate/?selected-method=one-time&amount=50&campaign_id=0&fbclid=IwAR1Rm1jKPU_46yP2IkbSoGMZZqSkPWF_bQwzdzFSKEf1_Rp7U3an56fiits
Social Media SharingLet's amplify our impact! Share our Facebook, Instagram, and/or LinkedIn posts and include a personal message on why 100+ Women Who Care Medina you are a member. You can also share our emails to help spread the word. After our meetings, we're asking each member to share the 'day after the meeting post' on your personal Facebook page. Why? Two important reasons:
1. Raise Awareness: Many haven't heard of us, and we want to change that. We're open to all women and eager to share our mission.
2. Support Non-Profits: As a member of 100+ Women Who Cared Medina, we are giving circle with a shared purpose: to bolster non-profits serving Medina County. Together, our 198 members, make a collective impact that truly matters.
Example:
'I've been a proud member of 100+ Women Who Care - Medina for 4 years and I love attending our meetings. Each time, I learn something new about our local non-profits and their amazing work. It's inspiring to support them with much-needed finances. Join us in making a difference!'"
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, January 9, 2024, at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center. 7 pm-8 pm EST.
July 11, 2023
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the third quarterly meeting of 2023 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 184 active members! And 26 new members since January 2023. Wonderful! To date, we have raised just over $432,000 for Medina County charities since we started in April 2011.
The meeting was greeted by welcoming new members and the many guests attending tonight. It was a packed house with standing room only. We added 10 new members from our April meeting, thank you for joining us!
Cathy thanked Maureen “Mo” Dabbieri for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. She kindly gifted our group the $74 fee Blue Heron charges. As many know, Mo is a local Allstate agent-owner and has supported 100+ Women for many years.
Some of you have asked about a timeline for checks being cashed. We collect donations at the meeting and by mail. Generally, we wait about 4-6 weeks before we schedule the check presentation. At that point, your checks are given to the winning organization and we encourage them to cash them as quickly as possible. So, please know there may be a lag between when you write your check and the time it takes to post to your account.
A reminder - if you are writing one check for your entire team, or several people on your team, please indicate those names on your check memo. For anyone needing to catch up on past donations, please see Peggy Andryszak at the back table.
Last quarter’s nominations included: Lodi Family Center, Integrated Family Solutions (winner) and Medina City Schools Foundation
April 2023 Winning Non-Profit
At our April meeting, the membership voted to apply our donations to Integrated Community Solutions. Lisa Morrison, representing the organization, deeply thanked our group for the donations now totaling $ 9,777.50. Integrated Community Solutions offers low-cost social enrichment programs for individuals aged 15 and above with developmental disabilities.
The donated funds are currently being utilized to support the following programs:
a. Money Management 101
b. Personal Safety Classes
c. Summer volunteer program at Feeding Medina County
d. Cooking classes in partnership with Buehlers
e. Nutrition classes with The Ohio State University
Nominations
There were five nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: H2O Foundation, Medina City Schools Foundation and the Summer Reinforcement Program.
Amy Steppenbacker presented for H2O Foundation. This group has been in existence for seven years in Brunswick. They host the events focused on students: the Back to School Supply Drive, providing students can “shop” for their school supplies, free hair cuts, and even have a bounce house and other activities. There is a Christmas Family Sponsorship program for those in need. And, also a scholarship program for high school seniors. Monies donated from 100+ Women would be directed at the expansion into Lodi where over 300 students are in need of these same programs afforded in Brunswick The students in Lodi will qualify for H2O’s program due to taking part in the free or reduced lunch programs.
Carolyn Grenfell presented the Medina City Schools Foundation, which was established in 1984 by volunteers. The Foundation provides teacher grants, scholarships and the Huddle/Shuddle program that offers high school students as mentors to elementary students. The Foundation has had difficulty maintaining its income stream since COVID and the many changes the school has undergone as a result. They have three fundraisers - the Run 4 Fun, a pancake breakfast, and the Bee Giving event. The group offers gap scholarships to students who may not have exemplary grades like those who usually get scholarships but are more like a C average. They also offer scholarships for families who are financially stressed.
Jane Langol presented for the Summer Reinforcement Program. This summer math and reading program has been in our community dating back to 1974 and will celebrate the 50th anniversary next year. There are currently 59 students in the program receiving small-group tutoring from certified teachers. Of those students, 1/3 could not afford the $400 summer tuition needed to access the program. Summer Reinforcement is funded by grants and foundations. However, a $10,000 annual donation by United Way has stopped; thus the ask from 100+ Women to bridge that gap has become necessary.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected the Summer Reinforcement Program non-profit for this quarter. If you haven't done so already, you may mail your check made payable to Summer Reinforcement Program to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected]
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, October 10, 2023 at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center. 7 pm-8 pm EST.
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
APRIL 11, 2023
Opening:
Cathy Posner opened the second quarterly meeting of 2023 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 179 active members!! And 16 new members since January 2023. Wonderful. To date we have raised $423,000 for Medina County charities since we started in April of 2011.
This meeting was greeted by the new Leadership Team and Cathy made mention of the truly phenomenal work the originators did to bring this organization to life!
Our email communication for meeting reminders has gone to a service called MailChimp. So, if you have not yet received your emails from the 100+ Women Who Care in Medina, please check your SPAM folders and move the email to INBOX. And, if you have changed your email address, please do send that information to [email protected]. Thank you, kindly.
Suggestion for Meeting Sponsorship:
Mo Wickey discussed how we currently pay the quarterly facility dues to Blue Heron. Each member brings $1 to the meeting to cover the $74 cost. Mo’s idea of having one member sponsor a quarterly meeting was voted on and met with overwhelming approval. If you would like to sponsor our meeting at the cost of $74, please email your intent to do so at [email protected]. Mo has a running list for whom would like to sponsor in chronological meeting order.
January 2023 Winning Non-Profit
At our January meeting, the membership voted to make our donations to Woven with Promise. Kathy Mohr, representing the organization, deeply thanked our group for the donation of $10,080. The funds were used for the following projects:
a. Set up a prom ministry for Medina County. Every school district was represented utilizing donated dresses to Woven With Promise
b. And those dresses were also utilized for a special needs students prom ministry held at St. Ambrose in Brunswick.
c. As had been discussed, they are getting quotes for a new computer, racks and tubs to build out their infrastructure.
d. Their new website is up.
e. There is a need to assist children in the foster care system. Woven With Promise is partnering with Bank of America, Girls Scouts and Cleveland Clinic for the collection organization and sorting of bags with items foster children need when moving to a new home. 100 bags are needed for these children.
f. An informational night will be held on May 11, 2023 to share what it takes to be involved in Woven With Promise ministry.
Nominations:
There were seven nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Lodi Family Center, Integrated Community Solutions and Medina City Schools Foundation.
Rebecca Rak presented for the Lodi Family Center. Over 700,000 meals have been served at this center. Additionally, this safe space for after school programming has become vital for local children, especially those suffering social anxiety. Accessing this programming for after school activities has become essential for the community for developing interest in different careers. In turn, the center has become a maker space whereby kids try new things that volunteers crossing varying vocations bring in. 400-800 kids per year come to the space to learn new skills and are open to different vocations. This costs $20 each child per month. Scholarships are offered but there is a financial gap to cover the cost. Receiving a donation from the 100+ Women would aid in covering that cost to children to attend the Lodi Family Center.
Lisa Morrison presented for Integrated Community Solutions. Her non-profit offers low-cost social enrichment programs for the developmentally disabled age 15 and up. Most evenings, you can find these programs located at Buehlers Community Room or the Medina County Board of Developmental Disabilities. Offered are: Yoga, game nights, hayrides, apple picking, movie nights and even educational programming for parents. Financial support typically comes from private donations and small grants. Our donation will be used to continue and expand the offering of these social enrichment programs and to also and to include those who are under age 15.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for the Medina City Schools Foundation which was established in 1984 by volunteers. The Foundation provides teacher grants, scholarships and the Huddle/Shuddle program that offers high school students as mentors to elementary students. The Foundation has had difficulty maintaining its income stream since COVID and the many changes the school has undergone as a result. They have three fundraisers - the Run 4 Fun, a pancake breakfast and the Bee Giving event. The group offers gap scholarships to students who may not have the exemplary grades like those who usually get scholarships but are more like a C average. They also offer scholarships for families who are financially stressed.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Integrated Community Solutions. If you haven't done so already, you may mail your check made payable to Integrated Community Solutions to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256 or you can pay with a credit card directly to Integrated Community Solutions at https://www.ics-oh.org/donate Please indicate in a memo for the online donation that it is in cooperation with the 100+ Women Who Care in Medina.
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, July 11, 2023, at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center.
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
JANUARY 10, 2023
Claudia Cihlar opened the first quarterly meeting of 2023 by welcoming over 90 women. Several raised their hands when she asked for first timers. We had eight new members join at this meeting.
Claudia reminded the membership that last year the leadership team had announced they were retiring and were looking for a group of women to succeed them. We are very excited that six women stepped forward to take on the task of continuing our philanthropic efforts: Kerry Kelley, Peggy Andryszak, Krista Wasowski, Melissa Komar, Cathy Posnar and Maureen (Mo) Wickey. They are all shadowing at this meeting to learn more about the workings of the group. Claudia also recognized the original founders of the group: Lisa Rice, Sue Simmons, Sandy Naples, Claudia Cihlar and Linda Loveless as well as the volunteers who help out at meetings: Marcie Hunt, Sue Schwab and JoAnn Weiler and thanked them for their service.
At our October meeting, the membership voted to make our donations to the Friends of the Medina County Home. Carol Feron, representing the organization, thanked our group for the donation of almost $10,000. The funds were used for projects and activities that fall outside their usual operating budget. The group provided a special Christmas dinner for residents prepared by a local chef and giving them the full experience of dining in a restaurant, complete with tablecloths and fancy dishes. They were even able to select their meal from a menu. Many had never visited a real restaurant. On Christmas Eve, the group provided sub sandwiches to the residents as an alternative to the normal fare. Funds were also added to the residents' individual "banks" from which residents can use the money to play games, and purchase special items. Money will also be spent on resident field trips, gardening projects and to replace the beloved peacocks that had met their demise. Again, Carol expressed their sincere gratitude for the generosity of our membership.
We currently have 169 active members with five joining at the October meeting. We raised $9,800 for the Friends of Medina County Home plus the late checks that came in at this meeting. To date we have raised $412,300 for Medina County charities since we started in April of 2011.
There were seven nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Medina County Senior & Adult Foundation, Medina City Schools Foundation and Woven with Promise.
Laura Toth presented for the Medina County Senior & Adult Foundation which is an arm of the Office for Older Adults started in 2018. Their efforts promote social welfare of seniors, keeping them independent in their communities. Funds would be used to purchase adaptive equipment at the Medina Senior Center. One particular senior pointed out how the bathroom doors were not easily accessible and they realized they needed to be installed with automatic openers which cost $5,000. The Office for Older Adults offers inexpensive meals to any senior that stops in a couple of times a week. But there are some who can't afford the cost. The Foundation would like to provide meal cards to those people and cover the costs of providing them. The Office for Older Adults services over 3,000 per year.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for the Medina City Schools Foundation which was established in 1984 by volunteers. The Foundation provides teacher grants, scholarships and the Huddle/Shuddle program that offers high school students as mentors to elementary students. The Foundation has had difficulty maintaining its income stream since COVID and the many changes the school has undergone as a result. They have three fundraisers - the Run 4 Fun, a pancake breakfast and the Bee Giving event. The group offers gap scholarships to students who may not have the exemplary grades like those who usually get scholarships but are more like a C average. They also offer scholarships for families who are financially stressed.
Kathy Mohr presented for Woven with Promise which is a non-profit boutique that provides new or gently used clothing, hygiene items, diapers and formula for abused women and children, foster children, and women coming out of human trafficking, all who don't have much. They work closely with local organizations like Job and Family Services. Their boutique is located at St. Marks Lutheran Church in Brunswick but soon they will be needing a larger space and hope to be more centrally located in the County. They make sure the clothing they offer is pristine, without stains or tears, because these folks deserve it. They hope to have a Prom Ministry to offer some of their beautiful donated prom dresses - all for free. The group is in need of a computer system for record keeping and would like to hire a Donations Coordinator and Volunteer Manager.
The membership cast their votes and selected Woven With Promise. If you haven't done so already, you can mail your check made out to Woven With Promise to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, Ohio or you can pay with a credit card or Paypal account online here: Woven With Promise
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center.
OCTOBER 11, 2022
The October meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina was called to order by Claudia Cihlar. She reported we raised $9,377 for Project Learn from our July meeting. The total amount raised for Medina County Non-profits since our inception is $401,785. Our current membership includes 179 members. We welcomed 3 new members at our last meeting. We collected $81 in room rental donations to cover the $74 fee so $7 will be carried forward for January’s meeting.
The leadership group of 100+ Women is looking to pass the responsibilities of running the organization on to a new team of leaders. If you have interest in learning about this opportunity, please send an email to [email protected]
Three organizations were chosen to present to the evening's membership. Laura Toth nominated Medina County Senior & Adult Foundation. The center serves older adults in Medina County at 3 locations. The request for funds included supporting Wednesday Senior Meals for no charge (they currently charge $2.50). They typically serve up to 50 Seniors per week with this program. In addition, the funds would also be used to install a hearing loop system at the Medina Center at a cost of $5K, and accessible restroom doors at Medina.
Claudia Cihlar nominated Friends of Medina County Home. FOMCH supports the 41 residents at the Medina County Home who live there full time. The request for support focuses on quality of life needs to directly aid the residents of the Medina County Home. These needs include personal items, funds for the resident run coffee shop, expanded activities including field trips, the annual Christmas dinner, the ‘seeds and plants’ program for the garden, bingo change, and a birthday & Christmas gift for each resident.
Lisa Morrison nominated Integrated Community Solutions. The program supports persons age 14 years and older with developmental disabilities in Medina. The request for funds is to support programming needs and resources for their social enrichment program free of charge. Funds would assist with art supplies, future dinner nights, dances and other activities, exercise mats, transportation costs and independent living classes.
The members voted to give their support to FOMCH this quarter. If you haven't done so already, please send your check made out to Friends of Medina County Home to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Rd., Medina, OH 44256.
Next meeting: Tuesday, January 10, 2023
JULY 12, 2022
The July quarterly meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina was called to order by Claudia Cihlar at 7pm on July 12. Claudia welcomed about 60 members and mentioned that we had nine new members join at our April meeting. Several hands went up when she asked if there were any new members at this meeting.
We have enjoyed the great hospitality of Blue Heron Brewery & Event Center as they have generously allowed us to use the Heron Room for our quarterly meetings without charge. They are no longer able to offer this perk and must charge a $74 service fee and $83 for linens. Claudia asked the membership for their thoughts on how to proceed. It became quickly evident that the membership enjoyed the Blue Heron facility and would like to continue with everyone pitching in a dollar or so at each meeting to cover the cost. So bring your dollar bills to the October meeting!
The organizing committee has been discussing a succession plan to move new people into the management of our group. We would like members to consider taking over one of the positions of management. We will discuss more about the responsibilities of each position at our October meeting. We just wanted to get people thinking about it.
At our April meeting, the membership chose Access the Arts to receive our donations which came to $9,800. Jane Back and Janet George thanked the group for their generosity and said that they have already purchased iPads, smart pens, chargers, cases and all that goes with them to be used for instruction at the Medina County Juvenile Detention Center. They will also use them at a facility for adults with disabilities in Wadsworth.
We had five organizations nominated to be selected from the bowl. Janet George pulled three: Project Learn, Lodi Family Center and Medina County Senior & Adult Foundation.
janice Jokkel presented for Project LEARN of Medina County which provides free education and resources for adults who want to improve their skills in reading/literacy, Math, ESL, High School Equivalency and test preparation. The organization has received many requests from Ukranian immigrants moving into the area to learn English. This requires many different services including providing transportation to their classes, connecting to child care, and technology support. Our donations would be used to expand these services for the growing need in the community. Project LEARN received our support in 2013. This is a second request.
Rebecca Rak spoke on behalf of the Lodi Family Center whose mission is to strengthen the community by connecting families. They facilitate programs that meet the needs of families through pantry, youth and parenting activities. During COVID most of their funds were spent on providing food to over 700 families. While that need still exists to a smaller degree, they are seeking funds to support their Kids' Maker Space to provide skills that will help kids succeed in life like math, literacy, social anxiety and robotics to name a few. Their goal is to help kids learn the skills to be successful employees.
Laura Toth presented for the Medina County Senior and Adult Foundation that has been a 501c3 non-profit since 2018. Their mission is to provide meals to needy seniors along with transit assistance. They need funding to subsidize the cost of providing meals on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for about 50 people for the next two years. This will help them bridge the gap to other funding.
The organization voted and decided to support Project LEARN. Checks can be made out to Project LEARN and mailed to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256. Or you can pay with a credit card by going to their website and clicking on the yellow "DONATE" button on the upper right: https://projectlearnmedina.org/ Be sure to add a couple extra dollars to cover their credit card processing fees.
See you at our next quarterly meeting on October 11 at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center. Don't forget to bring your $1 to cover set up costs!
APRIL 12, 2022
Despite the beautiful weather and the draw to want to spend time outside, more than 60 current and new members gathered to learn about local charities and contribute to make an difference in their missions on Tuesday, April 12.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and reminded everyone that the scope of 100+ Women Who Care Medina is to support 501c3 non-profits in Medina County and be able to significantly impact their mission by donating $8,000-$10,000 to their organizations collected at one simple one-hour meeting. Since our first meeting in April, 2011, we have donated $382,688 to support Medina County charities. At our January meeting our members chose Matthew 25 Coalition to receive our donations which amounted to $9,215. We currently have 169 active members and eight new members joined at this meeting.
In a world where it seems no one uses checks anymore or carries cash, the Steering Committee has been looking into a way that members can give their donation to the winning organization by using a credit card and make it more convenient for our members. After reviewing comments on the 100+ Women Alliance Facebook page on the same topic, we decided to implement a new process. If an organization has a website with a DONATE button, members can now send their credit card donation directly to the organization. We will work it out with the organization to be sure we have an accurate accounting of all donations made in this matter. However, this option will only be available for two weeks after the meeting date to be able to compile all the donation data to present to the organization. More information on how to take advantage of this convenience are listed below along with the information on the winning organization from our April meeting. Of course, we will always accept the option to pay by a check.
Ann Jones- Kenski from Matthew 25 Coalition spoke about how many people were helped by the $9,215 contributed from our January meeting. Matthew 25 Coalition assists area households with emergency needs such as rent, utilities, gasoline, medical supplies, and prescriptions and whatever else is needed. She thanked the group for their generosity and stated how even the smallest amount can make such a difference in people's lives. The money has helped people get out of serious situations by taking care of some of their bills. That often helps them get back on track to supporting themselves. She expressed that they are so genuinely appreciative.
Claudia invited Colleen Rice from Matthew 25 to draw the organizations to make their presentations at this meeting. Access the Arts and Summer Reinforcement Program were selected.
Members Jane Back and Janet George talked about the mission and projects of Access the Arts. The mission of Access the Arts is to bring arts experiences to at risk individuals, special needs individuals and older adults. Their projects include bringing arts and crafts projects to a local adult day care center once a month, working with Medina County Home residents to bring them art projects and ukulele lessons, providing visual arts and music to the detainees at the Medina County Juvenile Detention Center. They also provide free concerts and festivals on the square in Sharon Center. They are asking for funding to support the Hearts for Music program which provides opportunities and experiences for individuals with special needs to pursue their love for creating and performing music in a professional ensemble setting. At the core of Hearts for Music is an orchestra made up of 20 to 25 children and/or young adults with a variety of special needs. By manipulating and playing a combination of acoustic instruments, digital instruments and adaptive instruments, the Hearts For Music Special Needs Orchestra tackles a broad range of musical works ranging from classical symphonies to modern pop and rock. The funds that Access the Arts could receive would also be used to support Digital Workshops for at risk high school that are offered at Cliffside Artists Collaborative in Hinckley. Students learn graphic design and art production from a digital art professor from Kent State using iPads. The workshops help them explore potential careers in graphic design and digital arts. Schools don't usually have the funds to provide the iPads so Access the Arts plans to provide the money for purchase. Twelve iPads along with the Procreate software, smart stylus, charging cords, case and other accessories can cost almost $10,000.
Member Jane Langol presented for the Summer Reinforcement Program which is a tutoring program open to any child, age 3 to 14 years, in Medina County. It is a classroom-setting program with tutoring emphasis on Math and Reading as well as Speech Therapy. There are no new materials introduced—only reinforcing and re-teach of basic classroom skills. The tuition per child is $400 for the five-week program. The families of many of the children who need this service aren't always able to pay for the tuition. Consequently, Summer Reinforcement has to look elsewhere to finance their costs. They receive grants from Medina City Schools Foundation and United Way but not enough to cover their needs. Summer Reinforcement uses 9 classrooms at Blake Elementary and provides professional teachers and speech therapists for the students. The money would be used to underwrite the tuition for those who need the program but can't afford it.
The membership voted to award Access the Arts with our donations from the evening.
If you haven't paid your donation already, you can:
JANUARY 2022 MEETING
The January 2022 meeting marked the end of our eleventh year and because of COVID numbers we gathered via Zoom. More than 55 members joined us from their homes to learn more about the great things that Medina County charities are doing.
Working out the glitches of going totally online, we were able to offer a somewhat smooth meeting. Claudia welcomed everyone and thanked them for their continued commitments and support. She introduced Kim Clouse representing Live Inspired who was the recipient of our donations from the October meeting.
From the Live Inspired website: "Live Inspired, partnering with ParentChild+, strives to eliminate educational disadvantages for under-resourced Medina County families with 2 to 4 year olds by providing parents with skills and materials to prepare their children for school and life success." Kim spoke of the group's success last year, providing 92 visits and 46 hours of service to families, providing 19 new books and educational toys and many hours of bonding with parents to help them learn the importance of talking and reading to their children. In their 6 years they have serviced 53 families. Our donations have helped to fund a part time assistant coordinator. Kim encouraged our members to tell others about the work of Live Insipired and consider volunteering to be a home visitor. http://www.liveinspired.us/
Next, three organizations were pulled from the champagne bucket: Access the Arts, Maggie's Mission and Project Learn. Unfortunately, no one was in attendance to present for Project Learn so another name was drawn: Matthew 25 Coalition.
Jane Back and Janet George presented for Access the Arts which provides opportunities that unite the community and offer a platform for those who would like to share their talents to inspire others in all art forms. They offer a series of music, art and literature programs that bring enrichment and emotional healing to the residents at Medina County Juvenile Detention Center and the Medina County Home, the ACP Day Center and Medina County Foster Families. They also provide free arts events on the circle in Sharon Center. Our donations would go to purchasing 10 iPads for a digital art class at the juvenile detention center to help residents learn skills in marketing, architecture and other visual arts to prepare them for successful careers.
Maggie's Mission, presented by Katy Fuerst, is a 501c3 started in 2014 that serves as a last chance rescue for primarily dogs and equines. Maggie's Mission saves animals from shelters that are facing being euthanized because of diseases or not having the resources to take care of them. They are 100% volunteer based and call on their over 70 volunteers to go in and rescue these animals and make sure they get proper vet care and training. The animals are placed in foster care homes to get them healthy and adoptable. They cover their expenses with fund raisers, donations and discounted vet fees. Their biggest expense is with vet fees.
Collene Rice presented for Matthew 25 Coalition which serves the Lodi area providing emergency needs to low income residents like rent, utilities, gasoline, medical supplies, and prescriptions. The Coalition also coordinates with and provides information about other local service providers. In the past year they have serviced 89 families with this assistance. When someone is in need for anything, they find a way to help. Colleen told about an elderly retired woman with restricted income who found mold in her apartment. She found someone to come in an remove it but had no place to live while it was going through the removal. Matthew 25 Coalition found temporary housing for her so she could be safe.
The membership voted by email and the winning charity is Matthew 25 Coalition.
October 12, 2021 We gathered at Blue Heron Brewery & Event Center and on Zoom Tuesday, October 12 and were welcomed by Claudia Cihlar. Claudia encouraged our members to always be looking for 501c3 non-profits in the County that might be able to use a little boost financially with our donations. She reported that we raised $8,900 from our July meeting to benefit Feeding Medina County. That brings our all time total amount of funds we have raised for local charities to $364,367. Congratulations to everyone for that accomplishment!
Claudia announced that the Medina County Auditor's newsletter will be featuring an article about 100+Women Who Care Medina. So keep an eye out for that article.
Katy Fuerst from Feeding Medina County was introduced and thanked our group for their donation to support their mission. Feeding Medina County has been expanding their outreach to other areas of the county to meet clients where they are. Tomorrow they will be conducting their first distribution in Brunswick. Also, they have seen an increase in the number of families served at Medina Fairgrounds from 155 to 175. They are currently serving 115% of what they served pre-pandemic. Katy said food insecurity still exists and they will keep fighting to take care of it.
Katy drew the organizations from the bowl to select who would be presenting: Live Inspired, Access the Arts, and ORMACO.
Kim Clouse presented for Live Inspired whose mission is to eliminate the educational disadvantages for under-resourced children ages 2 to 4 year by providing parents with skills and materials to prepare their children for school and life success. A volunteer Learning Specialist visits homes twice a week. The visitor brings books and toys and models reading, playing and conversation activities that both enrich the child and support the parents as the child's first teacher. They need funds to purchase books & toys, provide storage of them and support the salary of a part time coordinator.
