The Arts Empowerment Project (TAEP), a 2021 WIF grant recipient, works to break the cycles of violence and trauma through arts opportunities that ignite change in vulnerable youth. TAEP provides high-quality arts programming, enrichment experiences, and social-emotional development for children in need of access to light, hope, equity, and opportunity, which together offer paths to …
Continue reading “Mission Moment: The Arts Empowerment Project”
In this second webinar of the 2022 Women LEAD series, participants were led by Patrice Funderburg, Founder of Educate to Engage, on a journey to inward reflection on the ways our identities can help or harm how we advocate for others. Patrice opened the session with a quote from bell hooks: “To be in the …
Common Wealth Charlotte, a 2021 WIF grant recipient, replaces reliance on charitable and government assistance with financial capability, equipping Charlotte’s economically vulnerable population with: trauma-informed education certified financial counseling asset- and wealth-building skills access to banking services and 0% interest, no-fee loans Charlotte is home to 200,000 people who work full-time and take home …
A key goal of collective giving is to amplify impact. It starts by pooling resources and giving in targeted ways. Many women’s collective giving circles, like Women’s Impact Fund (WIF), started their journey with project-based grants in topical funding areas — arts & culture, health, environment, education, and human services. More recently, trends in philanthropy …
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Today we are pleased to share updates and next steps related to our diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) working groups. You may recall, in our last update, we shared that our working groups were broadened to support more comprehensive and thoughtful outcomes across our organization and community. The Our Organization working group is focused on …
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The resettlement of Afghanistan refugees and Charlotte’s affordable housing crisis – these two topics do not have an obvious tie, but they have a huge impact on Charlotte’s local refugee community. This was one of the lessons, among others, we learned during our Lunch & Learn: At the Intersection of Hope and Refuge: Supporting Charlotte’s …
Black women, regardless of health, education, or income, are three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than their white counterparts, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and not enough Black women are working as childbirth professionals. The Johnson C. Smith University Birthing Professionals Program (BPP) seeks to improve maternal and …
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It can be easy to avoid focusing on our own needs – especially when we’re responsible for taking care of other people. But how sustainable is it to take care of others on an empty tank? We can only run on empty for so long. One of the best gifts we can give ourselves and …
Continue reading “The Importance of Honoring our Mental Health Needs”
It was a beautiful Saturday morning. WIF members, friends and family gathered to meet with Zack Wyatt, CEO of Carolina Farm Trust (WIF 2021 grantee) and tour the Urban Garden located in East Charlotte adjacent to Aldersgate Retirement Community. The garden is host to beehives, fruit trees, rows of enticing vegetables, and a weekly farm …