Welcome to a recap of our watershed year.

Last summer, when the executive committee met to discuss the goals and activities for the coming year, a common thread emerged: raising awareness. We talked about The Tipping Point, and its notion that small actions can manifest a magnificent change if given the right environment and support. We set forth to undertake as many thoughtful actions as possible to spread the word of our grassroots effort to improve the quality of life for our fellow women and children living in the Lowcountry, our neighbors and our community.

Women Making a Difference is a giving circle, which is a very simple idea: on my own, with my limited time and resources, I may not be able to create a large impact for a single charity let alone more than one. However, if I pool my money and resources with other local like-minded women, we suddenly have tens of thousands of dollars, which is a handsome sum to reinvest into the community every year.

Women Making a Difference raised $64,000 with membership dues during our July 1, 2005 - June 30, 2006 membership cycle. As a result, grants were distributed to 15 local charities at an event that took place at Lowndes Grove Plantation on November 15. The event was part of the inaugural Charleston Philanthropy Week, and it was underwritten by S.C. Bank and Trust. All Occasions party rentals and Whole Foods also generously donated to the event.

Recipients of this year's grants include:
Carolina Youth Development Center
Center for Women
Charleston Area Therapeutic Riding
Charleston Breast Center
Charleston Miracle League
Communities in Schools of the Charleston Area
Dee Norton Lowcountry Children's Center
Family Services, Inc.
MUSC College of Nursing
My Sister's House
People Against Rape
Sea Island Habitat for Humanity
St. Matthew's Community Outreach
Trident Technical College's "Clemente Project"
WINGS for Kids

To date, over $200,000 has been generated by Women Making a Difference's members. To read more about the impact of our grants, and the specific initiatives we fund, please explore the rest of our website and visit the grants section.

Cindy Tew is a special friend of Women Making a Difference. She and her employer, the Ginn Company, hosted our first-ever spring soiree at the Belvidere Clubhouse/Patriot's Point golf course compound. Despite a major thunderstorm and power outage, the event was a memorable success. Her staff is top-notch, and we are very proud to be aligned with them. Mark your calendars for the 2007 spring event, which Cindy is once again hosting. Visit our events page for details!

We have been blessed by the generous contributions of many community partners this year. Ads have appeared in Charleston magazine, Deep magazine, and the Little Black Book for Every Busy Woman. Perhaps the most exciting news is that Women Making a Difference has a billboard for an entire year thanks to the outstanding people at Adams Outdoor. Our thanks to Heather Jones for helping orchestrate this phenomenal donation!

Editorial mentions have appeared in the Charleston Regional Business Journal, Moultrie News, the Post and Courier, and Skirt! magazine. We've appeared on Lowcountry Live and Y102.5 radio station.

Another high point has been the Saturday, November 18, edition of the Post and Courier, which featured Women Making a Difference cofounder Weesie Newton as the High Profile. We are so proud of Weesie!

Over the summer, Tristan restaurant invited all local nonprofits to submit their name and mission for a chance to win a lunch or dinner for 20 people in the restaurant's new private dining room, "55". Women Making a Difference was chosen, and some of the city's high profile women philanthropists enjoyed a stellar dinner on Wednesday, November 8.

Throughout the course of the year, several members invited us into their homes for our monthly Wine Wednesday member gatherings. Special thanks to Weesie Newton, Carrie Bailey-Morey, Marti Phillips, Kristen Lane, and Gillian Mark. The Dee Norton Lowcountry Children's Center held a special Wine Wednesday, and all guests were profoundly moved by the way the center works with child victims of abuse.

In September, we held our annual BRING event, a clothing drive to benefit former grant recipient Dress for Success. Special thanks to Pane E Vino for hosting this event with an immediate impact.

Our round bumper stickers arrived mid-November, and we are actively distributing them now. Get yours! We also have a CafePress store that features items with the Women Making a Difference logo. We are very excited about the custom postage stamps that tout our website. Viral marketing at work!

The volunteer executive committee has worked hard to make 2006 a tipping point year for Women Making a Difference; it has been a year of creative ideas, hard work, and great results!

If you are interested in becoming a member of Women Making a Difference, please surf over to our Members page, where you will find the sign-up form.

If you are Oprah, call us!

With deep gratitude,
Carrie Bailey-Morey
Kenton Barham
Ida Becker
Kay Chitty
Kristen Lane
LuAnn McCants
Weesie Newton