Presenting for ORMACO (Ohio Regional Music Arts Cultural Outreach) was Linda Stalvey. It's mission is making music, arts and culture accessible to all, with a focus on underserved, disadvantaged and rural populations in areas identified to be lacking in cultural opportunities. ORMACO brings us the Jazz & Opera on the Square, Party Buses to performances at Playhouse Square and New York City and free concerts around the county in the schools, senior living centers and the general community. Over 12,000 people benefit each year from ORMACO programming. Twice a year they present the World Tour of Music and conduct concerts and workshops in schools, the library's and with local organizations. They need funding to pay the artists fees for all of their programming. Their motto: For without culture, man has no soul.
Jane Back & Janet George presented for Access the Arts which was started in Sharon Center but quickly expanded their outreach to other parts of the county. They offer 6 free concerts on the circle in Sharon Center, 3 yoga events, and Sharon Showcase on the circle. Their mission is to unite the community with arts programming for older adults, special needs youth and youth at risk. They have supported music and art programming for incarcerated youth at the Juvenile Detention Center and provided arts programs for residents of Medina County Home as well as ukelele lessons to residents. They are starting a pilot program, Fine Art with Friends, that would unite 3rd graders from Highland Schools with those from Akron Public Schools, hoping to help each group learn more about diversity and respecting our differences by using art to break down barriers.
The membership voted and selected Live Inspired to receive our donations. If you haven't done so already, please send your check made out to Live Inspired to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, Ohio as soon as possible so we won't have to keep coming back with emails to remind you to get your checks in. Thanks so much!
Our next meeting will be January 11, 2022. Happy Halloween! Happy Thanksgiving! Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!
July 13, 2021
It was great to see the smiling faces of our members after an 18 month separation. We had about 55 attend the meeting in person and eight who joined us through Zoom. We celebrated our 10th Anniversary and raising over $355,000 for Medina County charities. Claudia Cihlar thanked all the women of our group who have gotten us to this point.
At our April meeting, the membership chose Operation Homes to receive our collective donations. We were able to give Operation Homes $8,750 to support their mission of serving the homeless of Medina County. Operation Homes Nancy Abbott explained that when COVID shut down the churches, they were faced with nowhere to place their clients. They were forced to house them in hotel rooms which quickly ate up their available funds. Where they would normally spend $30,000 a year, they had already spent $35,000 for this year so far. Nancy sincerely thanked the group for this donation which will help them to continue to service the homeless without running out of money.
Nominations were drawn from the bowl and the organizations chosen to present were Access the Arts, Summer Reinforcement Program and Feeding Medina County.
Jane Back and Janet George presented for Access the Arts. Their mission is to provide free arts programs that connect to the underserved, specifically at-risk elderly and youth. It was started in 2018 with all volunteers. Current funds will sustain them through October. Programs include: working with Medina County Home residents providing crafts, music therapy and lessons, holiday parties, and bonfires. They also provide music and art therapy and lessons to inmates at Medina County Juvenile Detention Center and arts and music enrichment for a Wadsworth Adult Day Care. They are developing a new program called Fine Arts With Friends that will be a program that brings needs-based students from Medina county schools and Akron Schools together to celebrate not only arts, but also people of different color and backgrounds. Money was requested to support these outreach programs.
Jane Langol presented for Summer Reinforcement Program which is a 40-yr. program that offers math and reading tutoring during the summer months, five days a week to preschool through age 14 children. It is held in person which is especially critical with the post pandemic interruption of learning. Using State of Ohio guidelines and IEP’s, licensed professional instructors and speech and music therapists provide the instruction and support.. Expenses to be covered include insurance and scholarships for those who can't afford the tuition. Program fee is $400 per child. Outside of COVID, 85-90 students were typically enrolled, but currently they have about 57.
Feeding Medina County was presented by Katy Fuerst. FMC educates, engages and takes the lead to create an environment where no one goes hungry. Twenty-three percent of children in Medina County face food insecurity on a daily basis. They provide about 350 weekender bags to children filled with food to get them through the weekend. A collaboration is taking place with Metropolitan Housing for Staples for Seniors which provides fresh produce, meat and dairy once a month to seniors. Emergency food distribution occurs at the Medina County Fairgrounds, Lodi, Wadsworth, and soon a Brunswick location. During the month of June they distributed an additional 550 lbs. of food from their office which does not include what was given out at their distribution sites. Feeding Medina County has partnered with Cathy's House to provide residents with their food needs as they are recovering.
Members voted to give our donations to Feeding Medina County. If you haven't already, please make your check out to Feeding Medina County and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256. We ask that you get your checks in as soon as possible so we can get them to Feeding Medina County more quickly.
When the meeting was adjourned we enjoyed a delicious birthday cake to celebrate 10 years of giving over $355,000! Our next meeting will be Tuesday, October 12. Mark you calendars and see you then!April 13, 2021
April 13, 2021
We had almost 50 members join in on our April quarterly Zoom meeting on Tuesday, April 13. Linda Loveless greeted the group in place of our usual facilitator - Claudia Cihlar. Claudia was in California meeting her first grandchild - Huck - for the very first time!
This meeting marked the 10th anniversary of 100+ Women Who Care Medina! After a round of cheers we learned that our group has donated $345,854 to Medina County organizations during that time.
We also applauded the news from our member Krista Wasowski, Medina County Health Commissioner, that we will probably be able to meet in person at our next quarterly meeting in July!
From our January meeting we were able to donate $8,976 to Medina Cares. Danica Ziese, co-president of the board for Medina Cares was present. She explained that Medina Cares provides financial assistance to residents that are in a medical crisis - paying for typical monthly expenses like rent, utilities, transportation, medical bills and more. As a result of the pandemic the need for their assistance has risen drastically. Our donations will help fill in the gaps.
The three organizations that were nominated from the bowl were: Feeding Medina County, Operation Homes and Lodi Family Center.
Katy Fuerst presented for Feeding Medina County. whose mission is to educate,
engage and lead our community in creating an environment where no one goes hungry.
All of their services have seen increased challenges due to the pandemic: Weekender bags for students, Staples for Seniors, and food distribution to struggling residents.
Sue Simmons presented information about Operation Homes which is the only homeless program offered in Medina County. Operation Homes partners with local churches for shelter, food and the administration of life skill programs. They provide the opportunity for individuals to be independent, both personally and financially. They are solely funded through fund raisers and personal donations, no government subsidies. With churches being shut down as part of COVID protocols, the organization had to house the homeless in local motels, greatly increasing their expenses and more than doubling their budget since June 2020. With just one paid staff member, Operation Homes strongly depends on community volunteers and volunteers from their partner churches.
Rebecca Rak shared information about Lodi Family Center and how the pandemic has affected their ability to offer services and the demand for services. Lodi Family Center offers a safe place where families and their children can come, have fun and hang out with their friends. It is an important option for working parents who would otherwise be forced to leave their children at home with no adult care or supervision. They offer after school programs, 4-H clubs, parenting programs, offering connections to other community resources and nutrition support with their food pantry. The food pantry has seen an increase in number of people served from 2,000 per year to 20,000 during the past year, serving over 565 families. They plan to introduce programs to teach citizens how to cook nutritional foods from their pantry items. They also want to improve their outreach, possibly offering Zoom classes on various topics.
The membership emailed their votes and the majority chose Operation Homes to receive our funds from this meeting.
January 12, 2021
Claudia welcomed a group of 51 members to our January Zoom meeting, thanking everyone for attending. Despite a few glitches here and there, we were successful in choosing another organization in need of our funding. We learn more each meeting about managing a large group of Zoom participants!
At our October meeting we raised $8,338 for Cathy's House. To date, 100+ Women of Medina has raised $336,000 to help Medina County non-profits.
Stefanie Robinson thanked the membership for their support of Cathy's House. Like most things, the COVID pandemic has affected the operations of Cathy's House. One of the clients tested positive for COVID which meant that the entire house had to quarantine for two weeks which meant no work, no money for rent, not money for food. They also had major repairs in the basement. Stefanie said this money couldn't have come at a better time.
The following organizations were picked from the bowl to make presentations: Access the Arts, Medina Cares and the Summer Reinforcement Program.
Jane Back said Access the Arts was founded in 2018 to provide free arts programs to the underserved. They offer weekly arts classes at the Juvenile Detention Center. They also provide outreach at Medina County Home through concerts, and arts programming. They are planning to start a Sister School Project that pairs Medina City Schools students with Akron Public Schools to celebrate the arts with 3rd graders, teaching them to love the arts and create long lasting friendships.
Jean Holland presented for Medina Cares, saying that they provide temporary financial assistance to Medina County residents 19-59 years old who are experiencing a medical crisis. They provide temporary financial support to pay for typical monthly expenses, such as rent, utility bills, transportation, medication, groceries, and medical bills. Last year - 2020 - was particularly difficult as they saw a 67% increase in people needing their assistance. Our funds would be used to meet this increasing need as well as to purchase an answering assistant service to take client calls as this is a completely volunteer organization.
Jane Langol explained that the Summer Reinforcement Program is a tutoring program open to any child in Medina County. It is a classroom-setting program with tutoring emphasis on math and reading. There are no new materials introduced-only reinforcing and re-teach of basic classroom skills. Speech therapy is offered, plus Autism services. The attending child must be 3-12 years of age as of the first day of school. Their mission is to maintain the academic skills of kids over the summer months. Funds would be used to hire a speech therapist and tuition support as only 43 out of 85 pay the tuition in full.
The membership voted by sending an email to the 100+ email account. The majority voted for Medina Cares.October 13, 2020
Well, we survived our first Zoom meeting and it went pretty smoothly. Thank you to all who went on the adventure with us!
We ended up with about 55 attendees with their glowing faces displayed on our computer screens. Claudia welcomed everyone and explained some of the particular guidelines we needed to follow to make the meeting successful. She thanked everyone for the donations from January's meeting to Community Action Wayne Medina. Melissa Pearce, representing the organization, provided a report on the program and how the funds were used in the email sent out to members last week.
The organizations selected from the bowl to present their requests were: Junior Leadership Medina County, Lodi Family Center and Cathy's House.
Colleen Rice explained that the Junior Leadership program brings together high school students from all county schools and home schooling to experience everything that makes Medina County great, and work on community projects, learn about careers and connect to the community with their support.. There are 74 students in the current class. Since COVID, there have not been any fund raisers. The money is needed to underwrite the cost of tuition. Students only pay $150 of the $1,000 that it costs for the program. And no student is turned away because of financial issues.
Rebecca Rak shared that there are 3 audiences served by Lodi Family Center. They offer a Youth Center, Senior Center and Food Pantry. Since COVID 19 struck, most of their efforts have focused on the food pantry where demand has increased remarkably. To compare, in 2019 they provided 158,000 pounds of food and through mid - September 2020 they have already distributed 260,000 pounds. They accomplish this with just one part-time employee. All the rest are volunteers. Our funds would be used to help them with the increased demand.
Stephanie Robinson reported that Cathy's House has been around since 1998 and it is the only recovery housing in Medina County. They help residents transition into long term recovery providing recovery support and employment. Our donations would be used to provide resident resources, basic needs like clothing, recovery services, books, in-house support and support for staff. Residents are screened before they are admitted. The average stay is 217 days.
All 100+ members in attendance were given a chance to vote by sending their vote to the 100+ email address. After tallying all votes, the group chose Cathy's House to receive our October funding.
Please mail your checks made out to Cathy's House to:
Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256.
All checks must be received within 2 weeks as that is when they will be presented to representatives of Cathy's House.
Mark your calendars for our next meeting (most likely it will be via Zoom again): Tuesday, January 12, 2021.
Stay safe
January 14, 2020
About 70 members kicked of a new decade of giving at our meeting on Tuesday at Blue Heron Event Center and Brewery.
Claudia welcomed the group and announced that to date we have raised over $317,700 for 35 Medina County charities.She expressed condolences to the family and friends of member Joy Wright who passed away recently. We were then introduced to members Meghan Cihlar and Amy Steppenbacker from Charles Schwab Corporation. They talked about the Charles Schwab Pro Bono Challenge. The challenge is a skills-based volunteering program that invites local nonprofits to work with experienced Schwab employees on specific business challenges to impact and improve their operations. Locally, they have worked with The Children's Center and Newbridge Place.. They would like to work with other Medina charities and are trying to get the word out about their free services.
We have raised $9,922 for the Medina County Historical Society from our October meeting to help with the purchase of the McDowell Phillips house. Historical Society rep Joann King stepped up to the front of the group and exclaimed, "We bought a house!" With our donations and the help of many others, they were able to raise $300,000 in seven months to purchase the house. Now they begin the process of refurbishing. Joann said the fact that they don't have a mortgage will impact the success of acquiring grants and further funding to get the house in shape. She was very appreciative of our efforts.
The three organizations that were drawn from the bowl were Junior Leadership Medina County, Summer Reinforcement Program and Community Action Wayne/Medina.
Colleen Rice spoke on behalf of Junior Leadership which is a county wide program where high school juniors gather once a month to engage in hands-on and experiential activities taking them everywhere around the county to learn about what makes Medina County amazing.The students take on philanthropic projects to help local organizations take on problem solving and community building. Our funds would be used to help these Venture Projects to be completed.
Jane Langol represented the Summer Reinforcement Program which is a tutoring program open to any child, preschool to 14 years, in Medina County. It is a classroom setting with fully licensed teachers that primarily focuses on Math and Reading. To help finance tuitions that are defaulted, the program is seeking additional financial support.
Melissa Pearce spoke about Community Action Wayne/Medina which provides services to low-income families, helping them to get out of poverty with a variety of services.They are seeking funds for their Getting Ahead program to help high school juniors and seniors at Cloverleaf High School design their own path out of poverty. The program teaches self-sufficiency and offers a robust curriculum of project development and management, exchanges with the community, and individual academic and career plans to get students ready for leadership in the workplace and in life.
The group selected Community Action Wayne/Medina to receive our funding for this first quarter of 2020. If you haven't done so already, please mail your check made out to Community Action Wayne/Medina to: Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Rd., Medina, OH 44256.
Mark your calendars for our next meeting on Tuesday, April 14!
October 9, 2019
October's meeting was a fun night with celebrating milestones, new faces and supporting the the purchase of one of Medina's historic gems. But we're getting ahead of ourselves!
Almost 80 ladies (and one gentleman) gathered in the Heron Room at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center to socialize, celebrate and support our communities. Claudia kicked off the celebrating by announcing that 100+ Women Who Cares has raised $307,000 for Medina County charities, topping a new milestone.
We were happy to recognize 8 new members who had joined that evening and look forward to their participation and support of local charities.
Sharon Baker, Laura Kotalec and Terry Pfister, representing Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E., the recipient of our funds from the July meeting, spoke movingly about how the more than $9,000 they received will impact the lives of our county teens. The money will provide for at least 70 scholarships for teens to learn special driving skills and crash avoidance techniques through training with the Teen Driving program with Drive Team. As she approaches the 8th anniversary of loosing her daughter, Kelli, in a driving accident, mother and founder of Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E., Sharon Baker said, "We many never know how many lives will be saved by this donation."
The three organizations selected from the bowl were Live Inspired, Medina County Historical Society and Healing Hoofs.
Carolyn Labbe presented for Live Inspired which is a group that helps economically and educationally disadvantage families of children ages 2-4 by inspiring parents to be the child's first teacher, playing, reading with them so that they are well prepared to enter school. Volunteers visit the family twice a week bringing a new book and new toy and engaging with the child for about a half hour, modeling teaching behaviors that the parent can follow. Live Inspired currently serves 20 families and it costs about $300 a year to provide services to each child. Our funds would be used to purchase new toys, books and materials for the kids.
Joann King presented for the Medina County Historical Society which is committed to the preservation of Medina's past for the future of its residents. The group has the chance to purchase one of the gems of Medina history - the Blake/McDowell/Phillips house at the end of W. Washington street and refurbish it to its shining glory.The home has remained in the same family for five generations. The house is 5,000 square feet and would be used for museum displays as well as a unique venue for events. The home will be on the CDC Holiday Home Tour on December 8. It will also be open during the Candlelight Walk. Funds would go toward the purchase and refurbishing of the home.
Healing Hoofs was presented by Judy Cross. The organization is run by a husband & wife who rescue horses and train them to interact with abused children, acting as a calming force in their lives. It's been found that sometimes it's easier for children to talk to animals than to humans. They want to be able to take the horses to the Juvenile Detention Center to help those incarcerated. Our donations would go to care for the horses and assist with the needed supplies and equipment to transport the horses to the Detention Center.
As people were deciding their votes, we announced that Goodyear Company has recognized the good work of our chapter of 100+ Women Who Care by offering a discount on tires to our membership, family & friends. The effort was spearheaded by our member Melissa Komar Ross. If you are interested, here is the link to the information you need: Goodyear offer The letter says the offer expires on Oct. 18 but they have extended it to the end of the month.
The voting resulted in Medina County Historical Society being selected to receive our donations.
When the meeting was adjourned we enjoyed a delicious cake and visiting between members. Alyssa Alfano from the Gazette took a group picture and posted a great article on the front page of Wednesday's Gazette.
July 9, 2019
About 70 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Blue Heron Event Center Tuesday evening.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and introduced Tim Van Arsdale from Cups Cafe which was the recipient of $9,500 from our donations at the April meeting. Cups Cafe, located on North Court Street in Medina, provides a safe, comfortable place for kids to hang out and get something to eat. It gets kids off the streets and everything is offered free. They exist 100% on donations. Local food stores and restaurants often donate extra food. The 100+ funds are being used to upgrade kitchen equipment and purchase supplies. As a result of our donation, Grace Church raised an additional $2,500 to help with funding.
Three of our members who are also active with Cups Cafe pulled the slips from the nominating bowl and the groups selected were Habitat for Humanity, Medina County Junior Leadership and Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E.
Pat Neil presented for Habitat for Humanity which has been in Medina since 1991. Habitat provides new or rehabbed housing to low income families. They have helped purchase or rehab 43 homes since they started. Their 44th home should be ready the end of this month. They have 9 families who have qualified and are waiting for homes. Families are required to put in 250 sweat equity hours per single or 400 hours per couple, working on their and others' homes to qualify. The work is done by volunteers and requires quite a bit of coordination to time the work and offer supervision. Our funds would be used to build and coordinate the volunteer program.
www.medinacountyhabitat.org
Coleen Rice spoke on behalf of Junior Leadership which is a program for high school juniors in Medina County to help them develop leadership skills and make a difference in their schools and in their community. They take on projects in the community, creating a business and marketing plan. For example, they saw a need at the Juvenile Detention Center to put together care kits. They learned that even when the juveniles were released, they were requesting these items like toothpaste because they didn't have them at home. They receive over 80 applications for the year-long program but space is limited to 45 students. Our funding would provide funding for scholarships. The program cost per student is about $1,000 but students only pay $150 each, so the balance must be raised from donations.
leadershipmedinacounty.org/juniorleadership
Information about Kelli's Crusade was presented by Sharon Baker and Laura Kotalac. Sharon's daughter was killed in a car accident in 2012 when her car slid off a recently paved road, swerved back across the road into a tree. There were no center lines, no edge lines and the road should not have been reopened. The mission of Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E. (Continuing Road Upgrades, Safety Awareness, Driver Education), is to save as many lives as possible on our roads through proper education, road improvements, and creating awareness across our communities. Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E. provides scholarships to teen drivers to attend a 4-hour Winter Driving Skills class at Drive Team in Cuyahoga Falls. The class is the only one of its kind in Ohio and Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E. seeks to provide scholarships for students who can't afford it. Our funds would go to those scholarships.
www.kelliscrusade.org
The membership voted to support Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E.
April 9, 2019 meeting
The second quarterly meeting of 100 Women Who Care of Medina met in a beautiful room provided by Blue Heron Brewery & Event Center on Tuesday evening.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed our members and thanked the team from Blue Heron for their hospitality. She stated that this is our 32nd funding cycle and to date we have raised $286,900 to fund 32 charitable organizations.
Claudia reminded everyone that at the January meeting the membershpp decided to allow an organization that had received funding previously to submit a request again as long as at least three years had passed since the original funding.
Sue Simmons and Linda Loveless were invited by member Sarah Arend to speak about our group at the Medina Hospital Community Advisory Council last week. The group is made up of the movers and shakers of Medina County - mayors, school superintendents, chamber or commerce execs, etc. The group was very interested in our fundraising model and had many questions.
At our January meeting, we gave $9,216 to The Children's Center which services abused and neglected children. Rhonda Wurgler, Executive Director, thanked the group for providing the funding to build a new facility that can accommodate more clients and allow them to expand services. They had to start turning people away at their old facility. But now they no longer need to do that. They just opened the doors to the new facility two weeks ago and Rhonda invited everyone to their Open House in June. As a result of our donations, The Family Advocacy Room will be recognized as being sponsored by 100+ Women Who Care Medina. Rhonda said that without the support of 100+ Women back in 2012, The Chldren's Center would not have survived to be here today. It was a critical time. April is Child Abuse Awareness month and in June they will be planting their pinwheels, one for each child served. This year they will be planting 283 pinwheels which is 200 more than last year!
We moved on to the presentations part of the meeting and three organizations were selected from the bowl: Habitat for Humanity, Cups Cafe and Free Clinic of Medina County.
Patricia Neal presented for Habitat for Humanity which was started in 1991 to provide new or refurbished homes to lower income families. They usually provide 1 or more homes per year but this year it will be 5 homes. There are 11 families on the waiting list. They pay for materials and skilled labor and depend on the help of many volunteers. They receive money from sales at their ReStore which sells donated items from contractors. The group just acquired the Hawkins building and will be able to expand their offerings. Through their program qualifying families can receive a 0% interest mortgage. Money will be used to expand their volunteer program and add some women's, youth and families programs to build smaller projects.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for Cups Cafe where you can find coffee, comfort and conversation. It was started by Tim Van Arsdale as a safe place to hang out that can help at risk kids. They are open Monday through Saturday from 10am to 4:30 pm. It is open to anybody and they get a lot of walk-ins - especially kids from Garfield, the High School and Claggett. They often can get over 100 people a day. Tim is the only person on the payroll, and the operations are mostly run by their over 60 volunteers. They also offer free holiday dinners. They get donations from local restaurants and churches. Funds would be used to upgrade the kitchen and to supplement food, paper products, and cleaning products.
Liza Wallace presented for the Free Clinic of Medina County, formerly known as Medina Health Ministries, which is a free medical clinic serving the residents of Medina County by providing free medical care to the working residents of Medina County who meet the income requirements. It is staffed by dedicated physicians, nurses and support staff who volunteer their time to provide care and assistance.Their office is located at Medina Hospital. Their only paid staff is an executive director and part time RN. Funds would go to support diabetics patients by providing supplies, monitors, lancets. Also they have some originally donated equipment that needs to be replaced.
The membership voted by ballot and selected Cups Cafe to receive funds from the April meeting.
January 8, 2019 meeting
100+ Women Who Care Medina kicked off 2019 with an informative meeting on Tuesday, January 8.
Claudia Cihlar began the meeting by offering support and concern to one of our members, Joy Wright, who is facing some difficult health issues.
This meeting begins our 31st quarter of charitable funding. During that time we have raised $277,372 to help 30 local charities. We currently have 196 active members. We had 19 members from last October's meeting that did not contribute.
Claudia reminded the membership that at the last meeting the membership decided to allow organizations that had received funding in the past, the opportunity to again put in a request for our support. The stipulations are that it must be at least 3 years since the organization originally was funded and that the membership be made aware of this.
As the result of the October meeting, the membership donated $9,708 (with more still coming in) to Newbridge Place. Claudia introduced Elizabeth Makita from Newbridge Place. Elizabeth thanked the membership for their support of her passion to take care of veterans who are not mentally well by providing all their needs - housing, transportation, food, etc. These folks often fall between the cracks. The organization was in dire need of a new vehicle to transport clients to doctor's appointments, shopping, and short trips. They were down to just one working vehicle. With our funds they were able to get some matching funds and a loan to purchase a Toyota Sienna with a lift seat. Elizabeth said it has made such a difference in what they can provide to their residents.
Elizabeth assisted with pulling the nominations from the bowl. Selected organizations were The Children's Center of Medina County, Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E., and Running to Be Well.
Rhonda Wurgler spoke for The Children's Center. She started off by thanking the membership for their donations back in 2011. The Center was at a critical point then with no money in the bank and possibly facing closing the facility. Our donations were the shot in the arm they needed and she was pleased to be able to stand before the organization and talk about expansion. The mission of The Children's Center is to nurture abused and neglected children through collaboration, advocacy, treatment and prevention in a child-friendly and safe place. They also provide a family-friendly location where children of Foster Care can reconnect with their families to visit, talk and play in a supervised location. The need for their services has grown and it be came evident that they needed more space. They are currently involved in a capital campaign to expand space at a location on Smith Road in Medina to better serve their clients. These funds would be used toward that endeavor.
Melanie Simcich presented for Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E which is an organization that supports driver safety and driver training along with awareness of needed road condition improvements. The organization was started as a result of a horrible accident killing Kelli Baker in 2011. Kelli was driving to school at Wooster ATI on a section of road that had been resurfaced the day before. It was raining and there were no center lines or edge lines and a 5" drop off on the side. Kelly's right tires dropped off the side when the road narrowed with no warning, causing her car to spin off the road, hit a tree and burst into flames. As a result of this horrific accident Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E was founded to impact the lives of teen drivers by crusading for safer roads, providing safe driving awareness and enhancing driver education. The group offers scholarships to teens to be able to attend Driving Skills Class through Drive Team, one of two Elite Driving Schools in Ohio. There they learn so much more than the basics, including skid avoidance, skid recovery, crash avoidance and emergency braking techniques. The money from 100+ would allow the group to offer more scholarships.
