March 2009

When Purpose and Need Collide – The Safety Net is Critical

PHILANTHROPY

Seventy-eight percent of people living at or below the poverty level in the Mid-South are women and children. As social service, philanthropic and advocacy organizations reach out to help our citizens through programs that provide food, shelter, training and security, we are continually reminded that none of our efforts are possible without the support of all in our community. The Women’s Foundation is forever thankful for all of you who steward a cause that you care about. When you unleash your generosity, you create change.

What is the Safety Net for
Memphians Living in Poverty?

Margaret Craddock MIFA, Executive Director

They line up by 7:00 am; eyes downcast, feet tapping, hands patting their children. They have never come to MIFA for help before; usually they are volunteering here and not standing in line themselves. Asking for help is uncomfortable, but now there is no other way to put food on the table or pay the utilities. They are the newly unemployed and therefore unaccustomed to negotiating social services. They are facing the foreclosure of their American Dream.

Several hundred people each day come to MIFA’s Emergency Services Program for food vouchers, financial assistance or simply guidance from a kind person. Those in need receive help from the amazingly patient and warm-hearted staff. Seniors find hope in the Handyman Program, which provides critical home repairs, and teens find guidance in the Teen Jobs Program, which empowers young people by teaching life skills through after-school employment.

To continue reading about Memphis’ Safety Net, click here.

Announcing 2009 Legends Award Honorees

The Legends Award was created to pay tribute to women whose trailblazing work embodies the mission of the Women’s Foundation. The purpose of the Legends Award is to applaud these trend-setting women, whose visionary and innovative work is paramount in their specialized areas of community service and outreach. The determination and passion evident in the Legends Award Honorees’ work inspires others to strive for a better community for all.

2009 Legends Award Honorees:

• Minvera Johnican, a Revolutionary community leader
• Susan Sanford, an Innovator in the non-profit sector committed to ending hunger in the Mid-South
• Maxine Smith, a Champion of the Civil Rights Movement in Memphis
• Dr. Jane Walters, a Trendsetter in education
• Happy Jones and Jeanne Varnell, Philanthropists, a collaboration of sisterhood at its strongest

To read more about these Legendary Women, click here.

We are honored to announce the recipients of the 2009 Legends Award. We salute the women and their work and we are exited to present them at the 11th Annual Tribute Luncheon.

11th Annual Tribute Luncheon and Symposium April 30, 2009 – Memphis Cook Convention Center

Join us for the 11th Annual Tribute Luncheon and Symposium! We will celebrate the recognition of our Legends honorees and the Leaders We Are. Keynote Speaker Kathleen Kennedy Townsend will inspire and challenge the audience to be a part of the solution for social change. When former Maryland Lieutenant Governor Townsend is crusading for any cause in which she believes, her efforts have brought about enormous results and possibilities – from improving schools to human security.

A definite forerunner, Townsend became Maryland’s first woman lieutenant governor (1995-2003) with a massive vision as a child advocate. She believes that it’s not just what our kids are taught, but how they are taught. This vision led her to create the state of Maryland’s first office of Character Education to ensure that schools focus on values. To view Townsend’s complete profile, click here.

Youth Leadership – Post Luncheon event!

Our inaugural Youth Leadership Event is an educational forum for youth to identify and learn how to positively impact the Memphis community. Occurring after the Annual Tribute Luncheon, the invited attendees will have the opportunity to converse with a local panel of aspiring leaders and meet Kathleen Kennedy Townsend. We are excited to offer youth a platform to dialogue and discover the promise of leadership in their community. This event empowers Leaders of Tomorrow by inviting youth to explore “What Leadership Means to Me!” Memphis City, Shelby County, private and parochial school students can also participate in an essay contest about this year’s Legends Award Honorees. To enter the essay contest, download the instructions and essay questions.

Please join us for these exciting 11th Annual Tribute Luncheon and Symposium events! Support the Women’s Foundation today by becoming a sponsor of this year’s celebration.

• Download the sponsorship form.
• Click here for a listing of 2009 sponsors.
• Click here to view last year’s sponsors.

Memphis H.O.P.E. (Health, Opportunity,
Pride and Empowerment) Client Spotlight

Jacqueline Easley is 28 years old and the mother of a six-year-old son. She is a single parent and graduated from Hamilton High School in 2000. In 2003, she moved to Dixie Homes (now Legends Park) and lived there for three years. During the relocation period for the HOPE VI Project, Jacqueline received a Section 8 voucher and relocated to an apartment in southeast Memphis. Until she became a client of the Memphis HOPE Project, she had been unemployed for four years.

• To read Jacqueline’s success story, click here.
• Learn more about the Memphis HOPE project.

LEADERSHIP
Women in Leadership

Carissa Hussong, Executive Director of the National Ornamental Metal Museum, Women’s Foundation donor and Legends Committee member, was highlighted in the Commercial Appeal Spotlight on Mom feature on Feb. 5 and was our special guest on the March 24 edition of On Cable Tonight with the Women’s Foundation.

Alisa Kiner, Booker T. Washington High School Principal, was highlighted in the March 2009 issue of Skirt! Magazine for her work to improve the high school.

Henry and Jeanne Varnell, longtime donors and volunteers of the Women’s Foundation, were honored with the President’s Humanitarian Award from the Memphis Theological Seminary as philanthropists who are “Lighting Our World Through Generosity.”

Rose Jackson Flenorl, WFGM volunteer and donor, was recently profiled in the Jackson Metro Christian Living Magazine. Rose served as the co-chair for the 2005 Tribute Luncheon and is a community partner through our work with FedEx, Presenting Sponsor of the 11th Annual Tribute Luncheon and Symposium.

At the Seventh Annual Tea and Talk at the Top Awards Ceremony, hosted by Shelby County Mayor A C Wharton and Ruby R. Wharton, the following Memphians were honored with the 2009 Ruby R. Wharton Award for Service in the fields listed below.

Early Childhood
Brenda Taylor, Director of Compliance, Shelby County Head Start

Youth & Delinquency
Nettie Rogers, Evangelist, Memphis Inter-Denominational Fellowship

Women’s Rights
Louise Patterson, President, Bountiful Blessing, Inc.

Race Relations
Johnnie Turner, Executive Director, Memphis NAACP

Business
Jeffrie Bruton, Executive Director, Shelby Residential and Vocational Services

Politics
Happy Jones, Founder, Memphis Area Women's Council

Save the Date for the Women’s Funding Network
25th Anniversary Conference

The Women’s Funding Network (WFN), an international organization of Women’s Funds, will host its 25th annual conference April 29 – May 2 in Atlanta, Georgia. On the agenda – a high-energy schedule packed with learning, sharing and networking. For more information visit the WFN website.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April brings many opportunities for learning, sharing and experiencing everything from empowerment to basketball. For more information on the activities of the Women’s Foundation and its community partners, click here.