meeting in February 2018. With the desire to make the fundraising as easy and painless as possible for their members, the guidelines they presented to the members were simple: • They meet two times per year for an hour and each member brings a $100 check. • Prior to each meeting, members can nominate a nonprofit or cause they feel passionately about via a Nomination Form which is completed and then submitted to the Steering Committee. The suggested organization does need to meet a few criteria to be a candidate. • Five unduplicated nominations will be randomly selected. • The nominating member of each group will give a five-minute presentation about the organization and why the organization was nominated. • Present members will vote via ballot and one organization will be the recipient of $10,000. • Each member, whether present or not, will write a $100 check to the selected nonprofit. The first meeting was a huge success with about 120 women in attendance combining donations of over $11,000 going to the Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) program. More than $11,000 was raised for the Clothing Closet in 2018 and Pathways Shelter received donations this year of more than $14,500. In three years, the group raised a total of just under $40,000 to make a huge impact on these organizations. Kieffer states, “That’s money that probably would not have been in the community before.” She explains that even if one of the nominated non-profit groups isn’t chosen for the donation, it’s a great way for them to get their information out and explain their purpose. The receiving organization appreciates the flexibility of the use of funds. Hovden explains, “Another thing the agencies really love is that they are unrestricted funds. They tell us what they’re going to do with it, but it’s not like a typical federally funded grant where there’s only certain things you can spend it on.” She is surprised to see how much of an impact this fundraising has made to the organizations in the community. Adamson adds that she was also surprised by how many needs there are that she wasn’t aware of. The group is extremely grateful for their members, stressing that they are the reason for these great impacts on the community. “The steering committee just organizes everything. It is truly what the membership wants, happens,” states Devine. The members, like the steering committee, are women of all different ages and with various backgrounds and careers. Though the semiannual meetings are held to an hour, they explain that some women stay after to talk with others. Devine smiles, “It brings people from all over the community together and it’s really amazing to me to see.” She laughs as she explains how she’s had multiple women approach her enthusiastically after a meeting with an eagerness to meet again. The steering committee met many people during this journey, including each other. Tacke was surprised at how relatively easy it was to begin the group and get so many members involved. “I think that speaks volumes for our community that people are so generous and so ready to give up their time and their money to organizations.” Devine is thrilled to see the overwhelming support of the members and the community. The passion that their members have toward their organization has surprised her the most. They all agree that Yankton is a very giving community that tends to pull together to tackle the needs in front of them. v100 WOMEN continued on page 26 PIROUETTE® WINDOW SHADINGS 150 REBATES $ Modern Living. Smart Savings. Hunter Douglas shades with PowerView® Motorization move automatically to schedules you set.** Save now on qualifying purchases with the associated smart hub. * STARTING AT on qualifying purchases ON QUALIFYING PURCHASES June 29–Sept. 9, 2019 Mozaks Floors And More 1205 Broadway Ave Yankton, SD M-F: 9:00 am - 6:00 pm Sat: 9:00 am - 5:00 pm Sun: Closed (605) 665-9728 www.mozaksfloorsandmore.com *Manufacturer’s mail-in rebate offer valid for qualifying purchases made 6/29/19–9/9/19 from participating dealers in the U.S. only. Each window fashions unit must include PowerView Motorization to qualify for rebate. Rebate will be issued in the form of a prepaid reward card and mailed within 4 weeks of rebate claim approval. Funds do not expire. Subject to applicable law, a $2.00 monthly fee will be assessed against card balance 6 months after card issuance and each month thereafter. See complete terms distributed with reward card. Additional limitations may apply. Ask participating dealer for details and rebate form. **PowerView® App and PowerView® Hub required. ©2019 Hunter Douglas. All rights reserved. All trademarks used herein are the property of Hunter Douglas or their respective owners. 19Q3MAGPIC2 HERVOICEvJULY/AUGUST 2019v5