Stephanie Robinson told the group about Running To be Well, a grass roots non-profit that helps those struggling with addictions and mental health issues to develop and maintain healthy lifestyles. The group meets weekly with about 90 attending and focuses on walking and running to improve health. Participants are taught proper running techniques, how to set goals and achieve them. Meetings are supportive and encouraging. If a participant attends 3 consecutive meetings, they receive a pair of proper running shoes. At their first 5K they had 270 participants. The money would be used for purchase of shoes, race entry fees, leadership training, Narcan training.
The membership voted and chose the Children's Center to receive our funding.
October 9, 2018 meeting
The membership gathered at the Medina Library for the last quarter of 2018 meeting on Tuesday, October 9.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed everyone and introduced a group of students representing The BEAT, the organization that received our funding from the July meeting.The group is a student driven, self funded news production organization. Students in grades six through twelve gain experience in writing and editing news stories and shooting and directing programs that appear on the Educational Access Channel 22. Often their stories also appear in local newspapers and TV channels. Claudia and Linda Loveless appeared on their Business Beat program discussing 100+ Women Who Care Medina. You can visit The BEAT website and view this interview by clicking here. The BEAT program advisor, John Wasylko, thanked our group for helping them to update their equipment.
Claudia then introduced a point of old business that was brought up at the July meeting. We had discussed allowing organizations that have received funding in the past to resubmit a request. Linda led a discussion with the members as various suggestions were made. It was agreed that we would allow an organization to resubmit. Then the discussion focused on the details of this decision. One suggestion was to allow it after two years have passed since an organization has received funding. Then if they want to submit again after that, they would have to wait five years. It was also suggested to make it just a flat three years. Member Jean Gulyas suggested a rolling re-entry into the nominating bow. We would start with the first batch of winning organizations to resubmit after at least three years have passed since they received funding. A lot of discussion followed and it was decided by consensus that we would allow an organization to resubmit for consideration after three years have passed since they received funding. Members also requested that they be informed if an organization has previously received funding before they make their decision and cast their vote.
We then moved on to the selection of a non-profit for our funding. The organizations nominated were: Newbridge Place, Cups Cafe, and American Association of University Women Scholarship Fund.
Claudia Cihlar presented for Newbridge Place which provides housing for very low income, mentally ill veterans.This is the first housing project in Medina County that addresses the needs of veterans suffering from chronic homelessness, mental illness and lack of income to gain access to affordable, supportive housing. This home offers both transitional and permanent living.The need is for funding support to purchase a vehicle with a wheelchair lift. They have already raised most of the money needed.
Carolyn Grenfell spoke on behalf of Cups Cafe which is located just north of Medina square on N. Court St. Cups Cafe welcomes all who just need a safe, neutral place to hang out and receive a free meal. Founder Tim VanArsdale worked with at-risk youth with Youth for Christ but he wanted to do something more and started Cups Cafe. He interacts with the many repeat visitors to Cups to help and encourage them through life challenges. There are no restrictions to who can be served. Cups receives support from local businesses and help from many community volunteers. Their needs are to update and improve the kitchen and to purchase supplies. Several local businesses donate food for their outreach.
Paula Banks presented for American Association of University Women. The Medina group distributes scholarships to "non-traditional" women undergraduate students who are attending an accredited college or university. Applicants must be residents of Medina County and at least 25 years of age. A "non-traditional" student is a woman who is returning to college to finish an undergraduate degree, or a woman who has delayed entering college for several years after completing high school or earning a GED.
The membership voted and decided to support Newbridge Place with our funding.
July 10, 2018 meeting
Over 70 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Weymouth Country Club after a last minute location change. Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group on a beautiful summer evening announcing that we had a busy evening before us.
Claudia first invited Linda Loveless to the podium to discuss a rules clarification. The "managers"' of the group had been concerned about the lack of nominations at some of the meetings and had discussed ways to handle the situation if we happen to get only one or even no nominations. One idea was to implement a "secondary bowl" procedure where organizations that had completed nomination forms in the past but weren't selected could be added to the bowl. We would make sure there was someone in attendance who could speak to the current needs of the organization before adding it to the bowl. This has been implemented and has been added to our rules. Another idea was to allow an organization that has received funds in the past to resubmit. There could be limitations put on that submission such as it has to be for a new program or it has to be more than two years since they received funding. There was concern that an organization might keep coming back asking for funds so it was suggested that maybe the requests would be separated by two years the first time and 5 years the second time. There were some great comments and ideas from the membership. With the nodding of heads, it was decided to officially vote on this at our October meeting to give members a chance to give it some consideration.
Claudia then welcomed Sue Simmons to the podium who shared with us a wonderful honor that 100+ Women Who Care Medina received from the Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation. Our organization received the 2017 Senior Advocate Hall of Fame award at a celebration on May 17. This award honors organizations and individuals that have made a significant difference in the lives of older adults in the Wadsworth community. A beautiful plaque commemorating this honor will be on display at our meetings.
Claudia announced a major milestone for the group - we have now raised over a QUARTER MILLION DOLLARS!! That is quite an impact we have made on this county! To celebrate we ate cake.
Michelle Kipfstuhl from Catholic Charities greeted the group and thanked them for their funding received from the April meeting. The money supports their Food Shelf and has allowed them to provide more products and a wider variety of items. It helped one WIC mom with an 11 day old baby who was unable to receive formula and diapers from WIC but freely received help from the Food Shelf. Michelle talked about the ripple effect of our donations. One woman had visited the Food Shelf and realized that there weren't any feminine hygiene products. She mobilized her friends and came back with a giant box of them for the Food Shelf. The Food Shelf helps families stretch their food budget to make it through the month.
Three organizations were then selected from the bowl and invited to present: Healing Hoofs, Chippewa Lake Water Ski Team, and The BEAT.
Judy Cross presented for Healing Hoofs which is a relatively new organization that rescues horses and rescues children. Through the use of the calming nature of horses, abused or troubled children receive special care and uplifting experiences. Children are referred by local children and family services groups. The group needs a larger barn providing an indoor arena for winter. These monies would provide partial funding for the barn.
Paula Midlik spoke to the group about the Chippewa Lake Water Ski Team which had about 160 members who perform shows to 8-13,000 people each year. It is a multi-generational group and involves not only skiers but spotters, boat drivers, mechanics, sound crew and many ways to develop different skills. The money would be used to provide scholarships for the Learn to Ski program as well as for purchase and maintenance of equipment and to update technology.
Marsha Pappalardo presented for The BEAT which is a student driven program providing education and experience in TV and video production for students from Medina county schools in grades 6 to 12. They gain writing and production experience and have recently received an award in Columbus for excellence in how students can make difference. The group recently lost some major funding support and equipment desperately needs updating so students are current on the latest technology.
We then took a vote and The BEAT was selected to receive our funds. And then we ate cake.
April 10, 2018 Meeting
Claudia Cihlar welcomed members at the Tuesday, April 10 meeting by announcing that we are starting our 8th year! She recognized members who have been with us since the beginning and there were quite a few. We have raised approximately $246,650 since the beginning. We should definitely see a quarter of a million in contributions after our July meeting.We raised $9,400 for Medina Cares at our January meeting with no response from 25 member (not 25% as reported at the meeting). Claudia thanked Medina Library for donating the space for our quarterly meetings. She encouraged members to continue to seek out needy non-profits that would welcome our support.
Claudia introduced Karen Metzler and Beth DeFelice who were the founders of Medina Cares, the recipients of our donations from the January meeting. Both women have been in the health care industry for many years and formed Medina Cares 12 years ago because they saw many patients who just needed a little help to get them back on their feet. They receive referrals from all over the county to help with people in medical crisis who need funds to help with rent, medications and any other needs. They shared a couple of actual cases they have serviced. It is an all volunteer organization that serves residents of Medina County between the ages of 19 & 59. They thanked the group for supporting them and helping to expand their mission.
We moved on to the selection of organizations for our April donations. The groups pulled from the bowl were The BEAT, Chelsea Cares, and the Food Shelf at Catholic Charities.
Marsha Pappalardo spoke on behalf of The BEAT which is a TV production program for students in grades 6-12. It is not associated with any school district and is run by the students and a volunteer advisor. Students learn to write, edit and produce TV programs. The equipment is outdated and any funds would be used to purchase new equipment.
Mary Jane Brewer presented for Chelsea Cares which was founded in 2007 by Betty Platner whose 3 week old granddaughter was hospitalized in Akron Children's Hospital. While there she received a fleece blanket which was so comforting for the family to see something normal in the crib. Since then Chelsea Cares has made over 14,000 fleece blankets and pillows. There is no paid staff, only volunteers. Funds would be used for fabric, thread and supplies and would expand their reach and operations for at least 3 years.
Michelle Kipfstuhl talked about the Food Shelf at Catholic Charities which was created because people started coming in to the office and asking for food. They began small with some of the basics and distributed an average of 156 items per month in 2016, 430 items monthly average in 2017 and 478 items monthly average for the first 3 months of 2018. There are no restrictions or qualifications for who can get food and they find that people are very respectful of the offerings and don't take advantage of them. This project is totally supported by donations. They will be able to use these funds to purchase foods, toilet paper, tissues, laundry detergent and other necessities.
The group placed their votes and decided to give our April donations to the Food Shelf at Catholic Charities. Please make your checks out to Catholic Charities Medina and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256
January 9, 2018 Meeting
About 80 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina met at the Medina Library on Tuesday, January 9. Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group. We have raised over $237,000 for Medina County non-profits since we started in April of 2011.
Claudia encouraged members to seek out and research local non-profits in need of funding so that they can bring their needs to the attention of the group.
For Wadsworth Office of Older Adults we raised $9,781 with more checks to come in. Laura Toth from the Office for Older Adults talked about the voucher program that offers healthy and hot meals to seniors. With our money they are able to provide meals for 23 more people.
Six organizations were nominated for consideration. The three selected were: United Way One Book, One Community project, Project M.U.N.C.H. and Medina Cares, Inc.
Michelle Kipfstuhl presented for the United Way One Book, One Community Project which provides copies of the book, "The Seventh Most Important Thing" by Shelley Pearsall to all sixth graders in Medina County. The project brings readers together around one book to share a common reading experience and a meaningful interaction with the author.
Sally Giovinazzo presented for Project M.U.N.C.H which stands for Medina United Neighbors Challenging Hunger. The program was started in 1990 to provide free meals every Wednesday and the last full week of each month. They serve over 1600 hot meals a month. The project is held under the auspices of the Salvation Army.
Jean Holland spoke to the needs of Medina Cares Inc.which is an all-volunteer organization whose mission is to give temporary assistance to individuals who are in a medical crisis and between the ages of 19 and 59 years old and reside in Medina County. They offer assistance to those who often fall through the cracks when they need help. They assist with expenses such as doctor appointments, medications, co-pays, rent, utilities, car repairs, gas, food, needed supplies and more. They often direct individuals to other organizations.
The membership voted and chose Medina Cares Inc. to receive our donations. If you haven't already done so, please send your check made out to Medina Cares Inc. to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, Ohio 44256.
Our next meeting will be Tuesday, April 10 at the Medina Library.
October 10th Meeting
About 70 members gathered at the Medina Library for the fourth quarter meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the membership as well as a group of new members. She reminded the membership that winning organizations may not solicit our members for future fund raisers and that information has been updated on our website: www.100womenwhocaremedina.com.
Claudia invited Kathy Warner, Executive Director of First Impression, Inc., recipient of our funds from the July meeting, to speak to the group. Kathy thanked the members for their kind generosity and explained that some of the money will go to purchase proper undergarments for clients who are serviced by First Impression. Often they only have what clothes they are wearing with worn out and poor fitting undergarments. Monies will also go to purchase portfolios for the clients to carry to interviews, rounding out the professional appearance. The portfolios contain information on interviewing tips and more. Kathy said she is currently working on getting clients who are in need of proper attire through contacts in the courts system. Kathy again thanked the organization for their support.
Nominations were then drawn from the bowl with two organizations presenting.
Pam Myers from Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation spoke about the meal voucher program run by their organization. They service Wadsworth, Sharon Center and parts of Montville Township. They currently provide between 1 and 12 vouchers to 75 people to provide a healthy and hot meal each month at the Suprema Senior Center in Wadsworth. These clients are at high nutritional risk.The Foundation covers about 25% of the cost of the meals. The rest is covered by governments and collaborative efforts. Not only does the voucher program provide nutrition but they also offer social structure for these individuals. With this money they would be able to expand the program to provide more meal vouchers to current clients as well as potential clients.
Marsha Pappalardo presented for The BEAT which is a cable TV program involving students from grades 6-12. It is housed at Brunswick High School but attracts students from around the county. It is not funded by any of the school districts and they meet on Saturday mornings to produce local TV shows for cable. They recently lost their funding and are in need of replacing some of the expensive equipment which is 8-10 years old. Additional funds would be used for operating expenses and server costs.
The membership voted and chose Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation. If you haven't already done so, please send your checks made out to Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256,
July 2017 Meeting
Members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered in the conference rooms at Medina Hospital for the July meeting.
Claudia Cihlar greeted the group and reviewed some topics that needed to be addressed. In particular, several members have noted being solicited by past organizations who have received 100+ Women donations. Organizations have been told that they cannot use the 100+ member list for solicitation for additional funds. Our leaders have discussed this and an effort will be made to make sure the winning organizations understand this requirement.
Claudia then introduced Rebecca Byrne from Medina County Police Athletic League, the recipient of donations from our April meeting. Rebecca thanked the group and spoke about how the money is being used to expand their mission of providing after-school educational, athletic and recreational activities for elementary children to help them develop positive attitudes towards law enforcement and raise awareness of their roles.
Two organizations were then pulled from the bowl to present their requests for funding: First Impression, Inc. and Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation.
Marsha Pappalardo presented for First Impression. She told us the mission of the organization is to provide appropriate clothing and image consulting for economically challenged women as they go to job interviews. They have serviced 25 women so far this year with a 75% success rate of getting them placed into jobs. The group would spend the money on undergarments and professional portfolios to equip the women properly to enter the workforce. The funds would also supplement the rent payments for a safe and private facility to consult with the women.
Pam Meyers presented for Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation. They are asking for funding for the older adult meal voucher program. This program is a collaborative with Wadsworth schools, the Office of Older Adults and Windfall Industries. They want to expand programming by providing older adults with both a meal and socialization opportunity for the remainder of this fund cycling year and into the next 5 year funding cycle.s The population at risk is older adults 60+ years who are both nutritionally and socially isolated. The program brings these persons in for meals in a cafe style setting and provides them with vouchers for meals. An assessment of the person's needs is done by RD's and social workers. The vouchers' availability is based on need. The program is run by 15 unpaid volunteers.
The group voted and selected First Impression, Inc. to receive our donations from this quarter.
Please make your checks out to First Impression, Inc. and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256.
Our next meeting will be Tuesday, October 10 at 7 pm at the Medina County District Library, Main Branch on Broadway.
April 2017 Meeting
Over 90 members gathered at Medina Library to learn about the the needs of local non-profits. Member Claudia Cihlar introduced Dianne DePasquale-Hagerty, CEO of Medina Creative Housing which was the recipient of donations from the January meeting. Dianne offered her heartfelt thank you for the contributions and shared her passion of working with those with disabilities.
Three organizations were drawn from the fishbowl to make presentations: The BEAT, First Impression, and Medina County Police Athletic League.
Marsha Pappalardo spoke about The BEAT program which is a program involving children in grades six through 12 who have the opportunity to write news stories, conduct on-camera interviews, edit, shoot and direct programs that air on Educational Access Channel 22, the BEAT. The program is totally self-funded and relies solely on donations. These funds would allow the program to expand to all the county.
Member Kathy Warner presented information about First Impression which provides appropriate clothing and employment support to displaced and disadvantaged women to make a good impression at job interviews and their employment. She shared stories of how the organization has helped women to build their confidence and successfully acquire jobs. The monies would help the expenses of running the program like dry cleaning, insurance, rent of a facility as the location to serve the women.
Rebecca Byrne from the Medina County Police Activities League told members that the group provides after-school educational, athletic and recreational activities for elementary children to develop positive attitudes towards law enforcement and raise awareness of their roles. Programs are held in the school districts of Brunswick, Cloverleaf, Highland, Medina and Wadsworth. Funds are being requested to support the operation of the program and allow it to expand into the Buckeye Schools.
The membership selected Medina County Police Activities League to receive the funds from 100+ members. Please make your checks out to MCPAL and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256.
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: July 11. Location to be announced.
January 2017 Meeting
The members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Weymouth County Club on Tuesday, January 9. Claudia Cihlar welcomed the over 80 members. She announced that, to date, the organization has contributed $195,700 to area non-profits since its inception. That means that with our January meeting donations, we will top $200,000!! Many thanks to the active members who have committed to making a difference for so many non-profits in Medina County.
Claudia discussed with the membership the need to establish a new policy relating to teams who have members that are delinquent in their donation responsibilities. It was agreed that teams that have one or more members who are not current with their donations will not be allowed to vote. Teams who are in this position will be notified before the meeting so they have the chance to become current with their obligations.
Claudia expressed gratitude to Weymouth Country Club for their support of our meetings these past six years by donating the use of their rooms. In July we will begin meeting at the Cleveland Clinic Medina Hospital Conference Room. Look for information in the next email about the location of the April meeting.
At our October meeting, the membership chose Birthcare of Medina to receive our donations. Barb McCoy, Director and Diane Bugner, Assistant Director thanked the group for their generosity. Birthcare served 345 clients in 2016 which impacted 748 children, providing diapers, safe car seats, cribs, formula and food. Our contributions will allow them to offer more to these families in need.
The three organizations selected from the bowl were Community Action Wayne/Medina, The BEAT, and Medina Creative Housing.
Melissa Pearce represented Community Action Wayne/Medina.They are a federally funded anti-poverty agency providing education, health & wellness and safe home services to low income people. Their services and programs include Head Start, HEAP energy assistance and housing and transportation assistance. They are asking for money to support their transportation services which includes client car repairs and public transportation to help clients get to job interviews and employment.
Marsha Pappalardo introduced the group to The BEAT which is a self-funded, independent video production program housed at Brunswick High School. Students in grades six through 12 have the opportunity to write news stories, conduct on-camera interviews, edit, shoot and direct programs that air on Educational Access Channel 22. The program is not part of the curriculum. It is a volunteer and independent program that is open to all sixth through 12th graders in Medina County. The organization is asking for funding to be able to purchase updated equipment.
Dianne DePasquale-Hagerty presented information about Medina Creative Housing which was founded 25 years ago by parents of children with disabilities to help them find the services they needed. The organization currently promotes and develops the management of permanent, affordable housing and quality services for persons with disabilities living in Medina County in addition to providing vocational training in a variety of areas. Through the years they have realized the need for providing a post secondary transition program where their clients can get support and develop life skills and social skills to carry them forward. They are currently raising funds for the construction of a building for this purpose in the Brunswick area and would like our help with funding.
After tallying the votes, Claudia announced that Medina Creative Housing would be receiving our donations from the January meeting.
October 2016 meeting
Over 70 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Weymouth Country Club on Tuesday, October 11 to learn more about local charities and make a difference for one particular group.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and introduced Michelle Kipfstuhl from Catholic Charities Services and The Incredible Years program. Funding from 100+ Women's July meeting went to support the work of The Incredible Years. This program offers support and training to parents for the difficult task of raising happy, healthy, well adjusted children through weekly meetings on various topics. This additional funding has allowed the program to be expanded to more locations around Medina County. Services provided by The Incredible Years and Catholic Charities are available to all, regardless of religious preference.
The organizations selected for consideration were Birthcare of Medina County, JAFS Therapy in Motion, and Chelsea Cares.
Mary Kase and Joanne Weiler presented for Birthcare which provides emergency assistance and support to families of infants and young children in Medina County. Clients do not have financial resources to provide the basic needs for their young children. The biggest need is for diapers and formula which is ongoing and always needs to be replenished.
Sue Simmons presented on behalf of JAFS Therapy in Motion which provides therapeutic horse riding for challenged children and teens. A licensed physical therapist and occupational therapist work with the children to define their needs and plan. Very seldom is this type of therapy covered by insurance. The needs that would be fulfilled with 100+ Women donations would be purchasing the special saddles, riding harnesses, body protector vests and other equipment designed to keep the clients safe.
Mary Jane Brewer told the group about Chelsea Cares Inc. which provides comfortable blankets and gifts to children in hospitals to make their stay a little easier. Many local groups get together to make the soft fleece blankets: students, churches, individual volunteers. Funds would be used to purchase the fabric and supplies for these blankets and comfortable gifts.
Members of the group voted and selected Birthcare of Medina County to receive the donated funds
.July 12 Meeting
More than 80 100+ Women Who Care Medina members gathered at Weymouth Country Club to learn more about the work done by local charities and make a big impact on one organization's programs.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and introduced Thomas Sigel, Executive Director for ORMACO (Ohio Regional Music Arts & Cultural Outreach), the recipient of our funds from the April meeting. Mr. Sigel thanked the group for providing funding to support their musical, art and culture outreach programs.
The three organizations drawn for our consideration were Incredible Years, First Impression, and Birthcare.
Incredible Years is a parent support and education program run through Catholic Charities. The program recently lost its funding from Ohio Children's Trust Fund. The program is facilitated by a group leader to help parents develop successful parenting skills using discussion and role playing. Childcare and a light meal is provided at the weekly meetings. Funds would help pay for the cost of the facilitators, babysitters, the meal and meeting materials.
Kathy Warner, founder of First Impression, explained the mission of the organization is to provide dressing for economically disadvantaged women as they go out to interview for jobs. Since its inception the beginning of this year, the group has provided work appropriate clothing for four women and all were successfully employed. Kathy explained that funds are needed to purchase items to supplement outfits like nylons and undergarments. Money is also needed for supplies like garment racks, storage bins, dry cleaning and laundering.
Birthcare was represented by Mary Kase who told us that they are celebrating their 40th year of providing products and support to mothers of young children. Medina County disadvantaged moms with broken backgrounds are provided items like diapers, formula, wipes, pullups, clothing, car seats, cribs and mattresses to be able to properly care for their young children. Most of the group's current funding comes from private donations which is not always reliable.
Members voted on their choice and it was decided that Incredible Years would receive the donations from this meeting.
The next meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina will be on Tuesday, October 11 at Weymouth Country Club.
April 2016 Meeting
Close to 100 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered last night at Weymouth Country Club to learn more about local non-profit organizations and potentially make a difference for them.
Claudia CIhlar welcomed the group then introduced Carolyn Grenfell repesenting Medina City Schools Foundation. Carolyn thanked the group for their donations from the January meeting. The donation will support several initiatives, including mentoring, music enrichment, tutoring, classroom grants and the countywide collaboration with the Medina County District Library, One Book One Community.
Three nominated organizations were selected from the fishbowl: First Impression Inc., ORMACO and JAFS Therapy in Motion.
Kathy Warner, founder of First Impression, spoke about the groups mission of helping disadvantaged women prepare for entering the job force by providing interview appropriate clothing. The organization is relatively new but has already helped two women with advice and clothing. Kathy explained that funds are needed to purchase items to supplement outfits like nylons and undergarments. Money is also needed for start up supplies like garment racks, storage bins, dry cleaning and laundering, office set up and more.
Marie Edmonds, board member for ORMACO (Ohio Regional Music Arts & Cultural Outreach) said their mission is to bring music, art and culture to the underserved and rural areas. They bring art residency programs and performance workshops to local libraries and schools. The funds are needed to support these programs.
JAFS Therapy in Motion was represented by Sue Simmons who explained the organization provides horse therapy to special needs children and teens to help them cope with the many obstacles they face. A portion of the funds would be used to finance scholarships for those who can't afford the sessions. The remaining money would be used to secure new or replacement tools and equipment such as the special design saddles used by the children and special body protector vests.
After members voted, Claudia announced that ORMACO would be recieving our donations.
If you haven't done so already, please make your checks out to ORMACO and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256.
The next meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina will be on Tuesday, July 12 at Weymouth Country Club.
January 2016 Meeting
More than 75 100+ Women members and a couple of guests gathered at Weymouth Country Club on a cold Tuesday night to learn about the current needs of three local charities.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and shared some statistics about our group. At our October meeting we welcomed 28 new members and we have raised $156,176 benefiting 20 organizations in our 4+ years of operation.
Claudia also reviewed some recent changes to our procedures and there was group consensus on each.
1. As of this January meeting, the group will no longer be accepting four person teams. All four person teams who have been members before this date will be "grand-mothered" in and can continue that structure. When a four person team loses a member, the members may continue to be a three person team until such time there is natural attrition down to two or one persons. There will be no exceptions to this process. When a team loses a member that team may not replace the individual to continue as a four person team.
2. Claudia asked those present to encourage their team members who did not attend the meeting to be sure to get their checks in within the next month so we can deliver them to the winning charity in a timely manner.
3. There was discussion about having a "secondary" bowl of nominated organizations if there were ever only fewer than two nominations in the main bowl. The first thought was to allow organizations that have won the money two or more years ago to be added to this secondary bowl. After some great discussion it was decided that the secondary bowl would contain the organizations that have been nominated but never selected to receive the donations. Of course there would need to be a member present who would be willing to present on that organizations behalf if they are pulled from the secondary bowl.
Claudia informed the membership that the memorial plantings at Mugrage Park that the group supported to honor our founder, Marita Tulisiak have been completed. There is about $900 remaining in unused funds from the donations. The consensus of the group was to add a bench in the playground area and possibly a simpler bench in the Dog Park. There was also talk about adding additional shade in the playground area. We will check with the Parks Department to see if that is feasible.
Carol Andregg from Let's Make A Difference thanked the group for its generous donation to provide additional funding for her organization as a result of the vote at the October meeting.
The three organizations drawn from the bowl and invited to make presentations were: ORMACO, Medina City Schools Foundation and First Impression Inc.
