Mission: The Valley Women’s Club is dedicated to community action, awareness and leadership in environmental, educational, social, and political concerns that affect the health and welfare of the San Lorenzo Valley and our community.
Mission: The Valley Women’s Club is dedicated to community action, awareness and leadership in environmental, educational, social, and political concerns that affect the health and welfare of the San Lorenzo Valley and our community.
Board NewsSpring 2010
 Annual Meeting 2009 You are all encouraged to attend the VWC’s Annual General Meeting, where you will have the opportunity to hear comments on the state of the State, by State Senator Joe Simitian, and on the state of the 5th District, by Supervisor Mark Stone, and to talk to them in person before or after the meeting. The annual potluck event is on Sunday, March 14th, from 11:30AM to 2:00PM at the Highlands Park Senior Center in Ben Lomond. Prior to our government representatives’ presentations, there will be a potluck lunch social for the VWC membership and guests to enjoy food and friendship. Celtic Harpist, Cathleen O’Connell and her students will provide musical entertainment while people dine. At this 32nd Annual event, VWC Board Members will be introduced, and Committee members will recap the last year’s activities and plans for the upcoming year, including operation of the SLV Redemption/Recycling Centers, the VWC’s Scholarship recipients, the Education Committee’s pre-Kindergarten outreach project, the Status of Women and Girls in Santa Cruz County Report, outreach for the SLV Watershed, and the revival of The Redwood Mountain Faire. Please plan to come and bring some friends! Bring a favorite food dish to share, and your own plate and silverware; beverages are provided. Childcare is provided, but please let us know that you will need it. For more information and to RSVP for childcare, contact Dusty Gipson at 338-3787. Bylaw Changes At its January meeting, the VWC Board voted to make several changes to the by-laws mainly affecting the election of Executive Officers and their duties. Several years ago the by-laws were amended, changing the Vice President’s role to President-elect and adding the position of Past President. At that time, it was thought that giving someone a whole year to observe and learn the job of President and giving the outgoing President an official role would provide for a smoother transition. As it turns out, the 3-year succession was a little daunting for some because it meant that by accepting the nomination for President-elect you were agreeing to a 3-year commitment. So, the board has changed the by-laws making the following changes:
At that same meeting the Board elected an excellent Executive Board for 2010. Our new President is Vince Waskell, a long-time VWC member who lives in Felton; Vince served many years on the SLVUSD Board of Education and is on the new Redwood Mountain Faire Committee. We now have two members sharing the job as Co-Vice Presidents, Nancy Gerdt and Michele Mosher. Both Nancy and Michele are Felton residents. Nancy serves on the Santa Cruz City County Library Joint Powers Board and was active in FLOW. Michele was also a leader in FLOW and is active on the Felton Friends of the Library. Both Nancy and Michele have just served the VWC as President, providing extraordinary leadership. Our new Secretary is Karen Burman; another Felton resident, Karen joined the VWC because of her interest in Environmental and Women’s issues. She is an active grandparent and spends time each year in Switzerland. Elected again as Treasurer, Bonny Doon resident, Sheila DeLany, continues her leadership in women’s issues for the VWC and for the County, as she serves on the SCC Women’s Commission. Sheila and husband, Jerry, are proprietors of The Blind Pilot Jewelers in Boulder Creek. It looks like it’s going to be a good year for the VWC! Hello, Goodbye The New Year found the VWC Board saying goodbye to a few Board members and welcoming two new ones. Newly elected Board member Jody Bruce is a kindergarten and reading teacher at Boulder Creek Elementary, where she has been teaching for 15 years. She lives in Ben Lomond with her husband, Jeff Wells. They have 2 sons who are working and studying in Southern California. In addition to her work in the classroom, she also provides Reading Recovery instruction to 1st grade students and is pursuing professional training in the teaching of writing through a fellowship with the Cotsen Foundation’s “Art of Teaching” program. Jody says she feels “especially honored to be able to teach in a school district where the community is so vitally involved in and committed to the education of our children.” The other new Board member is Lynn McKibbin who cleared some room on her busy schedule by retiring after working for 37 years in the public sector, the last 20 years as a public health nurse in Santa Cruz County. Lynn says she has always loved living in the San Lorenzo Valley and is thrilled that she finally has the time to be more involved in the “life, people and community of our unique valley.” Incumbents re-elected to the Board for 2-year terms include Sheila De Lany, Dusty Gipson, Nancy Macy, Michele Mosher, Vince Waskell and Donna Ziel. Three Board members stepped down in January, leaving extremely large holes to fill. Hilary Stanley has left, having served several long stints on the VWC Board, her most recent one lasting for more than 10 years. Hilary coordinated the annual VWC Yard Sale in Boulder Creek, which generates much of the money used to provide scholarships to SLV youth attending Cabrillo College. Even though she’s taking a sabbatical from