It has been just over one year since the Thompson Chapter of 100 Women Who Care was founded and the first public meeting was held in March 2016. In that short span of time over $30,200 has been generously donated directly to worthy not-for-profit and charitable organizations within our community of Thompson.
$5,400 donated to the YWCA for much needed upgrades to the building, improving cleanliness and ensuring a safe environment for those accessing the many wonderful programs and services provided there.
$6,500 donated to the Thompson Community Foundation which went towards various initiatives within our community.
$6,700 donated to the Thompson Crisis Centre for much needed medical grade beds to ensure a sanitary environment.
$6,000 donated to the Salvation Army Food bank that helped feed many families over the Christmas holidays.
$5,600 to the Thompson Public Library for upgrades to the children’s area encouraging reading and literacy development.
So how and why did Thompson get a 100 Women Who Care Chapter?
Before becoming involved with 100 Women Who Care, our founders were concerned about the amount of fundraising being done in Thompson and how the majority of the proceeds were being given to large Canadian (national) charities. They were concerned that these funds were not staying in Thompson to support our community on the grassroots level.
With Thompson having so many local not-for-profit and charitable organizations doing wonderful and important work to support our community, but often lacking the funds to move ahead with projects and initiatives, it was felt that there was a need to give back closer to home.
We started as four unique women who came together in support of a united cause. We have since grown our executive with eight amazing women whose goal is to grow our Thompson chapter.
Most of us hold a certain charity or cause close to our hearts and thrive to give back to. However, sometimes giving back can be a bit challenging because there don’t seem to be enough hours in the day. Many of us are raising children, working full-time jobs plus doing our normal day-to-day tasks, which doesn’t always leave time for much else. This is why this project works. You only need to dedicate four hours a year of your time plus your quarterly donation.
We welcome all women and look forward to growing our group and making a huge impact in Thompson. 100 Women Who Care – Thompson is currently striving to meet the goal of 100 members to maximize the funding opportunities for charities and projects in our community.
How can you become involved?
Here is how it works:
Each member commits to donations $100 each meeting, four times a year. We meet once per quarter. The first Wednesday of March, June, September and December. Meetings are diligently conducted and held in one hour or less.
Members who have registered by signing a commitment form, and who are currently in good standing may nominate an organization or group for consideration.
All nominated organizations will be voted on electronically to determine the top three member choices. These three organizations will present their project at the quarterly membership meeting.
Each registered member who is current with her donations will vote by secret ballot for one of the three organizations.
Each member than writes a cheque in the amount of $100 to the organization that received the most votes.
The selected organization will receive a donation of the amount collected depending on the number of members, up to $10,000.
We would like to extend an invitation to all women in our community to join us at our next meeting being held at the Meridian Hotel Banquet Room on June 7 at 7 p.m .
Come check us out without any obligations and see if being a member of our cause is something that you would be interested in. If you are already a member, feel free to bring along a friend.
Please visit our website 100womenthompson.com for information and details.
We would like to express our gratitude and appreciation to the many local businesses in our community who have supported our initiatives through sponsorship: RidgeStone Financial Services Ltd., Meridian Hotel, CHTM, Thompson Citizen & Assiniboine Credit Union.