ORMACO was asking for funding to support their free performance workshops that they conduct at local libraries and schools. The Medina City Schools Foundation was asking for money for the music enrichment program that sends 4th & 5th grade students to the Akron Symphony and for the middle school program that purchases a book and lesson planning materials. First Impression is a startup non-profit dedicated to providing underprivileged women with the appropriate attire to wear for job search interviews. They were asking for funding to build their inventory of clothing and accessories.
The group voted and it ended in a tie between ORMACO and Medina City Schools Foundation. After a second vote between the two, Medina City Schools Foundation received the award by one vote.
Please send your checks made out to Medina City Schools Foundation by February 12th to: Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256
NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, April 12 at 7 pm at Weymouth Country Club.
October 2015 Meeting
Claudia Cihlar opened the meeting reviewing some new policies. It was decided that beginning with the January meeting, it would no longer be possible to join 100+ Women as a team of four. Only individual and two-person teams will be accepted. There have been several issues with four person teams and keeping all members active with their contributions. All current four-person teams will be "grandmothered" in and can continue their involvement.
In addition, it was explained that all teams are responsible for the $100 donation no matter how many active team members there are. So if one member of a team becomes inactive, the other team members must cover the commitment of $100.
Jane Langol from the Summer Reinforcement Program, winner of the July meeting donations, expressed her gratitude for our support and explained how the money is already going to support the needs of the program.
The three organizations that were nominated to receive funds were: Jaf's Therapy in Motion, Medina City Schools Foundation, and Let's Make a Difference.
Sue Simmons presented for Jaf's Therapy in Motion which provides the therapeutic benefits of horse riding to special needs children coping with physical disabilities, emotional or behavioral challenges or are overcoming serious illness or trauma in their lives. Riders gain self esteem, confidence and improved learning skills having a positive effect on psychological and cognitive functions. The group was asking for funds to install a safe flooring in their indoor riding ring.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for Medina City Schools Foundation which provides scholarships to graduating seniors and grants to fund special programs for teachers. Funds from 100+ Women would be divided between these two services.
Carol Andregg presented information about Let's Make a Difference, a summer outreach that provides daily educational support, field trips and activities for children in the Mellert Park/Union Square Apartments area in addition to after school programming. Funds from 100+ Women would be used for expenses for field trips and programming.
Let's Make a Difference received the majority of the votes of the membership and will receive our donations.
July 2015 Meeting
A large group of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Weymouth Country Club on Tuesday , July 14 evening. Michelle Masica, board member from Faith in Action spoke about how the money they were awarded from the April meeting is being spent. Thanking the organization, she told how the Faith in Action board had been struggling with recent funding cuts and faced limiting their services. Some of their transportation vehicles can now receive necessary maintenance to continue helping their clients. They are also now able to begin a new program that has been on the back burner - Canine Caregivers - to enhance the lives of their clients.
The three organizations that were nominated: ORMACO, Summer Reinforcement Program, and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals then presented their needs.
Jean Holland spoke about ORMACO - Ohio Regional Music, Arts, and Cultural Outreach - which is in need of funding to be able to bring performers from all over the world and introduce music and performance workshops in local schools.
Jane Langol presented information about the funding needs of the Summer Reinforcement Program which provides summer tutoring in Math & Reading for ages 3 to 12 years. Money would be used to fund the preschool classrooms which are currently not receiving support and to provide tuition help for families that are struggling financially.
The needs of the SPCA were presented by Executive Director Shannon Waller. SPCA's mision is to protect and care for animals, rescuing them from abuse, cruelty, neglect, injury and abandonment. They are asking for funds to purchase equipment for the Rescue Team to be able to provide safer and more effective investigations into animal cruelty and neglect.
The membership selected the Summer Reinforcement Program to receive donations from the July meeting.
April 2015 Meeting
On Tuesday, April 14, 100+ Women Who Care Medina met to honor founder Marita Tulisiak and celebrate its fourth anniversary.
Claudia Cihlar helped the group, with Marita's family in the audience, pay tribute to her by recalling how she first learned of 100+ Women Who Care in late 2010 from an article written by Regina Brett, reporter for the Plain Dealer. She pursued the unique concept and encouraged her friends to join her in starting a Medina chapter. The first meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina was held in April 2011. After sharing a video of Marita's interview from accepting the Athena award, we all toasted to Marita in tribute.
We plan to purchase a bench and tree to be placed at Mugrage Park to memorialize Marita, inscribed with: Marita Tulisiak Founder, 100+ Women Who Care Medina, "It's not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving." Mother Terese.
If you are interested in making a contribution to the purchase of the bench and tree, please send your check made out to Sandy Naples to her home at 3785 Clay Mountain, Medina, OH 44256
We will be sharing the names of contributors with the Tulisiak family.
To celebrate the fourth anniversary of 100+ Women Who Care Medina, Claudia invited representatives from each of the 16 organizations who have benefited from our donations to come to the front of the room with a sign of their organization. It was an impressive spin on the impact our organization has made in the community with over $128,000 contributed in four years.
The business portion of the meeting began promptly at 7:30 pm with three organizations nominated for consideration: Let's Make a Difference, Summer Reinforcement Program and Faith in Action.
Carol Andregg presented for the Let's Make A Difference Program that serves students both after school and in the summer. They assist with homework support and social skills development. Their request was for support of programming, field trips, snack and staff salary support.
Deborah Poland presented for Faith In Action. This organization
meets the needs of the medically frail and elderly. Their request was for medical transportation - an already established service, and a new service called Canine Caregivers, that focuses on matching Seniors with dogs for visits. This program has become very popular and has led to improvements in quality of life for clients.
Jane Langol presented for the Summer Reinforcement program, an initiative that is available 5 days each week in the summer for both tutoring and speech therapy. It is a county wide program and serves school as well as pre-school and special needs students. The request was for support of their Autism and early education units by augmenting the staff costs.
The membership selected Faith in Action to receive the evening's donations.
January 2015 Meeting
Our first meeting of the year started with a moment of silence in memory of 100+ Women of Medina founder Marita Tulisiak. Plans are in the works to pay tribute to Marita at the April meeting on the fourth anniversary of the first meeting for 100+ Women. Claudia Cihlar announced that Marita's co-founders have decided to purchase a bench to be inscribed with Marita's name and connection to 100+ Women and located at Mugrage Park. Marita and her beloved dog, Maisie, would often walk in the park. Members who would like to contribute to the memorial will be able to do so at the April meeting.
At the October meeting, the Society for Handicapped Citizens was selected to receive our donations. Shelly Wharton, Jennifer Carrick and Loreen Simpson spoke to the group at last night's meeting about the project for which they will use the funds.
The organizations drawn to present at this meeting were: Kitten Krazy presented by Jamie McCourt, ORMACO presented by Jan Leatherman and Junior Leadership of Medina County presented by Colleen Rice. In a close vote, members chose Kitten Krazy to receive our donations.
October 2014 Meeting
19 new members joined us as three presentations were made by Ears to You, Society for Handicapped Citizens, and ORMACO. Society for Handicapped Citizens was chosen as the recipient of funds for the evening. The funds will be used for enhancement of work force and employment development for clients.
Please make out your checks to The Society for Handicapped Citizens and mail them to Lisa Rice 3735 Hunting Run Road Medina, OH 44256.
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the fourth quarterly meeting of 2024 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. And, she recognized the many guests and first-time attendees by show of hands. We now have 225 active members, with 14 new members joining since July. Since our inception in April of 2011, we have raised just over $486,000 for Medina County charities. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the significant impact made via our grassroots, philanthropic social giving circle.
We keep hitting new record donation amounts since our inception in 2011. Medina Personal Care Pantry received $12,670.
We hope you enjoy the space our new location offers. Kimberly Valco helped us so much in acquiring and setting up the space.
Cathy reviewed a few myths and questions regarding the 100+Women Who Care- Medina County. We have found that sometimes members don’t nominate non-profits because they don’t want to speak in public on their behalf. We certainly don’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable. And in those moments, should a member wish to nominate but not speak, we would like to be able to have another member speak on the non-profit’s behalf. Membership agreed that we should keep a list of women who would gladly step up and speak on a non-profit’s behalf if someone else has nominated them. A little coordination will need to take place, but it’s well worth the effort. Thank you for agreeing to that, ladies. It helps everyone involved.
July 2024 Winning Non-Profit
Medina Personal Care Pantry’s Kris Mog and Alicia Steinmetz shared where their donated funds were applied.
They increased homebound distributions by 40-50%! They were able to re-stock on many personal care items such as detergent, toilet paper, body wash, incontinence products, and more. And they will be working alongside Medina County Home in November 2024.
With our donations, the awareness of Medina Personal Care Pantry grew. Since July, other organizations have awarded Medina Personal Care Pantry funds to continue their mission. The domino effects are real and strong.
October 2024 Nominations
Non-profits picked from the bowl were: Free Clinic of Medina County, Medina Senior and Adult Foundation and Anchor of Hope
Nancy Peacock- Free Clinic of Medina County Free Clinic of Medina County is a free medical clinic that has served the residents of Medina County since 2004. Their mission is to provide free medical care to the working residents of Medina County who meet our income qualifications. Free Clinic of Medina County is staffed by 9 dedicated physicians, 11 nurses, and support staff who volunteer their time to provide care and assistance. Monies donated will go directly toward prescription costs for the 400 people the Free Clinic serves annually.
Mishalene Wasmer- Medina County Senior and Adult Foundation organizes events for older adults and offsets funding for the Medina Office of Aging to keep seniors independent for as long as possible. Last year, the foundation provided over 44,000 meals and personal wellness check-ins, similar to that of Meals on Wheels. Monies donated will primarily be applied to the meal program offered Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week for those with limited funds.
Anne-Marie Potemski- Anchor of Hope was established in 2023 to benefit those who have been displaced as refugees, widows or those suddenly out of work requiring life-caring assistance. Anchor of Hope provides furniture, home goods, clothing and food. Currently, Anchor of Hope is supporting 85 families with 20 families on the waiting list. Mattresses are the greatest need and donation dollars would go toward purchasing them.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Free Clinic of Medina County. If you haven't already done so, you may mail your check payable to Medina Personal Care Pantry to Peggy Andryszak, 3563 Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call, text, or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
We did mention an online portal was available for donation; however, it does need some adjustment to accept donations. If and when it is corrected, we will advise via email and Facebook communication. Until then, please mail checks Peggy’s address and any questions to [email protected].
Guests
If you attended as a guest last night and would like to be a part of this wonderful giving circle, you can join by completing the membership form here: https://www.100womenwhocaremedina.com/forms.html Please email your completed form to [email protected]. After your first meeting as a member, you too can nominate your favorite eligible Medina County charity!
Facebook Posts
We share updates via Facebook and those posts are shared by you- A LOT OF YOU! Because you’re doing this, women and non-profits are hearing about us and increasing awareness for the nominated non-profits.
When you have a moment, please share this post on your personal Facebook timeline. Send it via text or through messaging services to a friend. And if you have something inspirational to say about why belong to 100+ Women Who Care-Medina County is meaningful to you, write it in the post. It makes the post have greater impact. Thank you. https://fb.watch/v6plzXN9lh/
Mark your calendars for our first 2025 meeting: Tuesday, January 14, 7 pm.
July 9, 2024
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the third quarterly meeting of 2024 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 216 active members, with 15 joining since April and another 15 added to our membership just last night. Since our inception in April of 2011, we have raised just over $474,000 for Medina County charities. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the significant impact made of our grassroots, philanthropic social giving circle.
And, Cathy made special mention noting Yahab received yet another highest dollar amount of donations since our organization’s inception. During the meeting, donations exceeded $12,170. The trajectory of record-setting donations was celebrated. Thank you, all!
This meeting was greeted by welcoming even more new members and guests. Ladies.. thank you for bringing guests. Your stewardship toward extending our group’s mission will never go unnoticed.
ALERT: NEW MEETING LOCATION: Due to space constraints at the Blue Heron Room, the membership agreed by a show of hands moving to the Western Reserve Masonic Center Community Room, offered by our member Kimberly Valco, is a good idea. We will send out more details before our next meeting. This new venue provides a sound system, more parking, the ability to bring in beverages, easier access for all Medina County women, and dining options close by for before and after the meetings. We are very grateful for this offer and for the many years Blue Heron has hosted us. There is no cost for us to use this new meeting space, so we will no longer need sponsorships to pay for our meeting space.
For clarity, Cathy referred to our April meeting when two current members, Janet George and Cindy Maxwell, spoke on behalf of Yahab. Questions were asked as to whether this fell without our chapter guidelines, and it does. The presenters were offered a few minutes to gather their ideas and shared a thoughtful presentation. And we wanted to address comments made by a member of the leadership team during the Q&A time for Yahab; for future, the leadership team has chosen not to comment on non-profits to prevent any appearance of influence toward voting members.
Cathy thanked Lisa Scott of Sable Asphalt and Concrete for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. Last quarter’s nominations included: Spark Medina, Medina County Senior Foundation, and Yahab (winner).
April 2024 Winning Non Profit
Yahab’s Valeria Long and Sandy Smith shared where the donated funds will be applied.
RENT!! Our donations will cover Yahab’s rent for the remainder of 2024. Valeria shared her gratitude and complimented the 100+ Women Who Care-Medina. She has been impressed with how we work as a unit and that we really do like each other. (Yeah.. we really do.)
July 2024 Nominations
Non-profits picked from the bowl were: SustainEd, Medina County Arts Council, and Medina Personal Care Pantry.
Liz O’Grady spoke on behalf of SustainEd. SustainEd supplies the community garden and outreach programs for sustainable living. Monies donated to SustainEd would be used specifically to build a paved driveway to the community gardens. This will ease accessibility and offer a safer option to reach the gardens, especially for those who are disabled, those who have mobility issues, and for trucks delivering necessary items for the gardens’ continuation.
Jane Back and Janet George spoke on behalf of the Medina County Arts Council. The Arts Council is primarily supported via fundraising events throughout the county including the Chocolate Walk. Our donations would be applied to students seeking education and vocation in the arts. Recently, 22 applicants applied for scholarships, and only 6 were awarded monies. The goal is to supply arts scholarships to as many students as possible.
Kris Mog and Alicia Steinmetz spoke on behalf of Medina Personal Care Pantry. Located on the 2nd floor of Medina Presbyterian Church, the pantry supports 200 families and 600 individuals each month with personal care goods. Each monthly distribution for those who pick up or have items delivered costs $3,000. Donations would be used toward purchasing personal care goods; the need has greatly increased in our county. If they do not receive financial donations, the pantry will likely close in early 2025.
Awarded Non Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Medina Personal Care Pantry. If you haven't already done so, you may mail your check payable to Medina Personal Care Pantry to Peggy Andryszak, 3563 Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call, text, or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
Medina Personal Care Pantry also has an online portal. The yellow DONATE button is in the middle of the home page here: https://www.medinapersonalcarepantry.org/ Although there isn’t a place to note your 100+ Women donation, you can always email your donation receipt to Peggy at [email protected]
Guests
If you attended as a guest last night and would like to be a part of this wonderful giving circle, you can join by completing the membership form here: https://www.100womenwhocaremedina.com/forms.html Please email your completed form to [email protected]. After your first meeting as a member, you too can nominate your favorite eligible Medina County charity!
Mark your calendars for our final 2024 meeting: Tuesday, October 8th, 8 pm EST (please arrive by 6:45)
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
April 9, 2024
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the second quarterly meeting of 2024 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 220 active members, with 29 joining since January! Since our inception in April of 2011, we have raised just over $462,000 for Medina County charities. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the significant impact made of our grassroots, philanthropic social giving circle.
And, Cathy made special mention noting Majestic Equine Connections, LLC received yet another highest dollar amount of donations since our organization’s inception. As of the meeting, donations exceeded $11,462.00. The desire is to keep the quarterly donations growing beyond the $10,000 mark.
This meeting was greeted by welcoming even more new members and guests. Ladies.. thank you for bringing guests. Your stewardship toward extending our group’s mission will never go unnoticed.
Cathy reviewed our Social Media presence. Our organization can be found on the following social media sites, we love it when members share the meeting video clip and photos. Please SHARE your posts with us or share ours with your friends.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100PlusWomenWhoCareMedina/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/100_women_who_care_medina?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Linked In: Group- 100+ Women Who Care- Medina
Cathy thanked Tracy Bayer for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. The fee for sponsoring a meeting increased to $85 beginning January 2024. If you would like to sponsor one of our meetings, please contact Mo Wickey at [email protected]
Special Note: We have now instituted a 2-minute warning before the meeting starts. That’s when Mo turns our cool playlist music off. We want to ensure everyone has a seat and to honor our time to cover our giving in 60 minutes or less.
Last quarter’s nominations included: Spark Medina, Medina City Schools Foundation, and Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. (winner).
January 2024 Winning Non-Profit
Majestic Equine Connections, LLC’s Jennifer Stankewicz shared where the donated funds have been used:
a. Rider scholarship
b. Purchase of a new therapy horse
c. A sick horse’s life was saved with insulin paid using our donation dollars.
d. Rider helmets were purchased.
d. Needed hay was purchased.
e. Payment for a substitute instructor
April 2024 Nominations
There were four nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Yahab, Spark Medina, and Medina Senior Adult Foundation.
Jan Simmons presented for Spark Medina. Jan shared that there are 1,100 participants and the program is fully funded by donations. There are awards for acts of kindness to more than 10 local non-profits. Spark creates programs that teach empathy. The key is that small acts, compounded together in a grassroots manner, create a vast impact. Even Westfield Corporation is now using Spark’s programming within its organization.
Laura Toth presented for Medina Senior Adult Foundation. The foundation serves adults 60 years of age and older. 3,500 nutritious meals are served to seniors annually and that is determined to be the greatest need. Serving ready-made meals to seniors in locations throughout the county is their continued need and where the donated money will be applied.
Janet George and Cindy Maxwell presented for Yahab. Yahab was created during COVID. They told the story of Valeria Long, President, owning a consignment shop in town. During the pandemic, Valeria shifted gears and opened Yahab to support those who were in need of clothing at no charge. Yahab has served over 750 people. 12 local non-profits refer their clients to Yahab to receive clothing, jewelry, and housewares at no charge. Yahab pays rent at their current location, and rent is where the donated funds will be used.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Yahab. If you haven't already done so, you may mail your check made payable to YAHAB to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
Yahab also has an online portal. Should you wish to donate there, please remember to note in the memo section “100+ Women Who Care- Medina”. It will make it much easier for Valeria Long to filter donations and communicate with Peggy. https://www.yahab.org/givetoyahab
Guests
If you attended as a guest last night and would like to be a part of this wonderful giving circle, you can join by completing the membership form here: https://www.100womenwhocaremedina.com/forms.html Please email your completed form to [email protected]. After your first meeting as a member, you too can nominate your favorite eligible Medina County charity!
Final Notes
Thank you for arriving at the meeting earlier. We encouraged ladies to arrive by 6:45 pm to locate open seats, find a friend or connect with someone on the leadership team.
Our membership base is growing, and we couldn’t be more excited about the financial impact this has on our county.
Nominations! If you are nominating a non-profit, please consider arriving at 6:30 pm. Our bylaws note that anyone speaking on your non-profit’s behalf must be current with their donations and that we have a moment to verify your 501(c)(3) online. We want to know which non-profits you are passionate about!
You can always email us about nominating at [email protected].
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, July 9, 2024. 7 pm-8 pm EST (please arrive by 6:45)
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
January 9, 2024
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the first quarterly meeting of 2024 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 195 active members! To date, we have raised just over $451,000 for Medina County charities since we started in April of 2011. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the impact made in our grassroots, philanthropic social giving circle.
And, Cathy made special mention noting Cups Café received the highest dollar amount of donations since our organization’s inception. As of the meeting, donations were nearing $11,000.
This meeting was greeted by welcoming more new members and attending guests.
Cathy reviewed our Social Media presence.
Our organization can be found on the following social media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100PlusWomenWhoCareMedina/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/100_women_who_care_medina?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Linked In: Group- 100+ Women Who Care- Medina
Cathy thanked Western Reserve Masonic Community for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. The fee for sponsoring a meeting increased to $85 beginning January 2024. If you would like to sponsor one of our meetings, please contact Mo Wickey.
We added 6 new members since our October meeting. Thank you.
Last quarter’s nominations included: Spark Medina, Cups Café (winner) and Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. (winner).
October 2023 Winning Non-Profit
The donated funds are currently being used for the following programs:
a. Mercy Fund - $2,000 was applied to this fund
b. Outreach Programs- The balance of the funds donated will be used to for outreach programming
And a special note: Cindy mentioned that the drywall will be going up this weekend in the basement room where the outreach program will take place.
Nominations
There were three nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Spark Medina, Medina City Schools Foundation and Majestic Equine Connections, Inc.
Jan Simmons presented for Spark Medina. Jan shared that Spark partners with other non-profits to design curriculums to give children facts to understand reason behind needs. Almost 1,200 children participate in Sparks’ programming. Money is needed to perform volunteer acts in various locations throughout Medina County.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for Medina City Schools Foundation. The foundation supports all Medina City School students and teachers within the district with gap scholarships, tutoring and mentoring programs, teacher grants and more. Funding dropped during Covid and is now needed to support these crucial, programs that connect students with one another.
Jennifer Stankewicz and Sharon McClelland presented for Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. They provide equine therapy for people ages 4-80. Since it began in 2022, the need has been so great that they are expanding to a 10.5 acre facility that will have 5 miles of horse paths. Funds needed will be used for therapeutic horse riding for those needing financial assistance to do so.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. If you haven't already done so, you may mail your check made payable to Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
Majestic Equine Connections, Inc. also has an online portal. Should you wish to donate there, please remember to note in the memo section “100+ Women Who Care- Medina”. It will make it much easier for Jennifer Stankewicz to filter donations and communicate with Peggy. https://donate.stripe.com/cN200J78xdjncAoeUU
Social Media
If you are on Facebook, please do join our group for updated information. And, we love when membership shares the meeting video clip and photos. Feel free to click this link to take you directly to the page and then click SHARE to your page or send it to a friend who has been asking about our organization. https://fb.watch/puEu6yBlc8/
Final Notes
Thank you for arriving at the meeting earlier. We encouraged ladies to arrive by 6:45 pm to locate open seats, find a friend or connect with someone on the leadership team. If you kept track, we not only got the meeting started at 7 pm, but finished at 7:57 pm. Believe us, we know how important it is to keep to our 60-minute benchmark schedule.
Our membership base is growing, and we couldn’t be more excited about the financial impact this has on our county. And we are aware that more chairs are needed and are working on that.
Nominations! More non-profit nominations will be coming forward in the months ahead. If you are nominating a non-profit, please consider arriving at 6:30 pm. Our bylaws note that anyone speaking on your non-profit’s behalf must be current with their donations and that we have a moment to verify your 501(c)(3) online.
You can always email us about nominating at [email protected].
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, April 9, 2024 at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center. 7 pm-8 pm EST (please arrive by 6:45)
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
October 10, 2023
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the fourth quarterly meeting of 2023 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 193 active members! Many new members joined since the start of 2023 and more added to the list last night. To date we have raised just over $441,000 for Medina County charities since we started in April of 2011. It’s always exciting to get the revised numbers and realize the impact made in our grassroots, social giving circle.
This meeting was greeted by welcoming more new members and attending guests.
Cathy reviewed our Social Media presence.
Our organization can be found on the following social media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100PlusWomenWhoCareMedina/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/100_women_who_care_medina?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Linked In: Group- 100+ Women Who Care- Medina
One final note on payments- if you are writing one check for your entire team, or several people on your team, please indicate those names on your check memo. For anyone needing to catch up on past donations, please see Peggy Andryszak at the back table.
Cathy thanked Baird Financial for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. The fee for sponsoring a meeting will increase to $85 beginning January 2024.
We added 12 new members from our July meeting. Thank you.
A final note on the timeline from check collection to cashing it. We collect donations at the meeting, by mail, and when available, non-profit online portals. As a best practice, we wait approximately 6-8 weeks before we schedule the check presentation. At that point, your checks are given to the winning organization and we encourage them to cash them as quickly as possible. So, please know there may be a lag between when you write your check and the time it takes to post to your account.
Last quarter’s nominations included: H2O Foundation, Medina City Schools Foundation and Summer Reinforcement Program (winner).
October 2023 Winning Non-profitThere were five nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Medina Equine Connections, Inc., Cups Café and Spark Medina.
Jennifer Stankewicz and Sharon McClelland presented for Medina Equine Connections, Inc. This group has been in existence since March of 2022 and located on Wooster Pike. They work with disabled children to provide therapeutic horseback riding services. A key component to their program is integrating people with disabilities with those who are not. They offer small classes or 1:1 riding. The future would bring in the offer to adult riders as well and to offer scholarships as the fees range $35 for a group lesson and $400 for a private lesson. With growth comes the need for a new facility to house the therapeutic lessons and office space. This space requires every need from curtains to chairs. Our donations would be applied to the facility and possibly other needs as mentioned.
Cindy Maxwell presented for Cups Café. Cups Café has served those in need in Medina for over 15 years. Currently, 55-75 after school students and 30-40 adults are being fed there by donated food each day. The numbers are growing. There is also an after-school enrichment program located in the basement. Our donations would be directed to after school programming and supplies. The note here is that other non-profits offer after school programming, but Cups can utilize the space to bring in more organizations thereby increasing the reach for students. And donated funds will also be applied to the Mercy Fund for the homeless in need of a 1-2 hotel stay, especially as the colder months approach.
