A few Fellows are still looking for Mentors -- girlfriends who can help them get connected in and beyond our organization. We are particularly looking for Mentor candidates who have expertise in career coaching, nonprofit communications, event planning, or fundraising. A love of local coffee shops and/or outdoor activities would be a plus. Interested? Please contact Michelle Hynes, program co-lead. Learn more about the Fellows Program here.
Volunteer Spotlight: Heidi Sobol
What brought you to ninety-nine girlfriends?
In 2016, I met Halle Sadle, one of the original girlfriends, as her husband was an actor in a play that my husband was directing. She saw that I was new to Portland and working part-time from home, so I hadn’t met many people, and invited me to the first award dinner which was the following week. It was quickly clear to me that this was a way for me to meet people, learn more about my new home city, and learn about philanthropy and the non-profit world as well.
Register for Discovery Forum 2022 by Sunday, June 5th
Join us for this year’s Discovery Forum, the kickoff of our Member Education programming for 2022!
Each year, ninety-nine girlfriends offers interactive educational programs informed by our annual learning question. This year's question is “How can systems change and advocacy advance racial equity?"
Discovery Forum 2022 features a panel of speakers from local nonprofits sharing their experiences with systems change and advocacy, and the impact those have had on the important issues they are working to address. We will also have an interactive table discussion among members to learn more about systems change and each other.
Pronoun Project Begins
At our recent event, we began a project we are calling the Pronoun Project. Through this we are asking our members to add their pronouns to their name tags so other Girlfriends know by which pronouns they would like to be referred. This is part of our ongoing effort to be inclusive and to help every single Girlfriend feel a sense of belonging in our community. Read more about the importance of pronouns here and look for the labels at your next in-person event so you can update your name tag too. Your Member Education Committee will be presenting a program on understanding gender that we hope will be of interest to you. Watch for more about that in the fall.
Girlfriends Reunite and Get Oriented for 2022
About 60 Girlfriends gathered at Easton Broad to reunite, meet new friends, and learn a little more about our upcoming year. To get a glimpse of the evening, check out the photos. Feel free to download and, if posting on social media, please credit Andie Petkus Photography.
Grants Steering Committee Update
Have you been in the eye of a hurricane? It is calm and quiet in an eerie way. That is where most of the Grants Steering Committee is now, in the eye of the hurricane. The Impact Award application was released on May 6. While we are waiting for the flurry of applications (due June 6) and the hard work of the Grant Review Teams (GRTs) to begin in earnest, we are enjoying the relative quiet. This lull involves the Outreach Team answering the questions of potential applicants and the Intake Team learning how to use our intake software. But, while some of us are enjoying the pause, one of our teams, the Grant Review Team Coordination Team (GRTCT), is fully in the storm. These Girlfriends are preparing trainings for our GRTs on consensus building and implicit bias within the framework of ninety-nine girlfriends grants. They are also planning a training for the entire Grants Steering Committee on Trust Based Philanthropy, which is essential to the work we do. We are filled with gratitude for the GRTCT for preparing us all for the next big push! Onward!
BRAVO Youth Orchestras Spring Concert
Volunteer Spotlight: Karen A. Rich
What brought you to ninety-nine girlfriends?
Molly Cliff Hilts. Molly was the first friend I made in 1994, when I moved from Manhattan to Portland. We met in a water aerobics class, were both pregnant, and we became fast friends. We lived in different parts of the city, started a very eclectic book club, each had two sons, and lived our lives meeting here and there over the years. Then, we reconnected in 2016, when she invited me to the home of Jinx Faulkner to learn about a new all women’s nonprofit called ninety-nine girlfriends. That group of smart, funny, kind, and accomplished women was inspirational. I joined to learn more.
Share Your Matching Funds
Do you have access to matching funds? We’d love to help you access those to amplify our work. We’ve been able to do great things in the past as a result of the generosity of our members and their matching funds. We’ve increased our grant pool, used them for the Fellows, tried out a scholarship program, and more. We guarantee if you share your matching funds with ninety-nine girlfriends they will be used with wisdom and discretion. Let us know if you’d like to learn more or if we can help you access matching funds.
Register by May 11 for Girlfriends’ Reunion & Orientation!
It’s time! Whether you’re new to ninety-nine girlfriends or returning, you belong at the Girlfriends' Reunion & Orientation!
