Susan Stead, Board President

The approach of fall, including shorter days and trees starting to change color, evokes fond memories of going back to classes. It was exciting to think about all the possibilities the year held and it was also a little bittersweet to give up the lazy summer days and get back into the school year routine. In my family there was never any question about going to University; it was assumed and planned from the time we started school.  I was very fortunate to have that opportunity and to receive the support of my family while getting my education.  Last month as I was signing checks for our Education grantees I was struck by how exciting this time of year must be for all of those women and what it took for them to be able to attend school. Each of our grant recipients has a story, some with happy endings, others a work in progress, and some have a lot of challenges in front of them, but they all are working towards completing their education. All of our most recent grant recipients indicated they hoped to be in a position to give back to their community, in the way WWIN has helped them, once they complete their education. Giving the women hope and education is part of how your generous contribution to WWIN is disbursed.

To qualify for an education grant the student must be currently enrolled in an accredited school within the State of Washington, have an income that is below the national poverty guidelines and carry a fulltime schedule. This year the financial aid information was not released until late August because of the delay in finalizing federal funding for financial aid. This means that many of the grantee students did not know how much they needed to receive from WWIN to make up the difference in tuition. The result is that we sent out a lot of money last month; typically we would be funding those students in June or early July. Each grant recipient meets directly with WWIN’s Program Director; this year all of the recipients mentioned in their interview they felt that achieving their education would also assist them in giving back to the community and society.

During the 2011 fiscal year WWIN gave out 64 educational grants to low income women. During our most recent Education Grant opening we received 157 applications, we funded 21 and allocated over $100,000 to that opening.  Because our education grants are generous, up to $5,000 per year with a lifetime maximum of $10,000 for any and all WWIN grants to any individual, our impact is significant for individuals. 

WWIN continues to be dedicated to the success of our grant recipients.  Helping someone complete their education means that they learn the pride associated with independence and self sufficiency. We find that in addition to the women helped by WWIN, families also benefit as they pass that lesson on to their children. Education is a gift and one that WWIN is happy to have a part in making available to our recipients.

It is with much gratitude that I say ‘Thank You’ to each of you for your continued support of WWIN and the women we help.

Susan Stead

A Season Of Change 

Is it fall already? While I must admit I’m not exactly looking forward to the seasonal change in the coming months (especially after this “summer!”), I can honestly say that I am excited about the season. Here at WWIN, things are looking brighter than ever. We have settled into a beautiful new, light-filled office space right in the heart of downtown Bellevuejust one block from the TransitCenter. (Thanks so much to Interim Executive Director Robin Carey for making this daunting transition such a smooth one, as well as to the volunteers, staff, and Board members who made it all come together!) We are now easier to find and access through public transit, which is so important for our grantees, and the new location will boost our visibility in the community as we share the space with a variety of like-minded nonprofits, including Sophia Way and Angeline’s Eastside Women’s Center, both of which are working to end homelessness for women here in the Eastside.

After the happy frenzy of the past couple months—meeting many of the wonderful people that make up the WWIN community and discussing our shared vision for this amazing organization—I am also eager to dig in and do the hard but rewarding work of taking WWIN to the next level. Our Board retreat is at the end of September, and we are on the cusp of rolling out a new strategic plan that will build on WWIN’s many strengths as well as forge new paths. The most exciting thing in the works right now is that next year marks WWIN’s 20^th Anniversary, and our intention is not just to celebrate the success of the past 20 years (we will!) but to leverage this momentous occasion to get the word out about WWIN and its transformative programs. With your support, WWIN has given grants to more than 5,000 women and touched the lives of countless others; I am confident that together we will create brighter futures for women, their families, and our community for 20 years more—and beyond.                                                                                                                                                                 

Yours,
Michelle

Washington Women In Need Appoints New Executive Director

Michelle Nitz-Weiss leads next phase of WWIN’s growth and development

 Bellevue, Wash. — July 18, 2011 — Washington Women In Need (WWIN), a non-profit organization that provides financial assistance to low income women in the state of Washington, today announced its new Executive Director, Michelle Nitz-Weiss.

“The board of directors and I are pleased to welcome Michelle Nitz-Weiss as our new Executive Director. Michelle has a special heart for helping women and their families, and she brings a wealth of experience in running a community service organization such as WWIN.  We are thrilled with her commitment to helping women in need,” said Susan Stead, president of WWIN board of directors.