Jan Simmons presented for Spark Medina. Jan shared that Spark is an organization of Changemakers serving Medina County for 2 years. It is staffed by 3 volunteer educators who work with the local schools, and other county-wide organizations, tackling social subjects. Examples of project focus: Hunger, Social Isolation, Homelessness, Mental Health, Food Insecurity and Period Poverty. Spark’s forte is building programs centering on the emotional components of what these issues look like from the asking group’s demographic. It is funded with cash donations, corporate sponsorships and in kind donations. Our donations would fund more projects in the area and give Sparktacular and lasting project results.
Awarded Non-ProfitThe membership cast their votes and selected Cups Cafe. If you haven't done so already, you may mail your check made payable to Cups Cafe to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected].
Cups Cafe also has an online portal. Should you wish to donate there, please remember to note in the memo section “100+ Women Who Care - Medina”. It will make it much easier for Cindy Maxwell to filter donations and communicate with Peggy. https://cupscafe.harnessgiving.org/donate/?selected-method=one-time&amount=50&campaign_id=0&fbclid=IwAR1Rm1jKPU_46yP2IkbSoGMZZqSkPWF_bQwzdzFSKEf1_Rp7U3an56fiits
Social Media SharingLet's amplify our impact! Share our Facebook, Instagram, and/or LinkedIn posts and include a personal message on why 100+ Women Who Care Medina you are a member. You can also share our emails to help spread the word. After our meetings, we're asking each member to share the 'day after the meeting post' on your personal Facebook page. Why? Two important reasons:
1. Raise Awareness: Many haven't heard of us, and we want to change that. We're open to all women and eager to share our mission.
2. Support Non-Profits: As a member of 100+ Women Who Cared Medina, we are giving circle with a shared purpose: to bolster non-profits serving Medina County. Together, our 198 members, make a collective impact that truly matters.
Example:
'I've been a proud member of 100+ Women Who Care - Medina for 4 years and I love attending our meetings. Each time, I learn something new about our local non-profits and their amazing work. It's inspiring to support them with much-needed finances. Join us in making a difference!'"
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, January 9, 2024, at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center. 7 pm-8 pm EST.
July 11, 2023
Opening
Cathy Posner opened the third quarterly meeting of 2023 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 184 active members! And 26 new members since January 2023. Wonderful! To date, we have raised just over $432,000 for Medina County charities since we started in April 2011.
The meeting was greeted by welcoming new members and the many guests attending tonight. It was a packed house with standing room only. We added 10 new members from our April meeting, thank you for joining us!
Cathy thanked Maureen “Mo” Dabbieri for sponsoring the evening’s meeting. She kindly gifted our group the $74 fee Blue Heron charges. As many know, Mo is a local Allstate agent-owner and has supported 100+ Women for many years.
Some of you have asked about a timeline for checks being cashed. We collect donations at the meeting and by mail. Generally, we wait about 4-6 weeks before we schedule the check presentation. At that point, your checks are given to the winning organization and we encourage them to cash them as quickly as possible. So, please know there may be a lag between when you write your check and the time it takes to post to your account.
A reminder - if you are writing one check for your entire team, or several people on your team, please indicate those names on your check memo. For anyone needing to catch up on past donations, please see Peggy Andryszak at the back table.
Last quarter’s nominations included: Lodi Family Center, Integrated Family Solutions (winner) and Medina City Schools Foundation
April 2023 Winning Non-Profit
At our April meeting, the membership voted to apply our donations to Integrated Community Solutions. Lisa Morrison, representing the organization, deeply thanked our group for the donations now totaling $ 9,777.50. Integrated Community Solutions offers low-cost social enrichment programs for individuals aged 15 and above with developmental disabilities.
The donated funds are currently being utilized to support the following programs:
a. Money Management 101
b. Personal Safety Classes
c. Summer volunteer program at Feeding Medina County
d. Cooking classes in partnership with Buehlers
e. Nutrition classes with The Ohio State University
Nominations
There were five nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: H2O Foundation, Medina City Schools Foundation and the Summer Reinforcement Program.
Amy Steppenbacker presented for H2O Foundation. This group has been in existence for seven years in Brunswick. They host the events focused on students: the Back to School Supply Drive, providing students can “shop” for their school supplies, free hair cuts, and even have a bounce house and other activities. There is a Christmas Family Sponsorship program for those in need. And, also a scholarship program for high school seniors. Monies donated from 100+ Women would be directed at the expansion into Lodi where over 300 students are in need of these same programs afforded in Brunswick The students in Lodi will qualify for H2O’s program due to taking part in the free or reduced lunch programs.
Carolyn Grenfell presented the Medina City Schools Foundation, which was established in 1984 by volunteers. The Foundation provides teacher grants, scholarships and the Huddle/Shuddle program that offers high school students as mentors to elementary students. The Foundation has had difficulty maintaining its income stream since COVID and the many changes the school has undergone as a result. They have three fundraisers - the Run 4 Fun, a pancake breakfast, and the Bee Giving event. The group offers gap scholarships to students who may not have exemplary grades like those who usually get scholarships but are more like a C average. They also offer scholarships for families who are financially stressed.
Jane Langol presented for the Summer Reinforcement Program. This summer math and reading program has been in our community dating back to 1974 and will celebrate the 50th anniversary next year. There are currently 59 students in the program receiving small-group tutoring from certified teachers. Of those students, 1/3 could not afford the $400 summer tuition needed to access the program. Summer Reinforcement is funded by grants and foundations. However, a $10,000 annual donation by United Way has stopped; thus the ask from 100+ Women to bridge that gap has become necessary.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected the Summer Reinforcement Program non-profit for this quarter. If you haven't done so already, you may mail your check made payable to Summer Reinforcement Program to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256. Please call or email Peggy with any questions at 330-356-0832 or [email protected]
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, October 10, 2023 at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center. 7 pm-8 pm EST.
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
APRIL 11, 2023
Opening:
Cathy Posner opened the second quarterly meeting of 2023 by welcoming our membership for their attendance. We now have 179 active members!! And 16 new members since January 2023. Wonderful. To date we have raised $423,000 for Medina County charities since we started in April of 2011.
This meeting was greeted by the new Leadership Team and Cathy made mention of the truly phenomenal work the originators did to bring this organization to life!
Our email communication for meeting reminders has gone to a service called MailChimp. So, if you have not yet received your emails from the 100+ Women Who Care in Medina, please check your SPAM folders and move the email to INBOX. And, if you have changed your email address, please do send that information to [email protected]. Thank you, kindly.
Suggestion for Meeting Sponsorship:
Mo Wickey discussed how we currently pay the quarterly facility dues to Blue Heron. Each member brings $1 to the meeting to cover the $74 cost. Mo’s idea of having one member sponsor a quarterly meeting was voted on and met with overwhelming approval. If you would like to sponsor our meeting at the cost of $74, please email your intent to do so at [email protected]. Mo has a running list for whom would like to sponsor in chronological meeting order.
January 2023 Winning Non-Profit
At our January meeting, the membership voted to make our donations to Woven with Promise. Kathy Mohr, representing the organization, deeply thanked our group for the donation of $10,080. The funds were used for the following projects:
a. Set up a prom ministry for Medina County. Every school district was represented utilizing donated dresses to Woven With Promise
b. And those dresses were also utilized for a special needs students prom ministry held at St. Ambrose in Brunswick.
c. As had been discussed, they are getting quotes for a new computer, racks and tubs to build out their infrastructure.
d. Their new website is up.
e. There is a need to assist children in the foster care system. Woven With Promise is partnering with Bank of America, Girls Scouts and Cleveland Clinic for the collection organization and sorting of bags with items foster children need when moving to a new home. 100 bags are needed for these children.
f. An informational night will be held on May 11, 2023 to share what it takes to be involved in Woven With Promise ministry.
Nominations:
There were seven nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Lodi Family Center, Integrated Community Solutions and Medina City Schools Foundation.
Rebecca Rak presented for the Lodi Family Center. Over 700,000 meals have been served at this center. Additionally, this safe space for after school programming has become vital for local children, especially those suffering social anxiety. Accessing this programming for after school activities has become essential for the community for developing interest in different careers. In turn, the center has become a maker space whereby kids try new things that volunteers crossing varying vocations bring in. 400-800 kids per year come to the space to learn new skills and are open to different vocations. This costs $20 each child per month. Scholarships are offered but there is a financial gap to cover the cost. Receiving a donation from the 100+ Women would aid in covering that cost to children to attend the Lodi Family Center.
Lisa Morrison presented for Integrated Community Solutions. Her non-profit offers low-cost social enrichment programs for the developmentally disabled age 15 and up. Most evenings, you can find these programs located at Buehlers Community Room or the Medina County Board of Developmental Disabilities. Offered are: Yoga, game nights, hayrides, apple picking, movie nights and even educational programming for parents. Financial support typically comes from private donations and small grants. Our donation will be used to continue and expand the offering of these social enrichment programs and to also and to include those who are under age 15.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for the Medina City Schools Foundation which was established in 1984 by volunteers. The Foundation provides teacher grants, scholarships and the Huddle/Shuddle program that offers high school students as mentors to elementary students. The Foundation has had difficulty maintaining its income stream since COVID and the many changes the school has undergone as a result. They have three fundraisers - the Run 4 Fun, a pancake breakfast and the Bee Giving event. The group offers gap scholarships to students who may not have the exemplary grades like those who usually get scholarships but are more like a C average. They also offer scholarships for families who are financially stressed.
Awarded Non-Profit
The membership cast their votes and selected Integrated Community Solutions. If you haven't done so already, you may mail your check made payable to Integrated Community Solutions to Peggy Andryszak, 3563. Lake Breeze Circle Medina Township, Ohio 44256 or you can pay with a credit card directly to Integrated Community Solutions at https://www.ics-oh.org/donate Please indicate in a memo for the online donation that it is in cooperation with the 100+ Women Who Care in Medina.
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, July 11, 2023, at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center.
100+ Women Who Care in Medina- Leadership Team,
Cathy Posner
Kerry Kelley
Krista Wasowski
Maureen “Mo” Wickey
Melissa Ross
Peggy Andryszak
JANUARY 10, 2023
Claudia Cihlar opened the first quarterly meeting of 2023 by welcoming over 90 women. Several raised their hands when she asked for first timers. We had eight new members join at this meeting.
Claudia reminded the membership that last year the leadership team had announced they were retiring and were looking for a group of women to succeed them. We are very excited that six women stepped forward to take on the task of continuing our philanthropic efforts: Kerry Kelley, Peggy Andryszak, Krista Wasowski, Melissa Komar, Cathy Posnar and Maureen (Mo) Wickey. They are all shadowing at this meeting to learn more about the workings of the group. Claudia also recognized the original founders of the group: Lisa Rice, Sue Simmons, Sandy Naples, Claudia Cihlar and Linda Loveless as well as the volunteers who help out at meetings: Marcie Hunt, Sue Schwab and JoAnn Weiler and thanked them for their service.
At our October meeting, the membership voted to make our donations to the Friends of the Medina County Home. Carol Feron, representing the organization, thanked our group for the donation of almost $10,000. The funds were used for projects and activities that fall outside their usual operating budget. The group provided a special Christmas dinner for residents prepared by a local chef and giving them the full experience of dining in a restaurant, complete with tablecloths and fancy dishes. They were even able to select their meal from a menu. Many had never visited a real restaurant. On Christmas Eve, the group provided sub sandwiches to the residents as an alternative to the normal fare. Funds were also added to the residents' individual "banks" from which residents can use the money to play games, and purchase special items. Money will also be spent on resident field trips, gardening projects and to replace the beloved peacocks that had met their demise. Again, Carol expressed their sincere gratitude for the generosity of our membership.
We currently have 169 active members with five joining at the October meeting. We raised $9,800 for the Friends of Medina County Home plus the late checks that came in at this meeting. To date we have raised $412,300 for Medina County charities since we started in April of 2011.
There were seven nominations in the bowl and the following were picked for consideration: Medina County Senior & Adult Foundation, Medina City Schools Foundation and Woven with Promise.
Laura Toth presented for the Medina County Senior & Adult Foundation which is an arm of the Office for Older Adults started in 2018. Their efforts promote social welfare of seniors, keeping them independent in their communities. Funds would be used to purchase adaptive equipment at the Medina Senior Center. One particular senior pointed out how the bathroom doors were not easily accessible and they realized they needed to be installed with automatic openers which cost $5,000. The Office for Older Adults offers inexpensive meals to any senior that stops in a couple of times a week. But there are some who can't afford the cost. The Foundation would like to provide meal cards to those people and cover the costs of providing them. The Office for Older Adults services over 3,000 per year.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for the Medina City Schools Foundation which was established in 1984 by volunteers. The Foundation provides teacher grants, scholarships and the Huddle/Shuddle program that offers high school students as mentors to elementary students. The Foundation has had difficulty maintaining its income stream since COVID and the many changes the school has undergone as a result. They have three fundraisers - the Run 4 Fun, a pancake breakfast and the Bee Giving event. The group offers gap scholarships to students who may not have the exemplary grades like those who usually get scholarships but are more like a C average. They also offer scholarships for families who are financially stressed.
Kathy Mohr presented for Woven with Promise which is a non-profit boutique that provides new or gently used clothing, hygiene items, diapers and formula for abused women and children, foster children, and women coming out of human trafficking, all who don't have much. They work closely with local organizations like Job and Family Services. Their boutique is located at St. Marks Lutheran Church in Brunswick but soon they will be needing a larger space and hope to be more centrally located in the County. They make sure the clothing they offer is pristine, without stains or tears, because these folks deserve it. They hope to have a Prom Ministry to offer some of their beautiful donated prom dresses - all for free. The group is in need of a computer system for record keeping and would like to hire a Donations Coordinator and Volunteer Manager.
The membership cast their votes and selected Woven With Promise. If you haven't done so already, you can mail your check made out to Woven With Promise to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, Ohio or you can pay with a credit card or Paypal account online here: Woven With Promise
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center.
OCTOBER 11, 2022
The October meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina was called to order by Claudia Cihlar. She reported we raised $9,377 for Project Learn from our July meeting. The total amount raised for Medina County Non-profits since our inception is $401,785. Our current membership includes 179 members. We welcomed 3 new members at our last meeting. We collected $81 in room rental donations to cover the $74 fee so $7 will be carried forward for January’s meeting.
The leadership group of 100+ Women is looking to pass the responsibilities of running the organization on to a new team of leaders. If you have interest in learning about this opportunity, please send an email to [email protected]
Three organizations were chosen to present to the evening's membership. Laura Toth nominated Medina County Senior & Adult Foundation. The center serves older adults in Medina County at 3 locations. The request for funds included supporting Wednesday Senior Meals for no charge (they currently charge $2.50). They typically serve up to 50 Seniors per week with this program. In addition, the funds would also be used to install a hearing loop system at the Medina Center at a cost of $5K, and accessible restroom doors at Medina.
Claudia Cihlar nominated Friends of Medina County Home. FOMCH supports the 41 residents at the Medina County Home who live there full time. The request for support focuses on quality of life needs to directly aid the residents of the Medina County Home. These needs include personal items, funds for the resident run coffee shop, expanded activities including field trips, the annual Christmas dinner, the ‘seeds and plants’ program for the garden, bingo change, and a birthday & Christmas gift for each resident.
Lisa Morrison nominated Integrated Community Solutions. The program supports persons age 14 years and older with developmental disabilities in Medina. The request for funds is to support programming needs and resources for their social enrichment program free of charge. Funds would assist with art supplies, future dinner nights, dances and other activities, exercise mats, transportation costs and independent living classes.
The members voted to give their support to FOMCH this quarter. If you haven't done so already, please send your check made out to Friends of Medina County Home to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Rd., Medina, OH 44256.
Next meeting: Tuesday, January 10, 2023
JULY 12, 2022
The July quarterly meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina was called to order by Claudia Cihlar at 7pm on July 12. Claudia welcomed about 60 members and mentioned that we had nine new members join at our April meeting. Several hands went up when she asked if there were any new members at this meeting.
We have enjoyed the great hospitality of Blue Heron Brewery & Event Center as they have generously allowed us to use the Heron Room for our quarterly meetings without charge. They are no longer able to offer this perk and must charge a $74 service fee and $83 for linens. Claudia asked the membership for their thoughts on how to proceed. It became quickly evident that the membership enjoyed the Blue Heron facility and would like to continue with everyone pitching in a dollar or so at each meeting to cover the cost. So bring your dollar bills to the October meeting!
The organizing committee has been discussing a succession plan to move new people into the management of our group. We would like members to consider taking over one of the positions of management. We will discuss more about the responsibilities of each position at our October meeting. We just wanted to get people thinking about it.
At our April meeting, the membership chose Access the Arts to receive our donations which came to $9,800. Jane Back and Janet George thanked the group for their generosity and said that they have already purchased iPads, smart pens, chargers, cases and all that goes with them to be used for instruction at the Medina County Juvenile Detention Center. They will also use them at a facility for adults with disabilities in Wadsworth.
We had five organizations nominated to be selected from the bowl. Janet George pulled three: Project Learn, Lodi Family Center and Medina County Senior & Adult Foundation.
janice Jokkel presented for Project LEARN of Medina County which provides free education and resources for adults who want to improve their skills in reading/literacy, Math, ESL, High School Equivalency and test preparation. The organization has received many requests from Ukranian immigrants moving into the area to learn English. This requires many different services including providing transportation to their classes, connecting to child care, and technology support. Our donations would be used to expand these services for the growing need in the community. Project LEARN received our support in 2013. This is a second request.
Rebecca Rak spoke on behalf of the Lodi Family Center whose mission is to strengthen the community by connecting families. They facilitate programs that meet the needs of families through pantry, youth and parenting activities. During COVID most of their funds were spent on providing food to over 700 families. While that need still exists to a smaller degree, they are seeking funds to support their Kids' Maker Space to provide skills that will help kids succeed in life like math, literacy, social anxiety and robotics to name a few. Their goal is to help kids learn the skills to be successful employees.
Laura Toth presented for the Medina County Senior and Adult Foundation that has been a 501c3 non-profit since 2018. Their mission is to provide meals to needy seniors along with transit assistance. They need funding to subsidize the cost of providing meals on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for about 50 people for the next two years. This will help them bridge the gap to other funding.
The organization voted and decided to support Project LEARN. Checks can be made out to Project LEARN and mailed to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256. Or you can pay with a credit card by going to their website and clicking on the yellow "DONATE" button on the upper right: https://projectlearnmedina.org/ Be sure to add a couple extra dollars to cover their credit card processing fees.
See you at our next quarterly meeting on October 11 at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center. Don't forget to bring your $1 to cover set up costs!
APRIL 12, 2022
Despite the beautiful weather and the draw to want to spend time outside, more than 60 current and new members gathered to learn about local charities and contribute to make an difference in their missions on Tuesday, April 12.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and reminded everyone that the scope of 100+ Women Who Care Medina is to support 501c3 non-profits in Medina County and be able to significantly impact their mission by donating $8,000-$10,000 to their organizations collected at one simple one-hour meeting. Since our first meeting in April, 2011, we have donated $382,688 to support Medina County charities. At our January meeting our members chose Matthew 25 Coalition to receive our donations which amounted to $9,215. We currently have 169 active members and eight new members joined at this meeting.
In a world where it seems no one uses checks anymore or carries cash, the Steering Committee has been looking into a way that members can give their donation to the winning organization by using a credit card and make it more convenient for our members. After reviewing comments on the 100+ Women Alliance Facebook page on the same topic, we decided to implement a new process. If an organization has a website with a DONATE button, members can now send their credit card donation directly to the organization. We will work it out with the organization to be sure we have an accurate accounting of all donations made in this matter. However, this option will only be available for two weeks after the meeting date to be able to compile all the donation data to present to the organization. More information on how to take advantage of this convenience are listed below along with the information on the winning organization from our April meeting. Of course, we will always accept the option to pay by a check.
Ann Jones- Kenski from Matthew 25 Coalition spoke about how many people were helped by the $9,215 contributed from our January meeting. Matthew 25 Coalition assists area households with emergency needs such as rent, utilities, gasoline, medical supplies, and prescriptions and whatever else is needed. She thanked the group for their generosity and stated how even the smallest amount can make such a difference in people's lives. The money has helped people get out of serious situations by taking care of some of their bills. That often helps them get back on track to supporting themselves. She expressed that they are so genuinely appreciative.
Claudia invited Colleen Rice from Matthew 25 to draw the organizations to make their presentations at this meeting. Access the Arts and Summer Reinforcement Program were selected.
Members Jane Back and Janet George talked about the mission and projects of Access the Arts. The mission of Access the Arts is to bring arts experiences to at risk individuals, special needs individuals and older adults. Their projects include bringing arts and crafts projects to a local adult day care center once a month, working with Medina County Home residents to bring them art projects and ukulele lessons, providing visual arts and music to the detainees at the Medina County Juvenile Detention Center. They also provide free concerts and festivals on the square in Sharon Center. They are asking for funding to support the Hearts for Music program which provides opportunities and experiences for individuals with special needs to pursue their love for creating and performing music in a professional ensemble setting. At the core of Hearts for Music is an orchestra made up of 20 to 25 children and/or young adults with a variety of special needs. By manipulating and playing a combination of acoustic instruments, digital instruments and adaptive instruments, the Hearts For Music Special Needs Orchestra tackles a broad range of musical works ranging from classical symphonies to modern pop and rock. The funds that Access the Arts could receive would also be used to support Digital Workshops for at risk high school that are offered at Cliffside Artists Collaborative in Hinckley. Students learn graphic design and art production from a digital art professor from Kent State using iPads. The workshops help them explore potential careers in graphic design and digital arts. Schools don't usually have the funds to provide the iPads so Access the Arts plans to provide the money for purchase. Twelve iPads along with the Procreate software, smart stylus, charging cords, case and other accessories can cost almost $10,000.
Member Jane Langol presented for the Summer Reinforcement Program which is a tutoring program open to any child, age 3 to 14 years, in Medina County. It is a classroom-setting program with tutoring emphasis on Math and Reading as well as Speech Therapy. There are no new materials introduced—only reinforcing and re-teach of basic classroom skills. The tuition per child is $400 for the five-week program. The families of many of the children who need this service aren't always able to pay for the tuition. Consequently, Summer Reinforcement has to look elsewhere to finance their costs. They receive grants from Medina City Schools Foundation and United Way but not enough to cover their needs. Summer Reinforcement uses 9 classrooms at Blake Elementary and provides professional teachers and speech therapists for the students. The money would be used to underwrite the tuition for those who need the program but can't afford it.
The membership voted to award Access the Arts with our donations from the evening.
If you haven't paid your donation already, you can:
- Send a check made out to Access the Arts to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256
- Pay with credit card by going to: DONATE TO ACCESS THE ARTS and completing the payment. Please note that Access the Arts will be charged a processing fee to offer this convenience to you so you might want to add a couple of dollars to your donation.
- Once you receive the emailed confirmation of your donation, please forward it to [email protected] so we can properly record your donation.
- This option to use your credit card will only be available until April 26 so just take care of it now!
JANUARY 2022 MEETING
The January 2022 meeting marked the end of our eleventh year and because of COVID numbers we gathered via Zoom. More than 55 members joined us from their homes to learn more about the great things that Medina County charities are doing.
Working out the glitches of going totally online, we were able to offer a somewhat smooth meeting. Claudia welcomed everyone and thanked them for their continued commitments and support. She introduced Kim Clouse representing Live Inspired who was the recipient of our donations from the October meeting.
From the Live Inspired website: "Live Inspired, partnering with ParentChild+, strives to eliminate educational disadvantages for under-resourced Medina County families with 2 to 4 year olds by providing parents with skills and materials to prepare their children for school and life success." Kim spoke of the group's success last year, providing 92 visits and 46 hours of service to families, providing 19 new books and educational toys and many hours of bonding with parents to help them learn the importance of talking and reading to their children. In their 6 years they have serviced 53 families. Our donations have helped to fund a part time assistant coordinator. Kim encouraged our members to tell others about the work of Live Insipired and consider volunteering to be a home visitor. http://www.liveinspired.us/
Next, three organizations were pulled from the champagne bucket: Access the Arts, Maggie's Mission and Project Learn. Unfortunately, no one was in attendance to present for Project Learn so another name was drawn: Matthew 25 Coalition.
Jane Back and Janet George presented for Access the Arts which provides opportunities that unite the community and offer a platform for those who would like to share their talents to inspire others in all art forms. They offer a series of music, art and literature programs that bring enrichment and emotional healing to the residents at Medina County Juvenile Detention Center and the Medina County Home, the ACP Day Center and Medina County Foster Families. They also provide free arts events on the circle in Sharon Center. Our donations would go to purchasing 10 iPads for a digital art class at the juvenile detention center to help residents learn skills in marketing, architecture and other visual arts to prepare them for successful careers.
Maggie's Mission, presented by Katy Fuerst, is a 501c3 started in 2014 that serves as a last chance rescue for primarily dogs and equines. Maggie's Mission saves animals from shelters that are facing being euthanized because of diseases or not having the resources to take care of them. They are 100% volunteer based and call on their over 70 volunteers to go in and rescue these animals and make sure they get proper vet care and training. The animals are placed in foster care homes to get them healthy and adoptable. They cover their expenses with fund raisers, donations and discounted vet fees. Their biggest expense is with vet fees.
Collene Rice presented for Matthew 25 Coalition which serves the Lodi area providing emergency needs to low income residents like rent, utilities, gasoline, medical supplies, and prescriptions. The Coalition also coordinates with and provides information about other local service providers. In the past year they have serviced 89 families with this assistance. When someone is in need for anything, they find a way to help. Colleen told about an elderly retired woman with restricted income who found mold in her apartment. She found someone to come in an remove it but had no place to live while it was going through the removal. Matthew 25 Coalition found temporary housing for her so she could be safe.
The membership voted by email and the winning charity is Matthew 25 Coalition.
