The Utah Women’s Giving Circle, a grassroots group formed in 2011 to change the statistics for women in Utah, awarded its ninth round of grants on Wednesday, February 5th, having invested more than $165,000 through a total of 46 high impact nonprofit projects.
Eight local nonprofits made it to the ballot and pitched live for the funds with projects targeting the group’s 2019 focus on healthy relationships, mirroring the prominent cultural movement taking place across the country since the dawn of the #MeToo movement. Members voted to award their collective pool of $15,000 across five initiatives:
$5,000 Grant: The Salt Lake Tribune
Matched by the Tribune’s Report for America grant, funding supports dedicated reporting of stories impacting Utah women and girls
$5,000 Grant: Journey of Hope
Interrupting the cycle of violence through outreach, education and case management for girls aging out of the juvenile justice system, foster care, and homelessness
$2,000 Grant: South Valley Services
Supporting domestic violence prevention through community awareness materials and incentives to support engagement in Healthy Relationships classes across the Wasatch Front
$2,000 Grant: Girls on the Run Utah
Funding scholarships enabling underserved girls to participate in this life-changing health and confidence-oriented running curriculum and culmination 5K
$1,000 Grant: Yoga Forward
Investing in a female inmate serving a life sentence as an ongoing yoga teacher trainer, impacting potentially hundreds of women in the Utah State Prison Timpanogos Facility in the years to come
“The collective action and genuine community present in the Giving Circle makes membership very rewarding, all with a very accessible membership donation amount,” shared Pearl Wright, a longstanding member of more than five years.
“I joined tonight. It was compelling to see women coming together to fund women-focused projects,” remarked Jennifer Campbell, Executive Director at South Valley Services.
Membership is inclusive for women of all ages and incomes through a $250 annual donation or a $50 annual donation for young women under 25. Women can become Lifetime Members through a one-time gift of $1,000. Public and corporate donations are welcome. For more information, visit www.utahwomensgivingcircle.com or email wgc@utahcf.org.
The Utah Women’s Giving Circle is fiscally sponsored by the Community Foundation of Utah, a catalyst for philanthropy that is visionary, diverse, and inclusive. More information can be found at www.utahcf.org.