Michelle has been committed to community service throughout her life, and she has volunteered for many organizations benefiting women and families, including the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and the Schools for Spectrum Foundation.    

“Many women in Washington struggle with how to make ends meet, how to land a job to support their families, and how to regain the self-confidence needed to make them better workers, moms, wives, and community members,” said Michelle Nitz-Weiss. “My hope is that we can help these women directly by offering even more assistance for them in the coming year through the help of our esteemed volunteers, donors, and partners.”

Nitz-Weiss holds a master’s degree in health services administration from Xavier University and has 18 years of management experience in the non-profit and healthcare sectors. She served as the Executive Director of Strategic Planning and Ventures at Overlake Venture Center for Overlake Hospital, and most recently as the CEO of the Science and Management of Addictions (SAMA) Foundation.

As WWIN embarks on its 20^th Anniversary next year, Michelle will be charged with driving fund development and brand awareness efforts to ensure that WWIN can increase the amount of support given to women in Washington state.  

About Washington Women In Need (WWIN)

 Founded in 1992, Washington Women In Need provides education and health care assistance to low income women who are at least 18 years of age and are residents of Washington.  Washington Women In Need provides funding to more than 300 new women each year, and it has funded more than 5,000 women since 1992.  For more information please visit www.wwin.org.

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Media contact:

Linda Mills, Waggener Edstrom, 425.638.7000 lindam@waggeneredstrom.com

 BELLEVUE, Wash. — May 13, 2011 — Washington Women In Need (WWIN), a local non-profit organization that provides financial assistance to low income women in Washington, today announced that it raised more than $370,000 at its annual spring luncheons held in Seattle and Bellevue. Representing a 10 percent increase over funds raised at the 2010 luncheons, all of the money raised will directly go to establishing grants for women who need assistance in education, health care and counseling.

“With WWIN’s 20th year anniversary around the corner, more than 5,000 women’s lives have been impacted for the better thanks to WWIN. The Seattle and Bellevue benefits luncheons were a testament of the community’s strong commitment and desire to continue that legacy,” said Susan Stead, President of the Board of Directors for WWIN. “I am honored to be part of this community and want to thank our donors, volunteers and partners for their contributions and continued support over the years. Their commitment to WWIN helps to build a bridge to brighter futures for women in Washington—one woman at a time.”

Emceed by Susannah Frame in Seattle and Lori Matsukawa in Bellevue of KING 5 Television, the luncheons featured testimonials by former WWIN clients: Donel Pederson, an education grant recipient, and Kristine M., an education and counseling grant recipient.

“In all of my life, I had never worked with an organization that treated me so well and so humanely,” said Kristine. “WWIN is an amazing organization, and being their guest speaker is the least I could do after all they have done for me. I honestly don’t know where I’d be today without WWIN.”

Said Pederson, “Walking into WWIN’s offices was humbling for me since I was the one who was always giving back. The title alone didn’t seem where I was in life, but I swallowed my pride and applied for the education grant. I was treated with respect and dignity, and got back on my feet thanks to WWIN.”

A combined total of 841 people attended the luncheons to support and help raise money for the organization. The Seattle luncheon was held on April 1 and the Bellevue luncheon took place on May 4.

As always, every penny of the money raised at this year’s fundraisers will go directly to financial assistance for education and health care for low income women determined to improve the quality of their lives and the lives of their families.

A message from Susan Stead, President – WWIN Board of Directors

As we embark on 2011, we are experiencing a continued economic downfall. Many women in Washington struggle with how to make ends meet, how to land a job to support their families and how to regain the self-confidence needed to make them better workers, moms, wives and community members.

Consider this: the U.S. Census Bureau released new numbers showing that the recession has raised the national poverty rate to a 15-year high. According to the Census Bureau, 4 million additional Americans were living in poverty last year, bringing the national total to 44 million. That means that one in seven Americans is poor. And the poverty rate for women was four points higher than that of men.

Last month we had more than 200 women apply for the PDVH (physical, dental, vision and hearing) grant, and unfortunately, we had to turn many away, which is always heart breaking to me. My hope and vision is that we will be able to serve even more people than we did last year. If we each do our part, this can become a reality. Here are a few simple steps that you can make this year to help us.