the Board, Hilary will still be at the helm on this year’s Sale on June 19th and will also help out with two other tasks that are dear to her heart, coordinating the Halloween Safety Guards in Boulder Creek and helping clean Boulder Creek during the Annual River & Road Cleanup. Sanda Spiegel has also stepped down from the Board, finding that her work over the hill as a social worker for the severely mentally ill is taking up more and more of her time. She logged 884 miles in her car in one week recently! She hopes to one day simplify her life so she can devote more time to her ceramics and figurative expressionist painting. Sanda says she is “grateful to have worked alongside such a phenomenal group of women who are so committed to this community.” The third Board member to leave this year is Jenna Collier, a recent recipient of the VWC’s Hammer-Marcum Award. Jenna has been a long-time contributor to Mountain Community Resources and is currently serving on the committee that is resurrecting the Redwood Mountain Faire. The VWC is so fortunate for the time and love and energy given by its Board members, who tirelessly fulfill the demands made on them. Many thanks are due to the special three who are retiring for now, for their contributions to the VWC and to the community. Changes to Grant Application Process The VWC Board of Directors has revamped the process through which groups or individuals may apply for grants under the auspices of the VWC. If you have a great idea for a grant proposal that falls within the VWC’s mission, and you’re looking to the Club to sponsor it, here are the new VWC guidelines: The VWC Board of Directors shall review and approve all grant proposals before their submission to the funding agency, using the following steps: 1. The Board must first approve a brief written proposal, including the main purposes, activities, and expenses of the grant, or the Letter of Intent, before it is submitted to the granting agency. Review and approval of such proposals between Board meetings may be sought by email. Upon the Board’s approval of the proposal, it shall appoint a board member as grant liaison responsible for tracking all information and funding related to the grant. 2. The Board must approve the final version of the grant application, including a detailed budget, before it is submitted to the granting agency. The Board must receive the grant proposal via email at least one week before the scheduled Board meeting. Under extraordinary circumstances, the Board may schedule an extra Board meeting for the purpose of approving a grant application. The grant writer must attend the Board meeting to provide clarity and answer questions about the grant. If the grant is received, a Grant Tracking Form shall be maintained by the grantee and the VWC Board liaison. Budget reports shall be made to the Board on a monthly basis. The VWC Board Has a New Meeting Place The VWC Board has started holding its monthly meetings at a new location: The Satellite at 6265 Hwy 9 in downtown Felton. (www.thesatelliteinc.com) Satellite, a Telework center offering access to high-speed computer connections, phone systems and video conferencing, copier and fax machines, cubicles and private offices, kitchen, two conference rooms and a large meeting room, is located in the second oldest building in Felton, built in 1891. Until recently it had housed a bank. Barbara Sprenger and Ken Meske have remodeled the building, using carefully designed, ”green,” standards, resulting in a beautiful and comfortable area for those needing an office or meeting room. It’s a real contribution to downtown Felton’s business community and a great place to meet. VWC Endorses Fund for the Future of the San Lorenzo Valley At the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County By Donna Ziel Your VWC Board has endorsed the Fund for the Future of the San Lorenzo Valley, monies managed through the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County, as an important vehicle for developing a long-term, sustainable source of funding for SLV non-profits and encourages VWC members to contribute to it. There are five ways to contribute to the Fund for the Future of the San Lorenzo Valley. We urge you to do so.
The success of the Fund for the Future of the San Lorenzo Valley rests on the strengths of two concepts: the power of collective giving and the power of endowment. Your gift to the fund will help to build a permanent resource dedicated entirely to the well being of the people of the San Lorenzo Valley, now and in the future. It is interesting that the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County was founded in 1982, after the floods that shocked the entire community into realizing the necessity of creating a local resource for disaster relief. That was just a few years after the Valley Women’s Club was founded, and it too found itself responding to the need for local resources during and after a disaster. Please consider supporting this important Fund held at our Community Foundation. The Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County may be contacted at (831) 477-0800. “Since 1982, the Foundation has been helping to make Santa Cruz County a better place to live, providing grants and other resources to local nonprofits, and sharing our community knowledge and philanthropic expertise with donors and their professional advisors. In 2009 the Foundation distributed $4 million in grants for a wide array of community needs.” The need of the SLV now has a dedicated fund to begin addressing them. Learn more about the Community Foundation at www.cfscc.org.
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