For 20 years, The Women’s Fund has worked to create a just and safe Miami-Dade, where power and possibility aren’t limited by gender.
OUR MISSION The Women’s Fund of Miami-Dade improves the lives of women and girls through grant-making, research, advocacy and education. When we invest in women and girls, it gets better for everyone. Twenty years ago, a visionary group of women banded together to create a movement to improve the treatment of women and girls in the Greater Miami area. The Women’s Fund of MiamiDade was born. In 1993, we supported the work of five grassroots organizations with small grants and with a commitment to assist them to sustain and grow. Since that year, our grant-making has exceeded $3.1 million and we have counted more than 400 organizations as our grantee partners. In 2013, we continue that tradition by awarding $240,000 to 21 organizations that are working diligently on behalf of the women and girls of our community. For the past two decades, this work has been made possible by more than 6,000 contributors. Why do we need The Women’s Fund? Our work is not done. Florida’s women still earn just 83 cents for every dollar earned by men for comparable work and the wage gap is even wider for women of color. Our rights continue to be challenged and this year’s legislative session promises to continue the assault on our rights to access to quality healthcare and our rights to make our own healthcare choices. Just 25.6% of the legislators representing Florida’s 9.5 million women are female. There were more than 9,300 domestic-violence related offenses in Miami-Dade in 2011 and our community was ranked #3 in the nation for child sex trafficking.
Board Members Marj Adler
Marty Davis
Chair, Retired HR/Risk Management Executive
Legal Solutions Group
Joann Soman
K&L Gates LLP
Vice Chair, Stuart Dean
Faye Wright Treasurer, Consultant
Beverly Greenberg Secretary, Attorney-At-Law
April Boyer Duff Kristin Francisco
Jennifer Williams
Assistant State Attorney
Cynthia Barnett Hibnick Robin Landers
Kaufman, Rossin & Co.
Gloria Barbier AXA Advisors
Yvonne Bare Furniture Marketing Group
Judith Chorlog Attorney at Law & Certified Civil Circuit Mediator
Manoucheka Thermitus
Johnette Hardiman
Alumnae Council Emeritus Psychotherapist
Janet Altman
Marianella Solis BB&T
North Shore Medical Center
Attorney-At-Law
Immediate Past Chair Rhegal Consulting
Florida Power and Light
Northwestern Mutual Financial Network
Ellen Shishko
Rhonda Smith
Aletha Player
Ernst and Young
Marilynn Gladstone Founder
Landers-Stein & Associates, Inc.
STAFF
Rebecca Laracuente-Hernandez
Executive Director
Wells Fargo Miami
Debra Frank Montero Robert Half Legal
Stacy L. Morris Baptist Outpatient Services
Norka Munilla Thunder Electrical Contractors, Inc.
Frank Padron WSI of South Florida
Marilyn Fizer March Fran Katz Senior Programs Officer
Karen Blaire Events Manager
Sissi Ramos Project Coordinator
Since 1993, as the only grant-maker in Miami-Dade County dedicated to funding gender-specific projects, The Women’s Fund of Miami-Dade has provided funding and support to programs that promote self-sufficiency for women and girls. To begin our rigorous due diligence process, we seek out and thoroughly review applications from a diverse range of organizations. Once an organization has been prequalified, we schedule a personal site visit, utilizing a team of volunteers, board members and staff to see the programs in action. Through this process, we select a group of best-in-class agencies that we determine to be the best investments for the funds that our partners and donors entrust to us. But our support of these organizations goes much further than dollars. We are a member of the Women’s Funding Network, sharing expertise, best practices and common evaluation tools with more than 165 women’s funds and foundations around the world. Our successful grantees attend quarterly meetings during the funding year - workshops that are designed to assist them in building important sustainability skills. In addition, grantees participate in an evaluation process using online tools designed to support them in achieving their goals. 2013 CoMMUNITY GRANT-MAKING PROGRAM Our Community Grants focus on organizations working in four specific areas:
• Elevating Women’s Economic Security
• Developing Young Women Into Future Leaders
• Striving for a World Where Women Are Free From Violence
• Fostering Women’s Health
2012 Women’s Fund Community Grantee Partners
AMERICANS FOR IMMIGRANT JUSTICE Americans for Immigrant Justice was founded in 1996 as Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center when federal funding restrictions prevented Legal Services Corporation agencies from representing most immigrants, unless they already had legal status. They serve vulnerable immigrants from around the globe. Lucha: A Women’s Legal Project will use The Women’s Fund’s grant to provide legal assistance in immigration matters, tailoring the work to address specific cultural issues in the community. The grant will serve female survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault or trafficking. Lucha attorneys and paralegals receive referrals from law enforcement, domestic violence shelters, court advocates and many community agencies. We first funded Americans for Immigrant Justice in 2001. ARTSPRING, INC. ArtSpring, Inc.’s mission is to use arts programming to develop self-growth and effective life skills for incarcerated women, men and youth to create a more meaningful existence while incarcerated, and upon release. Founded in 1994, ArtSpring’s programs offer arts-based workshops to women incarcerated at Homestead Correctional Institution that teach respect, cooperation and cultural understanding. The curriculum is designed to explore issues of self-esteem and stimulate personal responsibility through the creative process. At the end of each workshop session, the students’ creative work is shared with an audience of their peers, staff and, when possible, invited guests from the community. ArtSpring has been a Women’s Fund Grantee Partner since 2000.