October 12, 2021 We gathered at Blue Heron Brewery & Event Center and on Zoom Tuesday, October 12 and were welcomed by Claudia Cihlar. Claudia encouraged our members to always be looking for 501c3 non-profits in the County that might be able to use a little boost financially with our donations. She reported that we raised $8,900 from our July meeting to benefit Feeding Medina County. That brings our all time total amount of funds we have raised for local charities to $364,367. Congratulations to everyone for that accomplishment!
Claudia announced that the Medina County Auditor's newsletter will be featuring an article about 100+Women Who Care Medina. So keep an eye out for that article.
Katy Fuerst from Feeding Medina County was introduced and thanked our group for their donation to support their mission. Feeding Medina County has been expanding their outreach to other areas of the county to meet clients where they are. Tomorrow they will be conducting their first distribution in Brunswick. Also, they have seen an increase in the number of families served at Medina Fairgrounds from 155 to 175. They are currently serving 115% of what they served pre-pandemic. Katy said food insecurity still exists and they will keep fighting to take care of it.
Katy drew the organizations from the bowl to select who would be presenting: Live Inspired, Access the Arts, and ORMACO.
Kim Clouse presented for Live Inspired whose mission is to eliminate the educational disadvantages for under-resourced children ages 2 to 4 year by providing parents with skills and materials to prepare their children for school and life success. A volunteer Learning Specialist visits homes twice a week. The visitor brings books and toys and models reading, playing and conversation activities that both enrich the child and support the parents as the child's first teacher. They need funds to purchase books & toys, provide storage of them and support the salary of a part time coordinator.
Presenting for ORMACO (Ohio Regional Music Arts Cultural Outreach) was Linda Stalvey. It's mission is making music, arts and culture accessible to all, with a focus on underserved, disadvantaged and rural populations in areas identified to be lacking in cultural opportunities. ORMACO brings us the Jazz & Opera on the Square, Party Buses to performances at Playhouse Square and New York City and free concerts around the county in the schools, senior living centers and the general community. Over 12,000 people benefit each year from ORMACO programming. Twice a year they present the World Tour of Music and conduct concerts and workshops in schools, the library's and with local organizations. They need funding to pay the artists fees for all of their programming. Their motto: For without culture, man has no soul.
Jane Back & Janet George presented for Access the Arts which was started in Sharon Center but quickly expanded their outreach to other parts of the county. They offer 6 free concerts on the circle in Sharon Center, 3 yoga events, and Sharon Showcase on the circle. Their mission is to unite the community with arts programming for older adults, special needs youth and youth at risk. They have supported music and art programming for incarcerated youth at the Juvenile Detention Center and provided arts programs for residents of Medina County Home as well as ukelele lessons to residents. They are starting a pilot program, Fine Art with Friends, that would unite 3rd graders from Highland Schools with those from Akron Public Schools, hoping to help each group learn more about diversity and respecting our differences by using art to break down barriers.
The membership voted and selected Live Inspired to receive our donations. If you haven't done so already, please send your check made out to Live Inspired to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, Ohio as soon as possible so we won't have to keep coming back with emails to remind you to get your checks in. Thanks so much!
Our next meeting will be January 11, 2022. Happy Halloween! Happy Thanksgiving! Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!
July 13, 2021
It was great to see the smiling faces of our members after an 18 month separation. We had about 55 attend the meeting in person and eight who joined us through Zoom. We celebrated our 10th Anniversary and raising over $355,000 for Medina County charities. Claudia Cihlar thanked all the women of our group who have gotten us to this point.
At our April meeting, the membership chose Operation Homes to receive our collective donations. We were able to give Operation Homes $8,750 to support their mission of serving the homeless of Medina County. Operation Homes Nancy Abbott explained that when COVID shut down the churches, they were faced with nowhere to place their clients. They were forced to house them in hotel rooms which quickly ate up their available funds. Where they would normally spend $30,000 a year, they had already spent $35,000 for this year so far. Nancy sincerely thanked the group for this donation which will help them to continue to service the homeless without running out of money.
Nominations were drawn from the bowl and the organizations chosen to present were Access the Arts, Summer Reinforcement Program and Feeding Medina County.
Jane Back and Janet George presented for Access the Arts. Their mission is to provide free arts programs that connect to the underserved, specifically at-risk elderly and youth. It was started in 2018 with all volunteers. Current funds will sustain them through October. Programs include: working with Medina County Home residents providing crafts, music therapy and lessons, holiday parties, and bonfires. They also provide music and art therapy and lessons to inmates at Medina County Juvenile Detention Center and arts and music enrichment for a Wadsworth Adult Day Care. They are developing a new program called Fine Arts With Friends that will be a program that brings needs-based students from Medina county schools and Akron Schools together to celebrate not only arts, but also people of different color and backgrounds. Money was requested to support these outreach programs.
Jane Langol presented for Summer Reinforcement Program which is a 40-yr. program that offers math and reading tutoring during the summer months, five days a week to preschool through age 14 children. It is held in person which is especially critical with the post pandemic interruption of learning. Using State of Ohio guidelines and IEP’s, licensed professional instructors and speech and music therapists provide the instruction and support.. Expenses to be covered include insurance and scholarships for those who can't afford the tuition. Program fee is $400 per child. Outside of COVID, 85-90 students were typically enrolled, but currently they have about 57.
Feeding Medina County was presented by Katy Fuerst. FMC educates, engages and takes the lead to create an environment where no one goes hungry. Twenty-three percent of children in Medina County face food insecurity on a daily basis. They provide about 350 weekender bags to children filled with food to get them through the weekend. A collaboration is taking place with Metropolitan Housing for Staples for Seniors which provides fresh produce, meat and dairy once a month to seniors. Emergency food distribution occurs at the Medina County Fairgrounds, Lodi, Wadsworth, and soon a Brunswick location. During the month of June they distributed an additional 550 lbs. of food from their office which does not include what was given out at their distribution sites. Feeding Medina County has partnered with Cathy's House to provide residents with their food needs as they are recovering.
Members voted to give our donations to Feeding Medina County. If you haven't already, please make your check out to Feeding Medina County and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256. We ask that you get your checks in as soon as possible so we can get them to Feeding Medina County more quickly.
When the meeting was adjourned we enjoyed a delicious birthday cake to celebrate 10 years of giving over $355,000! Our next meeting will be Tuesday, October 12. Mark you calendars and see you then!April 13, 2021
April 13, 2021
We had almost 50 members join in on our April quarterly Zoom meeting on Tuesday, April 13. Linda Loveless greeted the group in place of our usual facilitator - Claudia Cihlar. Claudia was in California meeting her first grandchild - Huck - for the very first time!
This meeting marked the 10th anniversary of 100+ Women Who Care Medina! After a round of cheers we learned that our group has donated $345,854 to Medina County organizations during that time.
We also applauded the news from our member Krista Wasowski, Medina County Health Commissioner, that we will probably be able to meet in person at our next quarterly meeting in July!
From our January meeting we were able to donate $8,976 to Medina Cares. Danica Ziese, co-president of the board for Medina Cares was present. She explained that Medina Cares provides financial assistance to residents that are in a medical crisis - paying for typical monthly expenses like rent, utilities, transportation, medical bills and more. As a result of the pandemic the need for their assistance has risen drastically. Our donations will help fill in the gaps.
The three organizations that were nominated from the bowl were: Feeding Medina County, Operation Homes and Lodi Family Center.
Katy Fuerst presented for Feeding Medina County. whose mission is to educate,
engage and lead our community in creating an environment where no one goes hungry.
All of their services have seen increased challenges due to the pandemic: Weekender bags for students, Staples for Seniors, and food distribution to struggling residents.
Sue Simmons presented information about Operation Homes which is the only homeless program offered in Medina County. Operation Homes partners with local churches for shelter, food and the administration of life skill programs. They provide the opportunity for individuals to be independent, both personally and financially. They are solely funded through fund raisers and personal donations, no government subsidies. With churches being shut down as part of COVID protocols, the organization had to house the homeless in local motels, greatly increasing their expenses and more than doubling their budget since June 2020. With just one paid staff member, Operation Homes strongly depends on community volunteers and volunteers from their partner churches.
Rebecca Rak shared information about Lodi Family Center and how the pandemic has affected their ability to offer services and the demand for services. Lodi Family Center offers a safe place where families and their children can come, have fun and hang out with their friends. It is an important option for working parents who would otherwise be forced to leave their children at home with no adult care or supervision. They offer after school programs, 4-H clubs, parenting programs, offering connections to other community resources and nutrition support with their food pantry. The food pantry has seen an increase in number of people served from 2,000 per year to 20,000 during the past year, serving over 565 families. They plan to introduce programs to teach citizens how to cook nutritional foods from their pantry items. They also want to improve their outreach, possibly offering Zoom classes on various topics.
The membership emailed their votes and the majority chose Operation Homes to receive our funds from this meeting.
January 12, 2021
Claudia welcomed a group of 51 members to our January Zoom meeting, thanking everyone for attending. Despite a few glitches here and there, we were successful in choosing another organization in need of our funding. We learn more each meeting about managing a large group of Zoom participants!
At our October meeting we raised $8,338 for Cathy's House. To date, 100+ Women of Medina has raised $336,000 to help Medina County non-profits.
Stefanie Robinson thanked the membership for their support of Cathy's House. Like most things, the COVID pandemic has affected the operations of Cathy's House. One of the clients tested positive for COVID which meant that the entire house had to quarantine for two weeks which meant no work, no money for rent, not money for food. They also had major repairs in the basement. Stefanie said this money couldn't have come at a better time.
The following organizations were picked from the bowl to make presentations: Access the Arts, Medina Cares and the Summer Reinforcement Program.
Jane Back said Access the Arts was founded in 2018 to provide free arts programs to the underserved. They offer weekly arts classes at the Juvenile Detention Center. They also provide outreach at Medina County Home through concerts, and arts programming. They are planning to start a Sister School Project that pairs Medina City Schools students with Akron Public Schools to celebrate the arts with 3rd graders, teaching them to love the arts and create long lasting friendships.
Jean Holland presented for Medina Cares, saying that they provide temporary financial assistance to Medina County residents 19-59 years old who are experiencing a medical crisis. They provide temporary financial support to pay for typical monthly expenses, such as rent, utility bills, transportation, medication, groceries, and medical bills. Last year - 2020 - was particularly difficult as they saw a 67% increase in people needing their assistance. Our funds would be used to meet this increasing need as well as to purchase an answering assistant service to take client calls as this is a completely volunteer organization.
Jane Langol explained that the Summer Reinforcement Program is a tutoring program open to any child in Medina County. It is a classroom-setting program with tutoring emphasis on math and reading. There are no new materials introduced-only reinforcing and re-teach of basic classroom skills. Speech therapy is offered, plus Autism services. The attending child must be 3-12 years of age as of the first day of school. Their mission is to maintain the academic skills of kids over the summer months. Funds would be used to hire a speech therapist and tuition support as only 43 out of 85 pay the tuition in full.
The membership voted by sending an email to the 100+ email account. The majority voted for Medina Cares.October 13, 2020
Well, we survived our first Zoom meeting and it went pretty smoothly. Thank you to all who went on the adventure with us!
We ended up with about 55 attendees with their glowing faces displayed on our computer screens. Claudia welcomed everyone and explained some of the particular guidelines we needed to follow to make the meeting successful. She thanked everyone for the donations from January's meeting to Community Action Wayne Medina. Melissa Pearce, representing the organization, provided a report on the program and how the funds were used in the email sent out to members last week.
The organizations selected from the bowl to present their requests were: Junior Leadership Medina County, Lodi Family Center and Cathy's House.
Colleen Rice explained that the Junior Leadership program brings together high school students from all county schools and home schooling to experience everything that makes Medina County great, and work on community projects, learn about careers and connect to the community with their support.. There are 74 students in the current class. Since COVID, there have not been any fund raisers. The money is needed to underwrite the cost of tuition. Students only pay $150 of the $1,000 that it costs for the program. And no student is turned away because of financial issues.
Rebecca Rak shared that there are 3 audiences served by Lodi Family Center. They offer a Youth Center, Senior Center and Food Pantry. Since COVID 19 struck, most of their efforts have focused on the food pantry where demand has increased remarkably. To compare, in 2019 they provided 158,000 pounds of food and through mid - September 2020 they have already distributed 260,000 pounds. They accomplish this with just one part-time employee. All the rest are volunteers. Our funds would be used to help them with the increased demand.
Stephanie Robinson reported that Cathy's House has been around since 1998 and it is the only recovery housing in Medina County. They help residents transition into long term recovery providing recovery support and employment. Our donations would be used to provide resident resources, basic needs like clothing, recovery services, books, in-house support and support for staff. Residents are screened before they are admitted. The average stay is 217 days.
All 100+ members in attendance were given a chance to vote by sending their vote to the 100+ email address. After tallying all votes, the group chose Cathy's House to receive our October funding.
Please mail your checks made out to Cathy's House to:
Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256.
All checks must be received within 2 weeks as that is when they will be presented to representatives of Cathy's House.
Mark your calendars for our next meeting (most likely it will be via Zoom again): Tuesday, January 12, 2021.
Stay safe
January 14, 2020
About 70 members kicked of a new decade of giving at our meeting on Tuesday at Blue Heron Event Center and Brewery.
Claudia welcomed the group and announced that to date we have raised over $317,700 for 35 Medina County charities.She expressed condolences to the family and friends of member Joy Wright who passed away recently. We were then introduced to members Meghan Cihlar and Amy Steppenbacker from Charles Schwab Corporation. They talked about the Charles Schwab Pro Bono Challenge. The challenge is a skills-based volunteering program that invites local nonprofits to work with experienced Schwab employees on specific business challenges to impact and improve their operations. Locally, they have worked with The Children's Center and Newbridge Place.. They would like to work with other Medina charities and are trying to get the word out about their free services.
We have raised $9,922 for the Medina County Historical Society from our October meeting to help with the purchase of the McDowell Phillips house. Historical Society rep Joann King stepped up to the front of the group and exclaimed, "We bought a house!" With our donations and the help of many others, they were able to raise $300,000 in seven months to purchase the house. Now they begin the process of refurbishing. Joann said the fact that they don't have a mortgage will impact the success of acquiring grants and further funding to get the house in shape. She was very appreciative of our efforts.
The three organizations that were drawn from the bowl were Junior Leadership Medina County, Summer Reinforcement Program and Community Action Wayne/Medina.
Colleen Rice spoke on behalf of Junior Leadership which is a county wide program where high school juniors gather once a month to engage in hands-on and experiential activities taking them everywhere around the county to learn about what makes Medina County amazing.The students take on philanthropic projects to help local organizations take on problem solving and community building. Our funds would be used to help these Venture Projects to be completed.
Jane Langol represented the Summer Reinforcement Program which is a tutoring program open to any child, preschool to 14 years, in Medina County. It is a classroom setting with fully licensed teachers that primarily focuses on Math and Reading. To help finance tuitions that are defaulted, the program is seeking additional financial support.
Melissa Pearce spoke about Community Action Wayne/Medina which provides services to low-income families, helping them to get out of poverty with a variety of services.They are seeking funds for their Getting Ahead program to help high school juniors and seniors at Cloverleaf High School design their own path out of poverty. The program teaches self-sufficiency and offers a robust curriculum of project development and management, exchanges with the community, and individual academic and career plans to get students ready for leadership in the workplace and in life.
The group selected Community Action Wayne/Medina to receive our funding for this first quarter of 2020. If you haven't done so already, please mail your check made out to Community Action Wayne/Medina to: Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Rd., Medina, OH 44256.
Mark your calendars for our next meeting on Tuesday, April 14!
October 9, 2019
October's meeting was a fun night with celebrating milestones, new faces and supporting the the purchase of one of Medina's historic gems. But we're getting ahead of ourselves!
Almost 80 ladies (and one gentleman) gathered in the Heron Room at Blue Heron Brewery and Event Center to socialize, celebrate and support our communities. Claudia kicked off the celebrating by announcing that 100+ Women Who Cares has raised $307,000 for Medina County charities, topping a new milestone.
We were happy to recognize 8 new members who had joined that evening and look forward to their participation and support of local charities.
Sharon Baker, Laura Kotalec and Terry Pfister, representing Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E., the recipient of our funds from the July meeting, spoke movingly about how the more than $9,000 they received will impact the lives of our county teens. The money will provide for at least 70 scholarships for teens to learn special driving skills and crash avoidance techniques through training with the Teen Driving program with Drive Team. As she approaches the 8th anniversary of loosing her daughter, Kelli, in a driving accident, mother and founder of Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E., Sharon Baker said, "We many never know how many lives will be saved by this donation."
The three organizations selected from the bowl were Live Inspired, Medina County Historical Society and Healing Hoofs.
Carolyn Labbe presented for Live Inspired which is a group that helps economically and educationally disadvantage families of children ages 2-4 by inspiring parents to be the child's first teacher, playing, reading with them so that they are well prepared to enter school. Volunteers visit the family twice a week bringing a new book and new toy and engaging with the child for about a half hour, modeling teaching behaviors that the parent can follow. Live Inspired currently serves 20 families and it costs about $300 a year to provide services to each child. Our funds would be used to purchase new toys, books and materials for the kids.
Joann King presented for the Medina County Historical Society which is committed to the preservation of Medina's past for the future of its residents. The group has the chance to purchase one of the gems of Medina history - the Blake/McDowell/Phillips house at the end of W. Washington street and refurbish it to its shining glory.The home has remained in the same family for five generations. The house is 5,000 square feet and would be used for museum displays as well as a unique venue for events. The home will be on the CDC Holiday Home Tour on December 8. It will also be open during the Candlelight Walk. Funds would go toward the purchase and refurbishing of the home.
Healing Hoofs was presented by Judy Cross. The organization is run by a husband & wife who rescue horses and train them to interact with abused children, acting as a calming force in their lives. It's been found that sometimes it's easier for children to talk to animals than to humans. They want to be able to take the horses to the Juvenile Detention Center to help those incarcerated. Our donations would go to care for the horses and assist with the needed supplies and equipment to transport the horses to the Detention Center.
As people were deciding their votes, we announced that Goodyear Company has recognized the good work of our chapter of 100+ Women Who Care by offering a discount on tires to our membership, family & friends. The effort was spearheaded by our member Melissa Komar Ross. If you are interested, here is the link to the information you need: Goodyear offer The letter says the offer expires on Oct. 18 but they have extended it to the end of the month.
The voting resulted in Medina County Historical Society being selected to receive our donations.
When the meeting was adjourned we enjoyed a delicious cake and visiting between members. Alyssa Alfano from the Gazette took a group picture and posted a great article on the front page of Wednesday's Gazette.
July 9, 2019
About 70 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Blue Heron Event Center Tuesday evening.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and introduced Tim Van Arsdale from Cups Cafe which was the recipient of $9,500 from our donations at the April meeting. Cups Cafe, located on North Court Street in Medina, provides a safe, comfortable place for kids to hang out and get something to eat. It gets kids off the streets and everything is offered free. They exist 100% on donations. Local food stores and restaurants often donate extra food. The 100+ funds are being used to upgrade kitchen equipment and purchase supplies. As a result of our donation, Grace Church raised an additional $2,500 to help with funding.
Three of our members who are also active with Cups Cafe pulled the slips from the nominating bowl and the groups selected were Habitat for Humanity, Medina County Junior Leadership and Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E.
Pat Neil presented for Habitat for Humanity which has been in Medina since 1991. Habitat provides new or rehabbed housing to low income families. They have helped purchase or rehab 43 homes since they started. Their 44th home should be ready the end of this month. They have 9 families who have qualified and are waiting for homes. Families are required to put in 250 sweat equity hours per single or 400 hours per couple, working on their and others' homes to qualify. The work is done by volunteers and requires quite a bit of coordination to time the work and offer supervision. Our funds would be used to build and coordinate the volunteer program.
www.medinacountyhabitat.org
Coleen Rice spoke on behalf of Junior Leadership which is a program for high school juniors in Medina County to help them develop leadership skills and make a difference in their schools and in their community. They take on projects in the community, creating a business and marketing plan. For example, they saw a need at the Juvenile Detention Center to put together care kits. They learned that even when the juveniles were released, they were requesting these items like toothpaste because they didn't have them at home. They receive over 80 applications for the year-long program but space is limited to 45 students. Our funding would provide funding for scholarships. The program cost per student is about $1,000 but students only pay $150 each, so the balance must be raised from donations.
leadershipmedinacounty.org/juniorleadership
Information about Kelli's Crusade was presented by Sharon Baker and Laura Kotalac. Sharon's daughter was killed in a car accident in 2012 when her car slid off a recently paved road, swerved back across the road into a tree. There were no center lines, no edge lines and the road should not have been reopened. The mission of Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E. (Continuing Road Upgrades, Safety Awareness, Driver Education), is to save as many lives as possible on our roads through proper education, road improvements, and creating awareness across our communities. Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E. provides scholarships to teen drivers to attend a 4-hour Winter Driving Skills class at Drive Team in Cuyahoga Falls. The class is the only one of its kind in Ohio and Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E. seeks to provide scholarships for students who can't afford it. Our funds would go to those scholarships.
www.kelliscrusade.org
The membership voted to support Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E.
April 9, 2019 meeting
The second quarterly meeting of 100 Women Who Care of Medina met in a beautiful room provided by Blue Heron Brewery & Event Center on Tuesday evening.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed our members and thanked the team from Blue Heron for their hospitality. She stated that this is our 32nd funding cycle and to date we have raised $286,900 to fund 32 charitable organizations.
Claudia reminded everyone that at the January meeting the membershpp decided to allow an organization that had received funding previously to submit a request again as long as at least three years had passed since the original funding.
Sue Simmons and Linda Loveless were invited by member Sarah Arend to speak about our group at the Medina Hospital Community Advisory Council last week. The group is made up of the movers and shakers of Medina County - mayors, school superintendents, chamber or commerce execs, etc. The group was very interested in our fundraising model and had many questions.
At our January meeting, we gave $9,216 to The Children's Center which services abused and neglected children. Rhonda Wurgler, Executive Director, thanked the group for providing the funding to build a new facility that can accommodate more clients and allow them to expand services. They had to start turning people away at their old facility. But now they no longer need to do that. They just opened the doors to the new facility two weeks ago and Rhonda invited everyone to their Open House in June. As a result of our donations, The Family Advocacy Room will be recognized as being sponsored by 100+ Women Who Care Medina. Rhonda said that without the support of 100+ Women back in 2012, The Chldren's Center would not have survived to be here today. It was a critical time. April is Child Abuse Awareness month and in June they will be planting their pinwheels, one for each child served. This year they will be planting 283 pinwheels which is 200 more than last year!
We moved on to the presentations part of the meeting and three organizations were selected from the bowl: Habitat for Humanity, Cups Cafe and Free Clinic of Medina County.
Patricia Neal presented for Habitat for Humanity which was started in 1991 to provide new or refurbished homes to lower income families. They usually provide 1 or more homes per year but this year it will be 5 homes. There are 11 families on the waiting list. They pay for materials and skilled labor and depend on the help of many volunteers. They receive money from sales at their ReStore which sells donated items from contractors. The group just acquired the Hawkins building and will be able to expand their offerings. Through their program qualifying families can receive a 0% interest mortgage. Money will be used to expand their volunteer program and add some women's, youth and families programs to build smaller projects.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for Cups Cafe where you can find coffee, comfort and conversation. It was started by Tim Van Arsdale as a safe place to hang out that can help at risk kids. They are open Monday through Saturday from 10am to 4:30 pm. It is open to anybody and they get a lot of walk-ins - especially kids from Garfield, the High School and Claggett. They often can get over 100 people a day. Tim is the only person on the payroll, and the operations are mostly run by their over 60 volunteers. They also offer free holiday dinners. They get donations from local restaurants and churches. Funds would be used to upgrade the kitchen and to supplement food, paper products, and cleaning products.
Liza Wallace presented for the Free Clinic of Medina County, formerly known as Medina Health Ministries, which is a free medical clinic serving the residents of Medina County by providing free medical care to the working residents of Medina County who meet the income requirements. It is staffed by dedicated physicians, nurses and support staff who volunteer their time to provide care and assistance.Their office is located at Medina Hospital. Their only paid staff is an executive director and part time RN. Funds would go to support diabetics patients by providing supplies, monitors, lancets. Also they have some originally donated equipment that needs to be replaced.
The membership voted by ballot and selected Cups Cafe to receive funds from the April meeting.
January 8, 2019 meeting
100+ Women Who Care Medina kicked off 2019 with an informative meeting on Tuesday, January 8.
Claudia Cihlar began the meeting by offering support and concern to one of our members, Joy Wright, who is facing some difficult health issues.
This meeting begins our 31st quarter of charitable funding. During that time we have raised $277,372 to help 30 local charities. We currently have 196 active members. We had 19 members from last October's meeting that did not contribute.
Claudia reminded the membership that at the last meeting the membership decided to allow organizations that had received funding in the past, the opportunity to again put in a request for our support. The stipulations are that it must be at least 3 years since the organization originally was funded and that the membership be made aware of this.
As the result of the October meeting, the membership donated $9,708 (with more still coming in) to Newbridge Place. Claudia introduced Elizabeth Makita from Newbridge Place. Elizabeth thanked the membership for their support of her passion to take care of veterans who are not mentally well by providing all their needs - housing, transportation, food, etc. These folks often fall between the cracks. The organization was in dire need of a new vehicle to transport clients to doctor's appointments, shopping, and short trips. They were down to just one working vehicle. With our funds they were able to get some matching funds and a loan to purchase a Toyota Sienna with a lift seat. Elizabeth said it has made such a difference in what they can provide to their residents.
Elizabeth assisted with pulling the nominations from the bowl. Selected organizations were The Children's Center of Medina County, Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E., and Running to Be Well.