• Join me in hosting a table at our annual spring luncheons – in Seattle and Bellevue.
• Check with your company on corporate matching programs and see if they will match your donation to WWIN or suggest that they become a corporate partner at the luncheons.
• Set aside a few hours a week to volunteer in our offices – you will have the opportunity to not only help out, but to also experience the rhythm of WWIN in action.
• Consider setting up a Planned Giving fund, benefitting WWIN
• Designate your United Way gift to go to WWIN.
• Spread the word about WWIN to your friends and family – it’s as simple as a conversation or even just adding the WWIN logo to your email signature.
• Volunteer your talents or services to WWIN – whether you are a graphic designer, an accountant, a caterer, or an amazing organizer, we can use you at WWIN.

I know that the recovery from the recession has been slower than most of us would like and has impacted most people in some fashion. But, there is hope in knowing that for each woman who receives a grant from WWIN it can change her life forever – whether that’s freeing her from her pain, regaining her smile, or rejoining the world. We are at the forefront of making a huge impact on the state of Washington, and I hope that you’ll be able to join me as we move ahead to empower women, achieve wellness, and create brighter futures.

We are excited to have a strong showing of corporate support for our benefit luncheons again this year. Even though the economy still struggles with recovery, WWIN is fortunate to have businesses that continue to provide leadership and give generously in support of WWIN.

For the second year in a row, our Diamond Partner, Community Funding Group (CFG) is leading the way. CFG provides much-needed capital to agencies that help individuals and families attain self sufficiency and sustainability. CFG is a nonprofit corporation, with a primary focus on the homeless and those at risk of homelessness, underserved youth, job training, and hunger relief, as well as providing a safe and nurturing environment for those in crisis.

WWIN thanks and acknowledges the following partners:

• Platinum - Anonymous, Charlie’s Produce, Polygon Northwest Company
• Gold - Overlake Hospital Medical Center
• Silver - Nintendo of America Inc.
• Bronze - Charter Private Bank, Theresa Cheng, DDS, D. A. Burns & Sons, Inc., Foster Pepper PLLC, Owner Services, Inc., Parker, Smith & Feek, Inc., Stafford Frey Cooper, Sterling Savings Bank, Union Bank, Valley Medical Center, Washington Federal

Corporate partnership with WWIN is partnership with creating brighter futures for women, their families and our community. And there’s still plenty of time to join the list and support WWIN as a corporate partner!

Another way corporations are lending a hand is through employer gift matching. When you make a donation to WWIN, your employer may very well have a program in place where they match the funds. That means double the money for WWIN health care and education grants! And it’s easy.

Fill out and bring your company matching form to the event and include this along with your donation at the luncheon. If you let us know who your employer is in advance we can help track the match for you. When you register online for either luncheon at wwin.org, there’s a simple drop-down menu of local employers who having matching programs. If your employer is not in that list but you think it may still have a matching program, please let us know in the “Additional Comments” section.

We look forward to seeing you this Spring! Don’t forget to register online for the Seattle Luncheon (April 1) or the Bellevue Luncheon (May 5). Or, perhaps outdo yourself this year, and register for both!

Kristine Medea never had it easy. As a young baby she was constantly abandoned by her mother, who suffered from mental illness and could never really care for a baby as mothers should. As a child, she was tossed between her father, her grandparents and eventually the state. She never really felt a sense of belonging – and really didn’t know what it meant to belong to something.

Kristine eventually ended up living on the streets and dropping out of school in the 9th grade. She had emotional scars, a lot of questions and even fewer answers. She eventually went to counseling as a young woman and her counselor challenged her to get an education and make something out of her life. So, she worked by day and went to community college by night and on the weekends. She then wanted to go further and ended up getting into the graduate program in Behavioral Science at Bastyr University’s Leadership Institute of Seattle. Her tuition was more than she made in an entire year and she just knew that she needed something to get her through. Just before her senior year completion of graduate school her teacher told her about Washington Women In Need and told her that they offered grants for counseling and education. She applied for grants in counseling and education and she was amazed to receive both.

“In all of my life, I had never worked with an organization that treated me so well and so humanely. WWIN is an amazing organization and being their guest speaker is the least I could do after all they have done for me. I honestly don’t know where I’d be today without WWIN.”

The counseling allowed her to get past the feelings of not belonging and not being “good enough” and the tuition allowed her to accomplish her schooling and start an amazing 20-year career in mental health and trauma counseling.