CASA valentina Casa Valentina was formed by a group of women who wanted to help vulnerable young women leaving foster care without being adopted or reuniting with their families. They provide apartments, case management, educational and career assistance, access to health care, and life skills and self-advocacy training to these young women. Casa Valentina’s program includes many elements to help them succeed, including individual tutoring and academic counseling. We first funded Casa Valentina in 2006. charlee of miami dade county, inc. CHARLEE of Dade County, Inc. started as an organization dedicated to developing a better model of foster care and has grown to become one of five foster care providers in Miami-Dade, currently serving over 1,500 children every year. CHARLEE provides full case management services and has developed a wide range of support programs including court/legal support, adoption services, psychiatric services, and healthy teens programming. The Healthy Girls initiative mission is to educate teens in foster care on the risks of sexually transmitted diseases and teen pregnancy, and assist teens who become pregnant while in foster care. We first funded CHARLEE in 2005. kristi house Kristi House’s mission is to provide a healing environment for all child victims of sexual abuse and their families, regardless of income, through prevention, treatment, and coordination of services with community partners. Kristi House was founded in 1996 and serves as the Children’s Advocacy Center for Miami-Dade County, co-locating and coordinating with community partners to ensure that all emotional, physical and legal needs for child victims of sexual abuse are met. Project GOLD provides prevention, education and outreach, as well as case management and therapy for adolescents lured into and trapped in the sex trade. Kristi House first received funding from The Women’s Fund in 2008. Ladies empowerment and action program Ladies Empowerment and Action Program (LEAP) is an inside prison re-entry and post release support program designed to empower women to make positive life changes. LEAP’s approach includes entrepreneurship and employability training, financial literacy and life skills. The goal is to prepare participants to establish their own businesses, or to become successfully employed. By empowering these women to transform their lives, the program strives to reduce recidivism in the female adult population in South Florida. The program is the first of its kind in the State of Florida. We first funded LEAP in 2010.
LOTUS HOUSE Lotus House (The Sundari Foundation, Inc.) was formed in 2004 and is dedicated to promoting the education, advancement and social inclusion of poor, disadvantaged and homeless women and children. The first initiative of the Foundation was the establishment of the Lotus House, which provides transitional housing, wrap-around support services and access to a wide range of resources to over 110 homeless women and children daily. Since opening, Lotus House has served over 750 homeless women and their children. One of the centerpieces of their program is a curriculum to help residents acquire the skills to secure full or part-time employment. The Women’s Fund was an early funder of the Lotus House and has been supporting their work since 2004. Miami-Dade Police Department’s Project (DoVE) Miami-Dade Police Department’s Project (DoVE) will serve approximately 1,260 young women between the ages of 12 and 19. This preventive education program is designed to help them recognize the signs of relationship violence, the choices they can make to remain safe, and reduce their discomfort/insecurity in asking sensitive questions. DoVE is a partnership program that includes a number of community organizations, many that are current and past grantee partners of The Women’s Fund. The Project DoVE team (a social worker and sworn police sergeant or detective) will present and facilitate interactive group discussions via their community partners. Project DoVE received their first funding from The Women’s Fund in 2012.
Pridelines Youth Services Pridelines Youth Services’ mission is to support, educate and empower South Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth in a safe and diverse environment to promote dialogue and social change. The Women’s Fund’s grant supports Our Bodies, Ourselves (OBO) Young Women’s Health Lecture Series. OBO will reach nearly 100 young women with critically needed, accurate, up-to-date reproductive and women’s health information and resources. Approximately 12 young LBTQ women will be mentored and be involved in the planning and production of the lecture series. Pridelines was first funded by The Women’s Fund in 2000. Sister’s Network, Miami Chapter, Inc. Sister’s Network, Miami Chapter, Inc. is an affiliate chapter of Sister’s Network, Inc., a leading voice and the only National African American Breast Cancer Survivorship organization in the United States. Sister’s Network is recognized among leading medical establishments and breast cancer physicians as a critical information resource for African American women. Sister’s Network Miami is committed to increasing local attention to the devastating impact that breast cancer has in the African American community. With The Women’s Fund support, this program will provide better access about breast cancer screening for the under-insured and under-served African American women countywide. This is the first year that The Women’s Fund will support Sister’s Network.
Soroptimist International (SI) Soroptimist International (SI) is a worldwide service organization for women in management and the professions, with 95,000 members. Their mission is to work, in partnership with others, to advance the status of women and children through projects that engender equality, sustainability, peace and human rights for all. Locally, SI of Coral Gables will partner with the Agape Network, a healthcare facility that helps women who need treatment for alcohol and drug abuse after serving their prison sentences. The program will provide training to acquire life-skill certification in a “farm-to-table” program focusing on organic food gardening, the culinary arts, and concentrating on the right nutritional program to aid addiction recovery efforts. This is the first year that The Women’s Fund will support Soroptimist International. The Links Foundation The Links Foundation was established in 1979 as the philanthropic arm to The Links, Inc. which was founded in 1946 as an international service organization. The purpose of The Links Foundation is to enhance and expand the impact of their charitable endeavors. The Miami-Biscayne Chapter will work with Miami-Dade County Public Schools’ alternative setting for new and expectant teen mothers, COPE Center North, to deliver a curriculum entitled Expect Respect which addresses intimate partner violence. This is the first year that The Women’s Fund will support The Links.
Thelma Gibson Health Initiative Thelma Gibson Health Initiative (TGHI) mission is “Building Healthy Minds and Bodies.” This Agency seeks to empower under-served and marginalized residents of West Coconut Grove, South Miami, adjoining Coral Gables and adjacent communities. Its Young Women, Future Leaders program addresses issues that young middle and high school women face in their daily lives. Activities will provide the knowledge and insight needed to reduce risky behaviors, through comprehensive social services that address physical and emotional well-being. TGHI was first funded by The Women’s Fund in 2003. The Women’s Emergency Network The Women’s Emergency Network (WEN) was founded to help marginalized women take charge of their own lives when facing untenable pregnancies. They help with options of counseling, education, and financial resources for women who may not be able to get counseling through other, more expensive means. WEN engages in education and advocacy to further women’s rights in general and access to high quality comprehensive reproductive health care, in particular. We first funded WEN in 2004. World Literacy Crusade of FL, Inc. /Girl Power is a social change program designed to promote positive behavior and improve social skills and academic performance in girls ages 11 to 17. Girl Power makes profound impacts on girls’ lives by promoting self-esteem and healthy self-fulfilling relationships. The Girls’ Choir of Miami is one of their many programs. Choir members participate in weekly workshop and rehearsal sessions and at least two public performances. We first funded The World Literacy Crusade in 2007.
2013 Women’s Fund Women of Color-Led Reproductive Justice Grantee Partners
Reproductive justice places reproductive rights and health within a social justice context. It considers the full range of women’s lived experience across race and class and addresses the many social, political and economic issues that prevent millions of women from exercising their rights and accessing the care they need. Women of color, often most directly impacted by these injustices, must be at the center of any effort to transform the systems that impact their lives. In support of this initiative, Groundswell’s Catalyst Fund of Tides Foundation matches, dollar for dollar, 100% of donations received by Women’s Fund of Miami-Dade to support this work. Grantee Partners for 2013 were selected because of their demonstrated leadership and advocacy work, and the ability to continue their progress in this area.
Power U Power U organizes low-income communities directly impacted by institutional oppression, by developing leaders promoting self-determination, and building community power to create an equitable and just society. Their program combines direct education with grassroots organizing to develop leadership among affected women of color, to encourage and promote breastfeeding and access to midwives to assure healthier mothers and children. Power U has been a Women’s Fund Grantee since 2005. The Miami Workers Center – Gender Justice Council/Sisterhood of Survivors The Miami Workers Center – Gender Justice Council/Sisterhood of Survivors is a strategy and action center whose purpose is to build the power and self-determination of south Florida’s most oppressed communities and help to build a progressive voice and platform that can nurture the growth of movements for social change in Florida and in the United States. The Council continues the vital work of Sisterhood of Survivors through programs that facilitate personal transformation, fight for economic justice, and organize initiatives on behalf of domestic workers. We have supported the Center’s work since 2005. South Florida Interfaith Worker Justice South Florida Interfaith Worker Justice is an interfaith association of diverse religious leaders who respond to the crisis of the working poor, providing a voice to educate, organize and mobilize the religious community to serve low-wage workers in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. The association advocates for the rights of low-wage workers, the majority of whom are immigrants, women, and people of color. Among the multiple issues that SFIWJ will address is the impact of pesticide exposure on the health of women who work in the plant nurseries in our community. We have supported their work since 2009. URGENT Inc.’s Campaign for Girls’ Well-Being URGENT Inc.’s Campaign for Girls’ Well-Being helps traditionally marginalized girls find their voices to speak out against threats to their well-being, building leadership and organizing skill to promote policy change. This year, the Campaign’s focus is to promote collective action to address the issues of teen dating violence and abuse with peer education and social action events. Urgent Inc. has been a Women’s Fund Grantee since 2000.
SPECIAL INITIATIVE FUNDING
ACCION USA ACCION USA supports women’s entrepreneurship and small business development as key anti-poverty strategies and provides the opportunity to create flexible and non-traditional jobs for women. In 2009, Women’s Self-Worth Foundation, founded by Cheryl Saban, PhD, author of What is Your Self-Worth?: A Woman’s Guide to Validation, designated a million dollar donation to fund ACCION USA grants in four cities nationwide, including Miami. The funds awarded to The Women’s Fund of Miami Dade/ACCION Miami partnership have supported micro-business loans and financial literacy education for small business owners. We have supported this initiative since 2010.
Camillus HoUSE Camillus House has provided humanitarian services to people who are poor and homeless in Miami-Dade since 1960. Their mission is to provide compassionate hospitality and respect for life through direct services of food, clothing, shelter, addiction counseling, behavioral health services, job training, and health care to the poor and homeless of South Florida. The organization currently serves more than 10,000 people annually, operating 16 facilities spanning the county, and provides housing for more than 800 individuals each night. The ESHE program engages women who are homeless into a continuum of care, through a holistic wellness program that addresses the many concerns and needs of women in a dignified and gendered-oriented environment. Camillus House’s ESHE program has been a Women’s Fund Grantee Partner since 2005.
Community Partnership with CREW Miami, Inc. Every year, Commercial Real Estate Women of Miami (CREW) hosts the event Cocktails, Community, and Connections and donates 50% of the proceeds to The Women’s Fund of MiamiDade’s grant-making program. This year, the event generated $15,000 to develop young women into the leaders of tomorrow. Community Partnership with Young/Legal Professionals Every year, the Young/Legal Professionals and Women’s Fund of Miami-Dade host the “Raise the Bar” networking event. The 2012 event raised over $40,000 for The Women’s Fund’s grants to provide legal assistance and advocacy to victims of domestic violence and human trafficking. More Ways to Give There are so many ways to give to The Women’s Fund – to give of your time, your talent, or your treasure. Donate Donating any amount to The Women’s Fund increases the impact of your giving. Your gift will be leveraged with the donations of others to support our mission of improving the lives of women and girls through grant making, research, advocacy, and education. Your donation can support our general fund, honor or memorialize a cherished friend or loved one, be a part of our long-term sustainability through our endowment or become a part of your estate plan. For more information about our donor programs, contact Executive Director Marilyn March, 305-441-0506 or marilyn@womensfundmiami.org. Sponsor an event What is the community mission of your organization? What is your personal commitment to our community? We can customize a sponsorship or partnership for you or your company. Sponsorship packages can reflect your passion or complement your corporate marketing plans. For more information on designing a package just for you, contact Executive Director Marilyn March, 305-441-0506 or marilyn@womensfundmiami.org.
Volunteer Your time and energy can really make a difference when you volunteer with The Women’s Fund. Here are just a few ways you can help:
• Serve on our committees as we strategize about fundraising and special events
• Help select the grants to be funded as a site visitor
• Help plan our Annual Luncheon – The Power of the Purse
• Help us keep abreast of women’s issues in the media and on the legislative dockets
• Assist with clerical functions in the office or at special events
• Offer your wisdom and experience to mentor young women for our grantee
partner organizations To volunteer your time or talents, contact Fran Katz, Senior Programs Officer, for more information. 305-441-0506 or fran@womensfundmiami.org. The Honorable Judge Amy Karan Legacy Fund Retired Judge Amy Karan lost her brave battle with the rare neurological disease Multiple System Atrophy on Sunday, September 8, 2013. She was 54. Judge Karan was a tireless voice for victims and survivors of domestic violence and her work will continue to benefit those for whom she advocated. In 2012, The Women’s Fund of Miami-Dade, with the support of the Greenberg Traurig law firm, established the Honorable Judge Amy Karan Legacy Fund as a tribute to her work. For more information http://tinyurl.com/llnfez8.
3001 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Suite 264, Coral Gables, FL 33134 phone 305.441.0506 WomensFundMiami.org