Rhonda Wurgler spoke for The Children's Center. She started off by thanking the membership for their donations back in 2011. The Center was at a critical point then with no money in the bank and possibly facing closing the facility. Our donations were the shot in the arm they needed and she was pleased to be able to stand before the organization and talk about expansion. The mission of The Children's Center is to nurture abused and neglected children through collaboration, advocacy, treatment and prevention in a child-friendly and safe place. They also provide a family-friendly location where children of Foster Care can reconnect with their families to visit, talk and play in a supervised location. The need for their services has grown and it be came evident that they needed more space. They are currently involved in a capital campaign to expand space at a location on Smith Road in Medina to better serve their clients. These funds would be used toward that endeavor.
Melanie Simcich presented for Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E which is an organization that supports driver safety and driver training along with awareness of needed road condition improvements. The organization was started as a result of a horrible accident killing Kelli Baker in 2011. Kelli was driving to school at Wooster ATI on a section of road that had been resurfaced the day before. It was raining and there were no center lines or edge lines and a 5" drop off on the side. Kelly's right tires dropped off the side when the road narrowed with no warning, causing her car to spin off the road, hit a tree and burst into flames. As a result of this horrific accident Kelli's C.R.U.S.A.D.E was founded to impact the lives of teen drivers by crusading for safer roads, providing safe driving awareness and enhancing driver education. The group offers scholarships to teens to be able to attend Driving Skills Class through Drive Team, one of two Elite Driving Schools in Ohio. There they learn so much more than the basics, including skid avoidance, skid recovery, crash avoidance and emergency braking techniques. The money from 100+ would allow the group to offer more scholarships.
Stephanie Robinson told the group about Running To be Well, a grass roots non-profit that helps those struggling with addictions and mental health issues to develop and maintain healthy lifestyles. The group meets weekly with about 90 attending and focuses on walking and running to improve health. Participants are taught proper running techniques, how to set goals and achieve them. Meetings are supportive and encouraging. If a participant attends 3 consecutive meetings, they receive a pair of proper running shoes. At their first 5K they had 270 participants. The money would be used for purchase of shoes, race entry fees, leadership training, Narcan training.
The membership voted and chose the Children's Center to receive our funding.
October 9, 2018 meeting
The membership gathered at the Medina Library for the last quarter of 2018 meeting on Tuesday, October 9.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed everyone and introduced a group of students representing The BEAT, the organization that received our funding from the July meeting.The group is a student driven, self funded news production organization. Students in grades six through twelve gain experience in writing and editing news stories and shooting and directing programs that appear on the Educational Access Channel 22. Often their stories also appear in local newspapers and TV channels. Claudia and Linda Loveless appeared on their Business Beat program discussing 100+ Women Who Care Medina. You can visit The BEAT website and view this interview by clicking here. The BEAT program advisor, John Wasylko, thanked our group for helping them to update their equipment.
Claudia then introduced a point of old business that was brought up at the July meeting. We had discussed allowing organizations that have received funding in the past to resubmit a request. Linda led a discussion with the members as various suggestions were made. It was agreed that we would allow an organization to resubmit. Then the discussion focused on the details of this decision. One suggestion was to allow it after two years have passed since an organization has received funding. Then if they want to submit again after that, they would have to wait five years. It was also suggested to make it just a flat three years. Member Jean Gulyas suggested a rolling re-entry into the nominating bow. We would start with the first batch of winning organizations to resubmit after at least three years have passed since they received funding. A lot of discussion followed and it was decided by consensus that we would allow an organization to resubmit for consideration after three years have passed since they received funding. Members also requested that they be informed if an organization has previously received funding before they make their decision and cast their vote.
We then moved on to the selection of a non-profit for our funding. The organizations nominated were: Newbridge Place, Cups Cafe, and American Association of University Women Scholarship Fund.
Claudia Cihlar presented for Newbridge Place which provides housing for very low income, mentally ill veterans.This is the first housing project in Medina County that addresses the needs of veterans suffering from chronic homelessness, mental illness and lack of income to gain access to affordable, supportive housing. This home offers both transitional and permanent living.The need is for funding support to purchase a vehicle with a wheelchair lift. They have already raised most of the money needed.
Carolyn Grenfell spoke on behalf of Cups Cafe which is located just north of Medina square on N. Court St. Cups Cafe welcomes all who just need a safe, neutral place to hang out and receive a free meal. Founder Tim VanArsdale worked with at-risk youth with Youth for Christ but he wanted to do something more and started Cups Cafe. He interacts with the many repeat visitors to Cups to help and encourage them through life challenges. There are no restrictions to who can be served. Cups receives support from local businesses and help from many community volunteers. Their needs are to update and improve the kitchen and to purchase supplies. Several local businesses donate food for their outreach.
Paula Banks presented for American Association of University Women. The Medina group distributes scholarships to "non-traditional" women undergraduate students who are attending an accredited college or university. Applicants must be residents of Medina County and at least 25 years of age. A "non-traditional" student is a woman who is returning to college to finish an undergraduate degree, or a woman who has delayed entering college for several years after completing high school or earning a GED.
The membership voted and decided to support Newbridge Place with our funding.
July 10, 2018 meeting
Over 70 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Weymouth Country Club after a last minute location change. Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group on a beautiful summer evening announcing that we had a busy evening before us.
Claudia first invited Linda Loveless to the podium to discuss a rules clarification. The "managers"' of the group had been concerned about the lack of nominations at some of the meetings and had discussed ways to handle the situation if we happen to get only one or even no nominations. One idea was to implement a "secondary bowl" procedure where organizations that had completed nomination forms in the past but weren't selected could be added to the bowl. We would make sure there was someone in attendance who could speak to the current needs of the organization before adding it to the bowl. This has been implemented and has been added to our rules. Another idea was to allow an organization that has received funds in the past to resubmit. There could be limitations put on that submission such as it has to be for a new program or it has to be more than two years since they received funding. There was concern that an organization might keep coming back asking for funds so it was suggested that maybe the requests would be separated by two years the first time and 5 years the second time. There were some great comments and ideas from the membership. With the nodding of heads, it was decided to officially vote on this at our October meeting to give members a chance to give it some consideration.
Claudia then welcomed Sue Simmons to the podium who shared with us a wonderful honor that 100+ Women Who Care Medina received from the Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation. Our organization received the 2017 Senior Advocate Hall of Fame award at a celebration on May 17. This award honors organizations and individuals that have made a significant difference in the lives of older adults in the Wadsworth community. A beautiful plaque commemorating this honor will be on display at our meetings.
Claudia announced a major milestone for the group - we have now raised over a QUARTER MILLION DOLLARS!! That is quite an impact we have made on this county! To celebrate we ate cake.
Michelle Kipfstuhl from Catholic Charities greeted the group and thanked them for their funding received from the April meeting. The money supports their Food Shelf and has allowed them to provide more products and a wider variety of items. It helped one WIC mom with an 11 day old baby who was unable to receive formula and diapers from WIC but freely received help from the Food Shelf. Michelle talked about the ripple effect of our donations. One woman had visited the Food Shelf and realized that there weren't any feminine hygiene products. She mobilized her friends and came back with a giant box of them for the Food Shelf. The Food Shelf helps families stretch their food budget to make it through the month.
Three organizations were then selected from the bowl and invited to present: Healing Hoofs, Chippewa Lake Water Ski Team, and The BEAT.
Judy Cross presented for Healing Hoofs which is a relatively new organization that rescues horses and rescues children. Through the use of the calming nature of horses, abused or troubled children receive special care and uplifting experiences. Children are referred by local children and family services groups. The group needs a larger barn providing an indoor arena for winter. These monies would provide partial funding for the barn.
Paula Midlik spoke to the group about the Chippewa Lake Water Ski Team which had about 160 members who perform shows to 8-13,000 people each year. It is a multi-generational group and involves not only skiers but spotters, boat drivers, mechanics, sound crew and many ways to develop different skills. The money would be used to provide scholarships for the Learn to Ski program as well as for purchase and maintenance of equipment and to update technology.
Marsha Pappalardo presented for The BEAT which is a student driven program providing education and experience in TV and video production for students from Medina county schools in grades 6 to 12. They gain writing and production experience and have recently received an award in Columbus for excellence in how students can make difference. The group recently lost some major funding support and equipment desperately needs updating so students are current on the latest technology.
We then took a vote and The BEAT was selected to receive our funds. And then we ate cake.
April 10, 2018 Meeting
Claudia Cihlar welcomed members at the Tuesday, April 10 meeting by announcing that we are starting our 8th year! She recognized members who have been with us since the beginning and there were quite a few. We have raised approximately $246,650 since the beginning. We should definitely see a quarter of a million in contributions after our July meeting.We raised $9,400 for Medina Cares at our January meeting with no response from 25 member (not 25% as reported at the meeting). Claudia thanked Medina Library for donating the space for our quarterly meetings. She encouraged members to continue to seek out needy non-profits that would welcome our support.
Claudia introduced Karen Metzler and Beth DeFelice who were the founders of Medina Cares, the recipients of our donations from the January meeting. Both women have been in the health care industry for many years and formed Medina Cares 12 years ago because they saw many patients who just needed a little help to get them back on their feet. They receive referrals from all over the county to help with people in medical crisis who need funds to help with rent, medications and any other needs. They shared a couple of actual cases they have serviced. It is an all volunteer organization that serves residents of Medina County between the ages of 19 & 59. They thanked the group for supporting them and helping to expand their mission.
We moved on to the selection of organizations for our April donations. The groups pulled from the bowl were The BEAT, Chelsea Cares, and the Food Shelf at Catholic Charities.
Marsha Pappalardo spoke on behalf of The BEAT which is a TV production program for students in grades 6-12. It is not associated with any school district and is run by the students and a volunteer advisor. Students learn to write, edit and produce TV programs. The equipment is outdated and any funds would be used to purchase new equipment.
Mary Jane Brewer presented for Chelsea Cares which was founded in 2007 by Betty Platner whose 3 week old granddaughter was hospitalized in Akron Children's Hospital. While there she received a fleece blanket which was so comforting for the family to see something normal in the crib. Since then Chelsea Cares has made over 14,000 fleece blankets and pillows. There is no paid staff, only volunteers. Funds would be used for fabric, thread and supplies and would expand their reach and operations for at least 3 years.
Michelle Kipfstuhl talked about the Food Shelf at Catholic Charities which was created because people started coming in to the office and asking for food. They began small with some of the basics and distributed an average of 156 items per month in 2016, 430 items monthly average in 2017 and 478 items monthly average for the first 3 months of 2018. There are no restrictions or qualifications for who can get food and they find that people are very respectful of the offerings and don't take advantage of them. This project is totally supported by donations. They will be able to use these funds to purchase foods, toilet paper, tissues, laundry detergent and other necessities.
The group placed their votes and decided to give our April donations to the Food Shelf at Catholic Charities. Please make your checks out to Catholic Charities Medina and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256
January 9, 2018 Meeting
About 80 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina met at the Medina Library on Tuesday, January 9. Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group. We have raised over $237,000 for Medina County non-profits since we started in April of 2011.
Claudia encouraged members to seek out and research local non-profits in need of funding so that they can bring their needs to the attention of the group.
For Wadsworth Office of Older Adults we raised $9,781 with more checks to come in. Laura Toth from the Office for Older Adults talked about the voucher program that offers healthy and hot meals to seniors. With our money they are able to provide meals for 23 more people.
Six organizations were nominated for consideration. The three selected were: United Way One Book, One Community project, Project M.U.N.C.H. and Medina Cares, Inc.
Michelle Kipfstuhl presented for the United Way One Book, One Community Project which provides copies of the book, "The Seventh Most Important Thing" by Shelley Pearsall to all sixth graders in Medina County. The project brings readers together around one book to share a common reading experience and a meaningful interaction with the author.
Sally Giovinazzo presented for Project M.U.N.C.H which stands for Medina United Neighbors Challenging Hunger. The program was started in 1990 to provide free meals every Wednesday and the last full week of each month. They serve over 1600 hot meals a month. The project is held under the auspices of the Salvation Army.
Jean Holland spoke to the needs of Medina Cares Inc.which is an all-volunteer organization whose mission is to give temporary assistance to individuals who are in a medical crisis and between the ages of 19 and 59 years old and reside in Medina County. They offer assistance to those who often fall through the cracks when they need help. They assist with expenses such as doctor appointments, medications, co-pays, rent, utilities, car repairs, gas, food, needed supplies and more. They often direct individuals to other organizations.
The membership voted and chose Medina Cares Inc. to receive our donations. If you haven't already done so, please send your check made out to Medina Cares Inc. to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, Ohio 44256.
Our next meeting will be Tuesday, April 10 at the Medina Library.
October 10th Meeting
About 70 members gathered at the Medina Library for the fourth quarter meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the membership as well as a group of new members. She reminded the membership that winning organizations may not solicit our members for future fund raisers and that information has been updated on our website: www.100womenwhocaremedina.com.
Claudia invited Kathy Warner, Executive Director of First Impression, Inc., recipient of our funds from the July meeting, to speak to the group. Kathy thanked the members for their kind generosity and explained that some of the money will go to purchase proper undergarments for clients who are serviced by First Impression. Often they only have what clothes they are wearing with worn out and poor fitting undergarments. Monies will also go to purchase portfolios for the clients to carry to interviews, rounding out the professional appearance. The portfolios contain information on interviewing tips and more. Kathy said she is currently working on getting clients who are in need of proper attire through contacts in the courts system. Kathy again thanked the organization for their support.
Nominations were then drawn from the bowl with two organizations presenting.
Pam Myers from Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation spoke about the meal voucher program run by their organization. They service Wadsworth, Sharon Center and parts of Montville Township. They currently provide between 1 and 12 vouchers to 75 people to provide a healthy and hot meal each month at the Suprema Senior Center in Wadsworth. These clients are at high nutritional risk.The Foundation covers about 25% of the cost of the meals. The rest is covered by governments and collaborative efforts. Not only does the voucher program provide nutrition but they also offer social structure for these individuals. With this money they would be able to expand the program to provide more meal vouchers to current clients as well as potential clients.
Marsha Pappalardo presented for The BEAT which is a cable TV program involving students from grades 6-12. It is housed at Brunswick High School but attracts students from around the county. It is not funded by any of the school districts and they meet on Saturday mornings to produce local TV shows for cable. They recently lost their funding and are in need of replacing some of the expensive equipment which is 8-10 years old. Additional funds would be used for operating expenses and server costs.
The membership voted and chose Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation. If you haven't already done so, please send your checks made out to Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256,
July 2017 Meeting
Members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered in the conference rooms at Medina Hospital for the July meeting.
Claudia Cihlar greeted the group and reviewed some topics that needed to be addressed. In particular, several members have noted being solicited by past organizations who have received 100+ Women donations. Organizations have been told that they cannot use the 100+ member list for solicitation for additional funds. Our leaders have discussed this and an effort will be made to make sure the winning organizations understand this requirement.
Claudia then introduced Rebecca Byrne from Medina County Police Athletic League, the recipient of donations from our April meeting. Rebecca thanked the group and spoke about how the money is being used to expand their mission of providing after-school educational, athletic and recreational activities for elementary children to help them develop positive attitudes towards law enforcement and raise awareness of their roles.
Two organizations were then pulled from the bowl to present their requests for funding: First Impression, Inc. and Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation.
Marsha Pappalardo presented for First Impression. She told us the mission of the organization is to provide appropriate clothing and image consulting for economically challenged women as they go to job interviews. They have serviced 25 women so far this year with a 75% success rate of getting them placed into jobs. The group would spend the money on undergarments and professional portfolios to equip the women properly to enter the workforce. The funds would also supplement the rent payments for a safe and private facility to consult with the women.
Pam Meyers presented for Wadsworth Older Adults Foundation. They are asking for funding for the older adult meal voucher program. This program is a collaborative with Wadsworth schools, the Office of Older Adults and Windfall Industries. They want to expand programming by providing older adults with both a meal and socialization opportunity for the remainder of this fund cycling year and into the next 5 year funding cycle.s The population at risk is older adults 60+ years who are both nutritionally and socially isolated. The program brings these persons in for meals in a cafe style setting and provides them with vouchers for meals. An assessment of the person's needs is done by RD's and social workers. The vouchers' availability is based on need. The program is run by 15 unpaid volunteers.
The group voted and selected First Impression, Inc. to receive our donations from this quarter.
Please make your checks out to First Impression, Inc. and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256.
Our next meeting will be Tuesday, October 10 at 7 pm at the Medina County District Library, Main Branch on Broadway.
April 2017 Meeting
Over 90 members gathered at Medina Library to learn about the the needs of local non-profits. Member Claudia Cihlar introduced Dianne DePasquale-Hagerty, CEO of Medina Creative Housing which was the recipient of donations from the January meeting. Dianne offered her heartfelt thank you for the contributions and shared her passion of working with those with disabilities.
Three organizations were drawn from the fishbowl to make presentations: The BEAT, First Impression, and Medina County Police Athletic League.
Marsha Pappalardo spoke about The BEAT program which is a program involving children in grades six through 12 who have the opportunity to write news stories, conduct on-camera interviews, edit, shoot and direct programs that air on Educational Access Channel 22, the BEAT. The program is totally self-funded and relies solely on donations. These funds would allow the program to expand to all the county.
Member Kathy Warner presented information about First Impression which provides appropriate clothing and employment support to displaced and disadvantaged women to make a good impression at job interviews and their employment. She shared stories of how the organization has helped women to build their confidence and successfully acquire jobs. The monies would help the expenses of running the program like dry cleaning, insurance, rent of a facility as the location to serve the women.
Rebecca Byrne from the Medina County Police Activities League told members that the group provides after-school educational, athletic and recreational activities for elementary children to develop positive attitudes towards law enforcement and raise awareness of their roles. Programs are held in the school districts of Brunswick, Cloverleaf, Highland, Medina and Wadsworth. Funds are being requested to support the operation of the program and allow it to expand into the Buckeye Schools.
The membership selected Medina County Police Activities League to receive the funds from 100+ members. Please make your checks out to MCPAL and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256.
Mark your calendars for our next meeting: July 11. Location to be announced.
January 2017 Meeting
The members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Weymouth County Club on Tuesday, January 9. Claudia Cihlar welcomed the over 80 members. She announced that, to date, the organization has contributed $195,700 to area non-profits since its inception. That means that with our January meeting donations, we will top $200,000!! Many thanks to the active members who have committed to making a difference for so many non-profits in Medina County.
Claudia discussed with the membership the need to establish a new policy relating to teams who have members that are delinquent in their donation responsibilities. It was agreed that teams that have one or more members who are not current with their donations will not be allowed to vote. Teams who are in this position will be notified before the meeting so they have the chance to become current with their obligations.
Claudia expressed gratitude to Weymouth Country Club for their support of our meetings these past six years by donating the use of their rooms. In July we will begin meeting at the Cleveland Clinic Medina Hospital Conference Room. Look for information in the next email about the location of the April meeting.
At our October meeting, the membership chose Birthcare of Medina to receive our donations. Barb McCoy, Director and Diane Bugner, Assistant Director thanked the group for their generosity. Birthcare served 345 clients in 2016 which impacted 748 children, providing diapers, safe car seats, cribs, formula and food. Our contributions will allow them to offer more to these families in need.
The three organizations selected from the bowl were Community Action Wayne/Medina, The BEAT, and Medina Creative Housing.
Melissa Pearce represented Community Action Wayne/Medina.They are a federally funded anti-poverty agency providing education, health & wellness and safe home services to low income people. Their services and programs include Head Start, HEAP energy assistance and housing and transportation assistance. They are asking for money to support their transportation services which includes client car repairs and public transportation to help clients get to job interviews and employment.
Marsha Pappalardo introduced the group to The BEAT which is a self-funded, independent video production program housed at Brunswick High School. Students in grades six through 12 have the opportunity to write news stories, conduct on-camera interviews, edit, shoot and direct programs that air on Educational Access Channel 22. The program is not part of the curriculum. It is a volunteer and independent program that is open to all sixth through 12th graders in Medina County. The organization is asking for funding to be able to purchase updated equipment.
Dianne DePasquale-Hagerty presented information about Medina Creative Housing which was founded 25 years ago by parents of children with disabilities to help them find the services they needed. The organization currently promotes and develops the management of permanent, affordable housing and quality services for persons with disabilities living in Medina County in addition to providing vocational training in a variety of areas. Through the years they have realized the need for providing a post secondary transition program where their clients can get support and develop life skills and social skills to carry them forward. They are currently raising funds for the construction of a building for this purpose in the Brunswick area and would like our help with funding.
After tallying the votes, Claudia announced that Medina Creative Housing would be receiving our donations from the January meeting.
October 2016 meeting
Over 70 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Weymouth Country Club on Tuesday, October 11 to learn more about local charities and make a difference for one particular group.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and introduced Michelle Kipfstuhl from Catholic Charities Services and The Incredible Years program. Funding from 100+ Women's July meeting went to support the work of The Incredible Years. This program offers support and training to parents for the difficult task of raising happy, healthy, well adjusted children through weekly meetings on various topics. This additional funding has allowed the program to be expanded to more locations around Medina County. Services provided by The Incredible Years and Catholic Charities are available to all, regardless of religious preference.
The organizations selected for consideration were Birthcare of Medina County, JAFS Therapy in Motion, and Chelsea Cares.
Mary Kase and Joanne Weiler presented for Birthcare which provides emergency assistance and support to families of infants and young children in Medina County. Clients do not have financial resources to provide the basic needs for their young children. The biggest need is for diapers and formula which is ongoing and always needs to be replenished.
Sue Simmons presented on behalf of JAFS Therapy in Motion which provides therapeutic horse riding for challenged children and teens. A licensed physical therapist and occupational therapist work with the children to define their needs and plan. Very seldom is this type of therapy covered by insurance. The needs that would be fulfilled with 100+ Women donations would be purchasing the special saddles, riding harnesses, body protector vests and other equipment designed to keep the clients safe.
Mary Jane Brewer told the group about Chelsea Cares Inc. which provides comfortable blankets and gifts to children in hospitals to make their stay a little easier. Many local groups get together to make the soft fleece blankets: students, churches, individual volunteers. Funds would be used to purchase the fabric and supplies for these blankets and comfortable gifts.
Members of the group voted and selected Birthcare of Medina County to receive the donated funds
.July 12 Meeting
More than 80 100+ Women Who Care Medina members gathered at Weymouth Country Club to learn more about the work done by local charities and make a big impact on one organization's programs.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and introduced Thomas Sigel, Executive Director for ORMACO (Ohio Regional Music Arts & Cultural Outreach), the recipient of our funds from the April meeting. Mr. Sigel thanked the group for providing funding to support their musical, art and culture outreach programs.
The three organizations drawn for our consideration were Incredible Years, First Impression, and Birthcare.
Incredible Years is a parent support and education program run through Catholic Charities. The program recently lost its funding from Ohio Children's Trust Fund. The program is facilitated by a group leader to help parents develop successful parenting skills using discussion and role playing. Childcare and a light meal is provided at the weekly meetings. Funds would help pay for the cost of the facilitators, babysitters, the meal and meeting materials.
Kathy Warner, founder of First Impression, explained the mission of the organization is to provide dressing for economically disadvantaged women as they go out to interview for jobs. Since its inception the beginning of this year, the group has provided work appropriate clothing for four women and all were successfully employed. Kathy explained that funds are needed to purchase items to supplement outfits like nylons and undergarments. Money is also needed for supplies like garment racks, storage bins, dry cleaning and laundering.
Birthcare was represented by Mary Kase who told us that they are celebrating their 40th year of providing products and support to mothers of young children. Medina County disadvantaged moms with broken backgrounds are provided items like diapers, formula, wipes, pullups, clothing, car seats, cribs and mattresses to be able to properly care for their young children. Most of the group's current funding comes from private donations which is not always reliable.
Members voted on their choice and it was decided that Incredible Years would receive the donations from this meeting.
The next meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina will be on Tuesday, October 11 at Weymouth Country Club.
April 2016 Meeting
Close to 100 members of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered last night at Weymouth Country Club to learn more about local non-profit organizations and potentially make a difference for them.
Claudia CIhlar welcomed the group then introduced Carolyn Grenfell repesenting Medina City Schools Foundation. Carolyn thanked the group for their donations from the January meeting. The donation will support several initiatives, including mentoring, music enrichment, tutoring, classroom grants and the countywide collaboration with the Medina County District Library, One Book One Community.
Three nominated organizations were selected from the fishbowl: First Impression Inc., ORMACO and JAFS Therapy in Motion.
Kathy Warner, founder of First Impression, spoke about the groups mission of helping disadvantaged women prepare for entering the job force by providing interview appropriate clothing. The organization is relatively new but has already helped two women with advice and clothing. Kathy explained that funds are needed to purchase items to supplement outfits like nylons and undergarments. Money is also needed for start up supplies like garment racks, storage bins, dry cleaning and laundering, office set up and more.
Marie Edmonds, board member for ORMACO (Ohio Regional Music Arts & Cultural Outreach) said their mission is to bring music, art and culture to the underserved and rural areas. They bring art residency programs and performance workshops to local libraries and schools. The funds are needed to support these programs.
JAFS Therapy in Motion was represented by Sue Simmons who explained the organization provides horse therapy to special needs children and teens to help them cope with the many obstacles they face. A portion of the funds would be used to finance scholarships for those who can't afford the sessions. The remaining money would be used to secure new or replacement tools and equipment such as the special design saddles used by the children and special body protector vests.
After members voted, Claudia announced that ORMACO would be recieving our donations.
If you haven't done so already, please make your checks out to ORMACO and mail to Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256.
The next meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina will be on Tuesday, July 12 at Weymouth Country Club.