Wednesday, May 18, 6 - 7:30 PM
Doors open at 5:45 PM
Contributing to Our Community
Our 2022 grant-making cycle is now open and we are excited to announce that we are investing $450,000 in our community this year. We will grant one Impact Award of $70,000 and one Finalist Award of $15,000 in each of our five focus areas. Plus, all semi-finalists that don't advance to the next round, will receive a recognition gift of $2,500.
Our Equity Statement
We continue learning and embedding racial equity in all that we do, and would like to share our new Equity & Inclusion statement which was spearheaded by the Racial Equity Committee. In addition, the Outreach Team has connected with more nonprofits that identify as indigenous or Native American to invite them to learn about our grant opportunities and we are creating space for indigenous people to share their voices and perspectives with our members at our events as an addition to our land acknowledgment. We will continue to learn and incorporate inclusive ways that we can embed racial equity in our work. If this work interests you, reach out and learn more!
Fellows Program Update
Many of our new and continuing Fellows, Fellows grads, and program leaders got to meet each other at an in-person event, co-hosted by Year 2 Fellow Liz Starke (Development Director at grantee partner Rose Haven) and recent Fellows grad Mikayla Posey (Manager at the Hostel Cafe right across the street). A few of us also took a walk, thanks to Year 2 Fellow Kathleen (Kay) Porcello, at the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge.
Another Great Group of Girlfriends!
We are thrilled to share that we have 379 members for 2022! In addition to the 312 Girlfriends who renewed, 67 new Girlfriends decided to join us. Welcome to all of you! (Although this number is smaller than last year, don’t be dismayed. Women’s giving circles have retracted a little bit nationally over the past year as a result of COVID and our model is to make the biggest impact we have with whatever number of Girlfriends join us in any given year.)
Grantee Partner Highlight: POIC + RAHS
I learned so much about the origins of this 50+ year old organization which began by providing education, work experience, and opportunities to primarily Black adults in underserved communities. Their work is now centered on providing those same opportunities to youth who are at risk. With four school campuses many students have experienced homelessness, poverty, violence and the criminal justice system.
Grantee Partner Highlight: Constructing Hope
My visit with [2021 Impact Partner] Constructing Hope was a great experience. I spent a little over an hour there, got a tour of the facility, and had lots of time to chat with [leaders] Pat Daniels and Courtney Jenkins.
Also, they welcome guest speakers when classes are in session and inquired whether any Girlfriends might have expertise in these areas: HR and job interviewing, general life skills/balance, nutrition and physical fitness, financial planning, and strategies for dealing with stress and anxiety. They seemed very happy with their experience with ninety-nine girlfriends and are thrilled about the partnership." Betty, Impact Partner Liaison
Grantee Partner Highlight: Bradley Angle
There’s a lot going on at Bradley Angle. Renovating the Bonnie Tinker shelter is a big project for the organization, as the facility was long overdue for updates. They have worked to make trauma-informed upgrades, prioritizing the shared spaces, and are raising additional funds for the phase-two upgrades to the other areas of the facility.
Passionate About Democracy
In the spring of 2015, six women gathered in a Southeast Portland kitchen and formed a regional giving circle, called ninety-nine girlfriends. A year later, Lisa Adatto and Laura Rogers met for the first time as co-leaders of one of the new organization’s grant review teams. While working together in pursuit of strongly held values, their friendship grew and after the 2016 grant-making cycle they continued to stay in touch. In June of 2021, they met to catch up. In short order, Rogers realized it was to be a consequential exchange “so I took notes and saved them.”
Six New Fellows Join Our Philanthropy Program for Younger Leaders
Since 2017, ninety-nine girlfriends has recruited women ages 20-35 into our Fellows Program, a three-year learning and networking experience. Ninety-nine girlfriends is thrilled to welcome our six new Fellows: April Jay Unterberger, Brianna Babbitt, Hanna Lilly, Josie Greer, Katrina Machorro, and Tuyen Ta.
2022 Grant Applications Are Open!
Ninety-nine girlfriends 2022 grant making cycle is now open! We are thrilled to announce that we will invest $450,000 in our community this year. We will grant one Impact Award of $70,000 and one Finalist Award of $15,000 in each of our five focus areas. Plus, semi-finalists that don’t advance will receive a recognition gift of $2,500.