To hear more about Kristine and how she turned from a homeless teen to a woman who owns her own private counseling practice to help others in need, plan to attend WWIN’s annual spring luncheon in Seattle on April 1.

Kathleen C. Miller, a founding board member

Kathleen C. Miller is a Licensed Marriage and Family Counselor and has been on the WWIN Board of Directors since the very beginning in 1992.  Over the past 18 years Kathleen has seen the organization grow from an idea to what it is today – a place where women in need are empowered, achieve wellness, and are given the opportunity and the hope of a brighter future for themselves, their families, and our community.  In a recent interview Kathleen talked about the journey she has traveled with WWIN.

WWIN:  What caused you to become involved with WWIN in 1992?

KM:   WWIN was the manifestation of Julia Pritt’s idea.  I had heard of Julia’s professional work [as one of the founders of Attachmate] and I was in private practice, marriage and family counseling.   Julia was looking for board members for WWIN including people who had experience in the proposed grant making areas WWIN was looking to initiate, including counseling.  We met and talked about WWIN and she told me her compelling story  and asked me to join her.  I felt that it fit with my beliefs of a private organization (not governmentally funded) where women had to take responsibility to seek out the help to pursue their well being.  Julia liked the fact that I was “new” and she felt sure that I would “never leave the board”.  And to this day I remember my desire and strong feeling that I wanted to become a part of this organization – to improve the lives of low income women through financial assistance for health care and education.

WWIN:  Is there something that sticks out in your memory when you think about Julia and how far the organization has come these past 18 years?

KM:  I have a collage of memories including my admiration that even though she was extremely shy she was willing to stand up figuratively and literally on behalf of WWIN.  Especially at the annual spring benefit luncheon events… to stand up and be recognized… in her tall noble regal stature… that there was a person behind WWIN!  Julia always made us feel we were an integral part of the organization…to feel a part of the vision…. the dream… the legacy that has unfolded… providing grants to more than 4800 women since 1992.

WWIN:  Julia passed away last spring; what is one of your hopes for WWIN as it enters a new era and continues the work Julia so passionately dedicated her life to?

KM:  That there is a fund created in Julia’s name to help WWIN continue to grow and reach out to more women in need – perhaps a “friends of Julia” group will come forward  to create more resources… to join in the spirit of what WWIN is doing.  And just as Julia came to me, that we with her legacy would offer women the opportunity to grab hold of that belief as well… to sustain the vision of Julia Love Pritt!

WWIN:  We’ve let people know about the important connection between you and WWIN; is there something else about you that you’d like to share with the WWIN community?

KM:  I have been in private practice since 1976 and I love the great outdoors.  I have climbed Mt. Rainier three times and participated in four marathon golf events.  I was the captain of the University of Puget Sound ski team while in college and am still an avid downhill skier.  In fact, I go to Chile every year with my father to ski its beautiful mountains.

Our mission is to provide a better life for low income women through financial assistance for education and health care, a goal we have met since 1992!  Over the past 18 years WWIN has provided health care and education grants to more than 4,800 women – empowering them to achieve physical and mental wellness and to create a brighter future. Each day we hear stories from women who are struggling and going through hard times; fortunately those stories of heartbreak and need are balanced by the heartfelt letters of thanks we receive like the one from Alisa – letters describing how they were able to overcome obstacles with WWIN’s help.

Dear WWIN,

I would like to express my sincere thanks for the grant you awarded me. Your generosity began last fall with a grant for mental health services.

The ability to see my counselor (one that I chose) has been a life saver for me, and the ability to see her without financial impact has been quite a relief. The circumstances that compelled me to seek WWIN’s help are largely the same: The economy is still sluggish, and I am still job hunting. Despite this, seeing [my counselor] has been a real asset. She has served to consistently reassure and encourage me. She has also suggested strategies that have helped me sustain my family in these trying times. I remain very optimistic that soon the job will come.

I am very grateful for your gift. I cannot express how important it has been for me and my family. Your organization is providing a very necessary service to the Washington community.

With sincere thanks,

Alisa

The Programs Office at WWIN had three grant openings in October where we heard from around 200 women.  We have just started meeting grant recipients for the Physical/Dental/Vision/Hearing (PDVH) grant in the past couple of weeks. We are currently gearing up for the Education grant opening in mid-November as well as the recurring monthly grant openings for Counseling and Insurance Premiums. We feel privileged to be an integral part of meeting WWIN’s mission.