January 2016 Meeting
More than 75 100+ Women members and a couple of guests gathered at Weymouth Country Club on a cold Tuesday night to learn about the current needs of three local charities.
Claudia Cihlar welcomed the group and shared some statistics about our group. At our October meeting we welcomed 28 new members and we have raised $156,176 benefiting 20 organizations in our 4+ years of operation.
Claudia also reviewed some recent changes to our procedures and there was group consensus on each.
1. As of this January meeting, the group will no longer be accepting four person teams. All four person teams who have been members before this date will be "grand-mothered" in and can continue that structure. When a four person team loses a member, the members may continue to be a three person team until such time there is natural attrition down to two or one persons. There will be no exceptions to this process. When a team loses a member that team may not replace the individual to continue as a four person team.
2. Claudia asked those present to encourage their team members who did not attend the meeting to be sure to get their checks in within the next month so we can deliver them to the winning charity in a timely manner.
3. There was discussion about having a "secondary" bowl of nominated organizations if there were ever only fewer than two nominations in the main bowl. The first thought was to allow organizations that have won the money two or more years ago to be added to this secondary bowl. After some great discussion it was decided that the secondary bowl would contain the organizations that have been nominated but never selected to receive the donations. Of course there would need to be a member present who would be willing to present on that organizations behalf if they are pulled from the secondary bowl.
Claudia informed the membership that the memorial plantings at Mugrage Park that the group supported to honor our founder, Marita Tulisiak have been completed. There is about $900 remaining in unused funds from the donations. The consensus of the group was to add a bench in the playground area and possibly a simpler bench in the Dog Park. There was also talk about adding additional shade in the playground area. We will check with the Parks Department to see if that is feasible.
Carol Andregg from Let's Make A Difference thanked the group for its generous donation to provide additional funding for her organization as a result of the vote at the October meeting.
The three organizations drawn from the bowl and invited to make presentations were: ORMACO, Medina City Schools Foundation and First Impression Inc.
ORMACO was asking for funding to support their free performance workshops that they conduct at local libraries and schools. The Medina City Schools Foundation was asking for money for the music enrichment program that sends 4th & 5th grade students to the Akron Symphony and for the middle school program that purchases a book and lesson planning materials. First Impression is a startup non-profit dedicated to providing underprivileged women with the appropriate attire to wear for job search interviews. They were asking for funding to build their inventory of clothing and accessories.
The group voted and it ended in a tie between ORMACO and Medina City Schools Foundation. After a second vote between the two, Medina City Schools Foundation received the award by one vote.
Please send your checks made out to Medina City Schools Foundation by February 12th to: Lisa Rice, 3735 Hunting Run Road, Medina, OH 44256
NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, April 12 at 7 pm at Weymouth Country Club.
October 2015 Meeting
Claudia Cihlar opened the meeting reviewing some new policies. It was decided that beginning with the January meeting, it would no longer be possible to join 100+ Women as a team of four. Only individual and two-person teams will be accepted. There have been several issues with four person teams and keeping all members active with their contributions. All current four-person teams will be "grandmothered" in and can continue their involvement.
In addition, it was explained that all teams are responsible for the $100 donation no matter how many active team members there are. So if one member of a team becomes inactive, the other team members must cover the commitment of $100.
Jane Langol from the Summer Reinforcement Program, winner of the July meeting donations, expressed her gratitude for our support and explained how the money is already going to support the needs of the program.
The three organizations that were nominated to receive funds were: Jaf's Therapy in Motion, Medina City Schools Foundation, and Let's Make a Difference.
Sue Simmons presented for Jaf's Therapy in Motion which provides the therapeutic benefits of horse riding to special needs children coping with physical disabilities, emotional or behavioral challenges or are overcoming serious illness or trauma in their lives. Riders gain self esteem, confidence and improved learning skills having a positive effect on psychological and cognitive functions. The group was asking for funds to install a safe flooring in their indoor riding ring.
Carolyn Grenfell presented for Medina City Schools Foundation which provides scholarships to graduating seniors and grants to fund special programs for teachers. Funds from 100+ Women would be divided between these two services.
Carol Andregg presented information about Let's Make a Difference, a summer outreach that provides daily educational support, field trips and activities for children in the Mellert Park/Union Square Apartments area in addition to after school programming. Funds from 100+ Women would be used for expenses for field trips and programming.
Let's Make a Difference received the majority of the votes of the membership and will receive our donations.
July 2015 Meeting
A large group of 100+ Women Who Care Medina gathered at Weymouth Country Club on Tuesday , July 14 evening. Michelle Masica, board member from Faith in Action spoke about how the money they were awarded from the April meeting is being spent. Thanking the organization, she told how the Faith in Action board had been struggling with recent funding cuts and faced limiting their services. Some of their transportation vehicles can now receive necessary maintenance to continue helping their clients. They are also now able to begin a new program that has been on the back burner - Canine Caregivers - to enhance the lives of their clients.
The three organizations that were nominated: ORMACO, Summer Reinforcement Program, and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals then presented their needs.
Jean Holland spoke about ORMACO - Ohio Regional Music, Arts, and Cultural Outreach - which is in need of funding to be able to bring performers from all over the world and introduce music and performance workshops in local schools.
Jane Langol presented information about the funding needs of the Summer Reinforcement Program which provides summer tutoring in Math & Reading for ages 3 to 12 years. Money would be used to fund the preschool classrooms which are currently not receiving support and to provide tuition help for families that are struggling financially.
The needs of the SPCA were presented by Executive Director Shannon Waller. SPCA's mision is to protect and care for animals, rescuing them from abuse, cruelty, neglect, injury and abandonment. They are asking for funds to purchase equipment for the Rescue Team to be able to provide safer and more effective investigations into animal cruelty and neglect.
The membership selected the Summer Reinforcement Program to receive donations from the July meeting.
April 2015 Meeting
On Tuesday, April 14, 100+ Women Who Care Medina met to honor founder Marita Tulisiak and celebrate its fourth anniversary.
Claudia Cihlar helped the group, with Marita's family in the audience, pay tribute to her by recalling how she first learned of 100+ Women Who Care in late 2010 from an article written by Regina Brett, reporter for the Plain Dealer. She pursued the unique concept and encouraged her friends to join her in starting a Medina chapter. The first meeting of 100+ Women Who Care Medina was held in April 2011. After sharing a video of Marita's interview from accepting the Athena award, we all toasted to Marita in tribute.
We plan to purchase a bench and tree to be placed at Mugrage Park to memorialize Marita, inscribed with: Marita Tulisiak Founder, 100+ Women Who Care Medina, "It's not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving." Mother Terese.
If you are interested in making a contribution to the purchase of the bench and tree, please send your check made out to Sandy Naples to her home at 3785 Clay Mountain, Medina, OH 44256
We will be sharing the names of contributors with the Tulisiak family.
To celebrate the fourth anniversary of 100+ Women Who Care Medina, Claudia invited representatives from each of the 16 organizations who have benefited from our donations to come to the front of the room with a sign of their organization. It was an impressive spin on the impact our organization has made in the community with over $128,000 contributed in four years.
The business portion of the meeting began promptly at 7:30 pm with three organizations nominated for consideration: Let's Make a Difference, Summer Reinforcement Program and Faith in Action.
Carol Andregg presented for the Let's Make A Difference Program that serves students both after school and in the summer. They assist with homework support and social skills development. Their request was for support of programming, field trips, snack and staff salary support.
Deborah Poland presented for Faith In Action. This organization
meets the needs of the medically frail and elderly. Their request was for medical transportation - an already established service, and a new service called Canine Caregivers, that focuses on matching Seniors with dogs for visits. This program has become very popular and has led to improvements in quality of life for clients.
Jane Langol presented for the Summer Reinforcement program, an initiative that is available 5 days each week in the summer for both tutoring and speech therapy. It is a county wide program and serves school as well as pre-school and special needs students. The request was for support of their Autism and early education units by augmenting the staff costs.
The membership selected Faith in Action to receive the evening's donations.
January 2015 Meeting
Our first meeting of the year started with a moment of silence in memory of 100+ Women of Medina founder Marita Tulisiak. Plans are in the works to pay tribute to Marita at the April meeting on the fourth anniversary of the first meeting for 100+ Women. Claudia Cihlar announced that Marita's co-founders have decided to purchase a bench to be inscribed with Marita's name and connection to 100+ Women and located at Mugrage Park. Marita and her beloved dog, Maisie, would often walk in the park. Members who would like to contribute to the memorial will be able to do so at the April meeting.
At the October meeting, the Society for Handicapped Citizens was selected to receive our donations. Shelly Wharton, Jennifer Carrick and Loreen Simpson spoke to the group at last night's meeting about the project for which they will use the funds.
The organizations drawn to present at this meeting were: Kitten Krazy presented by Jamie McCourt, ORMACO presented by Jan Leatherman and Junior Leadership of Medina County presented by Colleen Rice. In a close vote, members chose Kitten Krazy to receive our donations.
October 2014 Meeting
19 new members joined us as three presentations were made by Ears to You, Society for Handicapped Citizens, and ORMACO. Society for Handicapped Citizens was chosen as the recipient of funds for the evening. The funds will be used for enhancement of work force and employment development for clients.
Please make out your checks to The Society for Handicapped Citizens and mail them to Lisa Rice 3735 Hunting Run Road Medina, OH 44256.
Claudia Cihlar, far right presents checks from 100+ Women Who Care Medina members to (l to r) Tom James, Director of Medina County Parks, and Jane Anderson (100+ member), Virginia Jeandrevin and John Jeandrevin from Friends of Medina County Parks.
JULY 2014 Meeting
It was a festive night as we celebrated surpassing the $100,000 in donations mark. Attendees celebrated our total raised in just 13 meetings of $101,600 with champagne and cake! Colleen Rice told the group about the use of the funds from the April meeting which were contributed to Matthew 25 Coalition. The membership hear from three local charities:
Society for Handicapped Citizens requested funds for a relationship training program and a project to help their clients prepare for the workforce.
Friends of Medina County Parks asked for support of the construction of an inclusive playground at Mugrage Park.
Ears to You was looking for the support of their mission to provide earrings to hospital patients.
The membership chose to support the Friends of Medina County Parks inclusive playground project.
Donations collected from the July quarterly meeting totaling $8,700 were given to the Friends of Medina County Parks. The construction project for the playground is moving along nicely and expected to be complete in October.
APRIL 2014 Meeting
Our spring meeting brought over 70 women who listened to three excellent presentations by our members. Kim Buchek presented Behavioral Health Solutions First Program, Jeanne Hurt presented The United Way and Medina District Library's program whose goal is to put the book "Wonder in the hands of every 6th grader in Medina County, and Colleen Rice presented for The Matthew 25 Coalition. After voting, members decided that the funds raised would go to The Matthew 25 Coalition where it will be used to assist with rent, utilities, prescription and auto fuel needs for families and individuals living in Southwest Medina County who have a legitimate need for assistance. Thanks for another inspirational and informative meeting.
As of April 30 we had collected $7575 with 31members still outstanding. Please send your checks in as soon as possible made out to The Matthew 25 Coalition.
It was a festive night as we celebrated surpassing the $100,000 in donations mark. Attendees celebrated our total raised in just 13 meetings of $101,600 with champagne and cake! Colleen Rice told the group about the use of the funds from the April meeting which were contributed to Matthew 25 Coalition. The membership hear from three local charities:
Society for Handicapped Citizens requested funds for a relationship training program and a project to help their clients prepare for the workforce.
Friends of Medina County Parks asked for support of the construction of an inclusive playground at Mugrage Park.
Ears to You was looking for the support of their mission to provide earrings to hospital patients.
The membership chose to support the Friends of Medina County Parks inclusive playground project.
Donations collected from the July quarterly meeting totaling $8,700 were given to the Friends of Medina County Parks. The construction project for the playground is moving along nicely and expected to be complete in October.
APRIL 2014 Meeting
Our spring meeting brought over 70 women who listened to three excellent presentations by our members. Kim Buchek presented Behavioral Health Solutions First Program, Jeanne Hurt presented The United Way and Medina District Library's program whose goal is to put the book "Wonder in the hands of every 6th grader in Medina County, and Colleen Rice presented for The Matthew 25 Coalition. After voting, members decided that the funds raised would go to The Matthew 25 Coalition where it will be used to assist with rent, utilities, prescription and auto fuel needs for families and individuals living in Southwest Medina County who have a legitimate need for assistance. Thanks for another inspirational and informative meeting.
As of April 30 we had collected $7575 with 31members still outstanding. Please send your checks in as soon as possible made out to The Matthew 25 Coalition.
January 2014 Meeting
Over 80 members attended the first meeting of the year and listened to three very informative presentations. Organizations presented were The Giving Doll, The FIRST Program, and Friends of the Medina County Parks. The Giving Doll was selected to receive the funds raised from this meeting. The funds will be used for supplies and general expenses to continue making dolls for children in need of special comfort throughout the area.
$8025 was presented to the Giving Doll in February.
Thanks to all for another great meeting!
October 2013 Meeting
At this meeting we welcomed 17 new members and listened to four very informative presentations. Presentations were given by Mary Jane Brewer on behalf of The Medina Historical Society, Jan Householder for The Giving Doll, Dawn Cortez-McKee for the Imagine Peace Bullying Prevention Coalition and Colleen Rice asking for emergency consideration for the Junior Leadership Medina County Suicide Prevention Summit.
The membership decided to award the funds to The Medina County Historical Society. The funds will be used for repairs to the John Smart House, preservation of Civil War phohtographs and they will also allow them to continue their work of promoting, maintaining and preserving Medina County's history.
Membership also approved a rule change stating that a new member may not nominate a non-profit at the first meeting they attend.
Thanks to all for another great meeting and welcome to all our new members!
$8,000 was presented to the Medina County Historical Society in November.
Over 80 members attended the first meeting of the year and listened to three very informative presentations. Organizations presented were The Giving Doll, The FIRST Program, and Friends of the Medina County Parks. The Giving Doll was selected to receive the funds raised from this meeting. The funds will be used for supplies and general expenses to continue making dolls for children in need of special comfort throughout the area.
$8025 was presented to the Giving Doll in February.
Thanks to all for another great meeting!
October 2013 Meeting
At this meeting we welcomed 17 new members and listened to four very informative presentations. Presentations were given by Mary Jane Brewer on behalf of The Medina Historical Society, Jan Householder for The Giving Doll, Dawn Cortez-McKee for the Imagine Peace Bullying Prevention Coalition and Colleen Rice asking for emergency consideration for the Junior Leadership Medina County Suicide Prevention Summit.
The membership decided to award the funds to The Medina County Historical Society. The funds will be used for repairs to the John Smart House, preservation of Civil War phohtographs and they will also allow them to continue their work of promoting, maintaining and preserving Medina County's history.
Membership also approved a rule change stating that a new member may not nominate a non-profit at the first meeting they attend.
Thanks to all for another great meeting and welcome to all our new members!
$8,000 was presented to the Medina County Historical Society in November.
Roxanne Morehead, Sandy Sonntag, and Jan Householder of The Giving Doll.
Mary Jane Brewer makes her presentation on behalf of The Medina County Historical Society.
JULY 2013 Meeting
Despite severe thunderstorms and heavy rains, we had a great turnout for our July meeting. Presentations were given by Birthcare of Medina County, Society for Handicapped Citizens and The Lodi Family Center.
All the presentations were heartfelt and members definitely had a hard time making decisions.
The charity chosen was The Lodi Family Center. The money raised from our group will go to expanding the Friday Kids Cafe from 4 days to 5, expanding the center hours from 6-8pm for older youth and to reinstate the "Crocking Parents" program (provides crockpots and food bags to families that are income qualified)
$8,000 was presented to the Lodi Family Center in August. Thanks to all our members that made it possible.
Despite severe thunderstorms and heavy rains, we had a great turnout for our July meeting. Presentations were given by Birthcare of Medina County, Society for Handicapped Citizens and The Lodi Family Center.
All the presentations were heartfelt and members definitely had a hard time making decisions.
The charity chosen was The Lodi Family Center. The money raised from our group will go to expanding the Friday Kids Cafe from 4 days to 5, expanding the center hours from 6-8pm for older youth and to reinstate the "Crocking Parents" program (provides crockpots and food bags to families that are income qualified)
$8,000 was presented to the Lodi Family Center in August. Thanks to all our members that made it possible.
Lodi Family Center volunteers and clients gratefully accept $8,000 in funds from 100+Women Who Care Medina County
April 2013 Meeting
The warmer weather brought out a great group of our members to the meeting Tuesday night at Weymouth Country Club. Nine new members were also welcomed at this meeting. Carolyn Lesiak and Patty Chapman, representing Holy Martyrs Ministry of Assistance, updated us on how the money from January's meeting helped to meet the needs of so many more people served by their organization. Three non-profit organizations - Project Learn, ORMACO (Ohio Regional Music And Cultural Outreach), Salvation Army of Northern Medina County - gave informative presentations and responded to thoughtful questions. The vote was cast and Project Learn was chosen to receive our donations. Your donations will be used to assist in upgrading their program for students coming to them for help in passing the GED. Items that will be purchased will be calculators, 1 laptop for Wadsworth, test materials, site license and books for 50 tutors and students.
Linda Smalley,Project Learn Director and Mac Overmyer, volunteer; receive checks totaling $7,934 from Sandy Naples representing 100+ Women Medina County.
January 2013 Meeting
Our first meeting of 2013 saw a great turnout of new and old members at a new location. Our thanks to Weymouth Country Club for allowing us to use the space! Presentations were given by The Medina Historical Society, Holy Martyrs Ministry of Assistance and Country Life Kids Camp. Holy Martyrs Ministry of Assistance was chosen as the recipient of the funds that will be raised from this meeting. The Ministry of Assistance provides food and financial assistance to those in need in Medina County, specifically, the Medina and Highland school district areas. We presented $7,934 to Holy Martyrs on January 29th. Thanks to all!!!!
At this meeting we also celebrated a milestone - as of our fourth quarterly 2012 meeting we have donated over $50,000 to Medina County charitable organizations in less than two years! Congratulations to all our members who have made this happen. We celebrated the evening with cake!
Our first meeting of 2013 saw a great turnout of new and old members at a new location. Our thanks to Weymouth Country Club for allowing us to use the space! Presentations were given by The Medina Historical Society, Holy Martyrs Ministry of Assistance and Country Life Kids Camp. Holy Martyrs Ministry of Assistance was chosen as the recipient of the funds that will be raised from this meeting. The Ministry of Assistance provides food and financial assistance to those in need in Medina County, specifically, the Medina and Highland school district areas. We presented $7,934 to Holy Martyrs on January 29th. Thanks to all!!!!
At this meeting we also celebrated a milestone - as of our fourth quarterly 2012 meeting we have donated over $50,000 to Medina County charitable organizations in less than two years! Congratulations to all our members who have made this happen. We celebrated the evening with cake!
Linda Loveless presents $7,934 to Carolyn Lesiak and Holy Martyrs Ministry of Assistance volunteers on January 29, 2013 on behalf of 100+Women Who Care Medina County
October 2012 Meeting
At our October meeting presentations were given by Donna Bica for Operation H.O.M.E.S., Ruth Crane for Ears to You and from Mary Jane Brewer on behalf of The Medina County Historical Society . All the presentations were very well received. Thank you all.
Operation H.O.M.E.S. was voted on by the membership to receive the funds from this meeting. Operation H.O.M.E.S. is an organization of churches in Medina County working together to provide temporary, safe and secure housing for homeless people. The monies raised will go toward the cost of transportation for the families and individuals in the program. A record amount of $8,609 was presented to Operation H.O.M.E.S. in November.
At our October meeting presentations were given by Donna Bica for Operation H.O.M.E.S., Ruth Crane for Ears to You and from Mary Jane Brewer on behalf of The Medina County Historical Society . All the presentations were very well received. Thank you all.
Operation H.O.M.E.S. was voted on by the membership to receive the funds from this meeting. Operation H.O.M.E.S. is an organization of churches in Medina County working together to provide temporary, safe and secure housing for homeless people. The monies raised will go toward the cost of transportation for the families and individuals in the program. A record amount of $8,609 was presented to Operation H.O.M.E.S. in November.
Donna Bica (left) 100+Women member and site director for Operation H.O.M.E.S. presents checks totaling $8,609 to Nancy Abbott (right), treasurer of Operation H.O.M.E.S.
July 2012 Meeting
Marian's Closet was the organization chosen by membership at our July meeting. Their mission is to improve the quality of life to those in need, by offering encouragement, hpe and dignity (through meeting their daily needs) while giving the opportunity for individuals to meet their full potential. Marian's Closet is a Wadsworth based agency serving all of Medina county and the funds raised through 100+ Women of Medina will be used to purchase desperately needed undergarments and socks for young children and youth. A record amount of checks totaling $8,559, including a generous check of $375 from The Women's Journal of Medina County, were given to Marian's Closet.
The other two organizations presented that evening were Harmony Helpers and Birthcare of Medina County.
Our group also welcomed 16 new members to this meeting as well as hosting a woman from Brazil who is interested in taking the 100+Women idea back to her country. Thanks to all for another great meeting!
Marian's Closet was the organization chosen by membership at our July meeting. Their mission is to improve the quality of life to those in need, by offering encouragement, hpe and dignity (through meeting their daily needs) while giving the opportunity for individuals to meet their full potential. Marian's Closet is a Wadsworth based agency serving all of Medina county and the funds raised through 100+ Women of Medina will be used to purchase desperately needed undergarments and socks for young children and youth. A record amount of checks totaling $8,559, including a generous check of $375 from The Women's Journal of Medina County, were given to Marian's Closet.
The other two organizations presented that evening were Harmony Helpers and Birthcare of Medina County.
Our group also welcomed 16 new members to this meeting as well as hosting a woman from Brazil who is interested in taking the 100+Women idea back to her country. Thanks to all for another great meeting!
Mary Alice Mantz, Deb Clayton, Pat Wood, Valerie Mills (director), and Margie Morris accept $8,559 in checks on behalf of Marian's Closet. (pictured left to right)
April 2012 Meeting
100+Women Who Care Medina welcomed 14 new members to it's April meeting, despite it being spring break vacation for area school and snow flying! Presenters spoke on behalf of The Kidney Foundation, Marian's Closet, and The Teen Sexual Awareness Program. Members chose the Kidney Foundation to receive the funds raised from this meeting. The monies will be used to help with the cost of transportation for hemodialysis patients in Medina County. $7,809 was presented to Jean Holland of The Kidney Foundation in May. Thanks to all the presenters and members present for another great meeting!
Jean Holland (left) accepts checks in the amount of $7,809 from 100+ Women members, Jackie Brown (center) and Angela Huston (right).
January 2012 Meeting
100+ Women members, including 5 new members, filled the house for the first meeting of 2012! Presentations were given for The Kidney Foundation, The Medina County Children's Center and Ohio Cheer Explosion (Rockets). Membership chose The Children's Center of Medina County to receive the funds raised from this meeting. The Children's Center provides critical services to the abused and neglected children in our county. The funds received will be used for supportive services for the children and forensic interviews. Another record amount was raised at this meeting, as $7,825 in checks were given to The Children's Center of Medina County in February. Thanks to everyone involved!
Rhonda Wurgler, director of The Children's Center (left) accepts $7,825 in checks from 100+ Women member, Lisa Rice (right).
October 2011 Meeting
Our third quarterly meeting was a resounding success! We welcomed 14 new members which brought our total membership to 120. The charitable organization chosen to receive the funds raised was Feeding Medina County. The purpose of Feeding Medina County is to make more food available to the most vulnerable among us; our children and older adults living in poverty. They strive to engage, educate and lead Medina County to be a hunger free community. The funds raised by 100+Women Medina will be used to expand the Weekenders program to more elementary schools in our county. Packs of food that contain wholegrain bread, peanut butter and jelly, 100% fruit juice, mac and cheese and fresh fruit are packed by volunteers and driven to the elementary schools to be given to children whose families are living at 200% of poverty. $72 dollars a week can provide these weekend packs to fifty children.
A record setting amount of $7,477 was collected for Feeding Medina County.
100+ Women member Carol Andregg (second from right) presented checks in the amount of $7,477 to Sandy Calvert (far right), Terry O'Connor (far left) and Barb Villoni (second from left) from Feeding Medina County.
The organizations that presented at the October meeting were
- The Kidney Foundation of Medina County
- Marians Closet
- Feeding Medina County (website under construction)
July 2011 Meeting
At our second quarterly meeting over 60 women gathered, including 14 new members. The charitable organization chosen to receive the funds of $7.035 raised that evening was The Medina Health Health Ministry. This organization provides free medical care to adult residents in Medina County who are in need. The funds will be used to purchase diabetic supplies and other medications needed by these patients. A representative from The Medina Health Ministry will be present at our October meeting to give us an update.
100+Women member Liza Wallace (left) presents over $7,000 in checks to Tanya Martin (right) of The Medina Health Ministry
The organizations that were presented at our second meeting were:
April 2011 Meeting
At our first meeting $6,275 was raised for The Hands Foundation of Medina County. The money raised will be used for The Hands Foundation's Senior Wishes program which provides senior citizens of Medina County with vital goods and services that they may not be able to afford on their limited budgets.
At our first meeting $6,275 was raised for The Hands Foundation of Medina County. The money raised will be used for The Hands Foundation's Senior Wishes program which provides senior citizens of Medina County with vital goods and services that they may not be able to afford on their limited budgets.
Representatives of 100+Women Who Care - Medina present checks totaling $6,275 from the membership to the Directors of The Hands Foundation.
The organizations that were presented at the first meeting were :
Thanks to all presenters and new members who helped make this evening a resounding success!
Thanks to all presenters and new members who helped make this evening a resounding success!
