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Awards & Grants...

The Marion Schultheiss Advancing Women Grant...
is a local grant that our club first began in 2000. The first grant was named "Advancing Women Into The New Millenium" and was designed to provide a $2,000 grant to an organization to start or continue a project in our local community that benefits women. In honor of one of our members, Marion Schultheiss, who passed away, the grant was renamed The Marion Schultheiss Advancing Women Grant in 2002. The picture at right is Marion Schultheiss (center) with her daughters, Lynn (left) and Brook (right).

Any established service organization promoting the welfare of women may apply. One grant of $2,000 is awarded annually. To be eligible for consideration, the proposed project must benefit women by improving their social/economic status and opportunity or quality of life and address a demonstrated need in our community.

Grant applications are received by our club from January 1st to March 1st. Applications received after the March 1st deadline will not be considered. In addition, the grant recipient must give our club a written summary of the results of the project on a semi-annual and annual basis. To receive an application by mail, please email us. To download the application as a Word Document, please click here. To download the application in PDF format, please click here. To view and print it in PDF format, you will need to download the Adobe Acrobat Reader, if you do not already have it installed. Click the graphic below to go to Adobe’s web site for the download...

Past Grant Recipients ~
2010 Windham Community Memorial Hospital  - In support of their project ~ Soroptimist Love Your Heart and Perception Programs - In Support of their project ~ Improving Job Opportunities while Promoting Safety
2009 Windham Community Memorial Hospital  - In support of their project ~ Soroptimist Love Your Heart
2008 Perception Programs - In Support of their Work Commuter Safety In the Dark Program
2007 Growing Stronger -  In Support of Their Mentoring/Service Project
2006 Windham Community Memorial Hospital - In Support of their Pre-Natal Clinic
2005 Growing Stronger -  In Support of Their Mentoring/Service Project
2004 Connecticut Community for Addiction Recovery - Windham Chapter - In Support of their Recovery Retreats for Women
2003 Windham Even Start  Program - Childbirth Classes in Spanish for the Windham Community
2002 The Salvation Army - El Puente Community Center - English as a Second Language Classes
2001 The Access Agency, Inc. - Computer Training for Women
2000 The Domestic Violence Program - To fund a video on domestic violence

 


The Violet Richardson Award....Honoring Young Women

Soroptimist is concerned with the special challenges facing girls and young women today. The Violet Richardson Award program was launched in 2000 as a way to recognize girls for their volunteer service to their communities. The program honors young women between the ages of 14 and 17 whose volunteer efforts make their community and world a better place. The program begins at the club level. Soroptimist International of Willimantic awards a $250 cash award to one young woman and another $250 award going to the charity of her choice. Club level recipients then become eligible for a $1,000 cash award which is contributed in their honor to their volunteer organization. The Soroptimist organization grants one finalist $2,500 award to the recipient’s volunteer organization.

The program is named after Violet Richardson Ward, the first president of the first Soroptimist club in 1921. Richardson Ward was committed to creating opportunities for girls and young women through her affiliations with Soroptimist, the Girl Scout Council and the American Association of University Women. Her passion for community service, particularly as it affected women and girls, has been an inspiration to Soroptimists throughout the years.

Applications are received by our club from October 1, 2009 to January 15, 2010. Applications received after the deadline will not be considered. To obtain an application via mail, please contact us. To download an application, please click here. The application is in PDF format. To view and print, you will need to download the Adobe Acrobat Reader, if you do not already have it installed. Click the graphic below to go to Adobe’s web site for the download...

 


Women's Opportunity Awards, SIA's major project, are designed to give women heads of household, who provide the primary source of financial support for their families, the opportunity to achieve their career goals—an opportunity they have not previously had, whether because of economic or social barriers, or personal circumstances. These awards are for women who are attending, or have been accepted to, a vocational/skills training program, or an undergraduate degree program.

Women's Opportunity Awards are cash awards that recipients may use for any expenses related to their educational pursuits. These include tuition and books, housing, child care and transportation. These awards are not scholarships. The program begins at the club level. Our Willimantic club awards the first place winner a cash award of $1,000. Our local winner is then eligible for consideration of the Northeastern Region award which is $5,000. The winner of the Region award is then eligible to receive one of three $10,000 finalist awards from Soroptimist International of the Americas.

Applications are received by our club from October 1, 2009 to January 15, 2010. Applications received after this deadline will not be considered. To receive an application by mail, please email us. To download an application, please click here. You will also need to download the reference form that needs to be completed as well. Both forms are in PDF format. To view and print, you will need to download the Adobe Acrobat Reader, if you do not already have it installed. Click the graphic below to go to Adobe’s web site for the download...

Mail the application to: Soroptimist International of Willimantic, P. O. Box 485, Mansfield Center, CT 06250
 


Ruby Award for Women Helping Women...
Formerly the Soroptimist Making A Difference For Women Award, this newly named award honors women who have worked to improve the lives of women and girls through their professional and/or volunteer work. The work of these women helps to promote the issues that are important to the Soroptimist organization. Honorees are ordinary women who have worked in extraordinary ways to benefit women and girls. Examples of the type of work honored include: spearheading an effort to open a domestic violence shelter, starting a mentoring program for at-risk girls, or lobbying companies to provide on-site child care. The program enables local Soroptimist clubs and the Soroptimist organization to thank these women and encourage others to explore ways to assist women and girls. The program begins on the club level, where the type of recognition varies. Award winners at the club level are eligible for additional awards at other levels of the organization. The Federation finalist receives a $5,000 donation to the charity of her choice.

To receive an application by mail, please email us. To download the nomination form, please click here. As with all the other forms on our website, this form is in PDF format.


Recipients of all of the above awards are recognized at our annual Anniversary and Awards Dinner normally held in April of each year. A copy of the 2010 Live Your Dreams Awards program can be seen here.

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Send mail to webmaster@soroptimistwillimantic.org with any questions or comments about this web site.  Last modified 05/02/2010