This chapter was originated by Janeen Wagemans and Tracey Veinotte after hearing about the 100 Women organizations springing up like mushrooms all over the world.  It is easy to see why this idea has gone viral.  It's quick.  It's easy.  It's local.  

What inspired us was the idea that local people know what we want and need for our community.  

Maybe you are a busy person and don't have time to get friends and relatives to sign pledge sheets. and/or run the 5K - not that there's anything wrong with that!

Maybe you really admire the involvement of others with one of the many wonderful projects or charitable organizations in our municipality, but just don't see how you can make the time.

Sure, you contribute to many good causes.  $5 here, $20 there, a ticket bought to support a draw or a cheque to this, that and the other. And we encourage you to continue doing that.  Don't stop!

But becoming part of 100+ Women Who Care About South Dundas is an easy and fun way to be a part of something good.  

• ONE hour - ok, maybe two hours for the event!
• ONE cheque for ONE hundred dollars X 100 = $10,000, 100% of which goes to benefit a great local cause!

You must agree that your cheque will be given to the organization that wins the vote, even if it is not the one that you were rooting for!  Yours may win next year.  A group that wins first prize this year may not reapply for two years to give everyone a chance! If that group has a different project,  however, they are welcome to reapply.

This began because we thought it would be easy, fun and impactful. We liked the idea that people wouldn't have to ask folks for pledges, run 5K or anything else that is a lot of time and effort. We also liked the idea that it would benefit people in our area - though we all certainly support charities that benefit Africa, Haiti etc. 

Anyone can nominate a project. It has to be a certified charity or a project with permission to work through the municipality so that donors receive tax receipts.  The person who nominates is asked to provide information for the website.  Members are expected to read through information about the charities before the meeting. 

At the meeting (thanks to Donnie at the playhouse for offering their facilities for our event!) members will get a ballot. They circle the top three projects or charities they would most like to support.  Votes are counted and the winner is announced. All members have agreed to write their cheque to the winning group. The recipient of your cheque will be filled in after the votes are in and the dust has settled. The organization that receives the cheque provides the tax receipts. 

Another reason this idea appealed to us is that $10,000 is a significant chunk of money so the group can do something significant with it.  At the next year's meeting, the previous winner will report on what they did with the money. 

Organizing committee:

Janeen Wagemans - Communications

Tracey Veinotte - Event Planner

Lori Turnbull - Event assistant and door prize donation coordinator

Rosemary Laurin - Liaison for contending applicants

It's a pretty simple idea. Level playing field. No agenda.  And a nice way to spend an evening meeting a lot of great local women. 

So that's about all there is to it. If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask!