Letter from the Incoming President

P r e s i d e n t LETTER FROM THE INCOMING

Sarah Giglio

As we wind down the 2020-2021 League year, I think of how far the women of our League have been stretched and challenged, and how much each one of you have responded to those challenges with grace, creativity, and ingenuity. The last year has not been how any of us envisioned it—in the League or otherwise. Many have experienced loss, sadness, and overwhelming anxiety due to the global pandemic through which we have navigated the last year.

The League was not immune to COVID-19. Every event we held was somehow influenced by the pandemic, and we worked hard to make sure that the events we hosted were socially-distanced and responsible. Starting early in the League year with Super Safety Saturday, the committee quickly transitioned and made that event a monthlong virtual event, culminating in a drive-through “touch a truck” event at the end of the month. While we are all excited to get back to the traditional Super Safety Saturday event, there is an upside to a virtual event, and that is that we can reach many more people through a virtual event, as opposed to an in-person one. Even as recently as last month, our Designer Bag Bingo committee adapted their event to be a virtual “Bags, Bourbon & Bling” online raffle, where they raised over $20,000! Designer Bag Bingo is another event we cannot wait to have in person again (and we are already hard at work planning an in-person event next April—stay tuned!), but we were again able to reach more people with a larger geographic reach with our virtual event. All of that to say, there have been some silver linings to the changes brought during the last year.

All of our community projects were able to go on in some form. As mentioned above, Super Safety Saturday went virtual. MAGIC also went on completely virtually. The Health Literacy Initiative was almost completely virtual, with a few socially-distanced, in-person activities. Safe Sitter was able to have a class late this year. While they had hoped to host more classes, they were only able to safely do so beginning in April. We so appreciate the committee’s pressing on with the event in April, but waiting until it was safe to do so. Red Apron Pantry never stopped serving clients, and the need for the pantry was even greater this year as people dealt with loss of jobs and income, and therefore increased food insecurity. It was our first full year of having the Red Apron Pantry in Suite E and being the only food pantry in the 71104 zip code. What a huge success this has been. Finally, the Artist for a Day committee made sure the event went on even though there was no Revel—what amazing creativity the committee showed! They “took the show on the road” and exposed children to art in coordination with schools, our JLSB Pumpkin Patch, and other groups.

Our fundraising committees—Designer Bag Bingo, the

Pumpkin Patch, the King Cake Classic, and cookbooks— have done amazing work raising funds for our League so that our community projects can continue, we can continue to grant Community Assistance Program (CAP) grants, and we are still able to award our scholarships to two deserving women. We are so grateful to everyone who joined our 1933 Society as well. A capital campaign like that was critical during 2020. I look forward to growing the 1933 Society as we launch into the 2021-2022 League year.

The good news is that we seem to be coming out of the pandemic, slowly but surely, and we are starting to see some semblance of normalcy again. I cannot wait until we have full in-person general membership meetings and I can see all of your lovely faces in person as opposed to on a computer screen.

I want to say a huge thank you to the outgoing board— every woman on the board has influenced me in some way for the better, and I strive to be like so many of you. A HUGE thank you goes to our outgoing President, Saige Solomon. Many of you will never know just how much Saige has done for our League during this difficult year because so much of it was behind the scenes. She has worked hard literally every day of this past year to make sure the League saw as little COVID-interruption as possible. Saige, I hope I am half the President you have been. To my incoming board, thank you for dedicating yourself to the League at a new level this year. Board responsibilities may be many, but they are so very rewarding. And I will endeavor to make your Board year as wonderful as mine have been.

To all of our League members, thank you for your continued support and dedication to our League. I cannot wait to work with each and every one of you next year. I am so incredibly grateful that you have chosen to trust me in this role, and I want you to know that any time you need anything, I am just a phone call or an email away. Cheers to a wonderful 2021-2022 League year!

Sincerely, Sarah Giglio

Sarah Giglio 2021-2022 President

Looking for a New Dentist?

Small, privately-owned office Building patient relationships is our priority Care for the whole family Both restorative and cosmetic procedures Call us today for an appointment!

QUADRANGLE OFFICE CENTER 2001 East 70th St., Suite 313 Shreveport, LA 71105 318.797.4321 Dr. Erin Walker is currently an Active member of the Junior League!