State Competitions
GRAND PRIZE WINNER
Louisiana
Argiro Morgan — State President
CFA Chair Lynn Pablovich Co Chair Linda Vinsanau
Louisiana Federation took an existing project, The Dictionary Project, and expanded it to create our statewide Caring For America Project “Civics For Kids”. Our project’s goal was to excite and energize children to understand and participate in American activities.
Concentrated on four areas…
1. Pledge of Allegiance – Kindergarten age children. LFW Women introduce and teach the pledge of allegiance and reinforce what the children already know.
2. American Studies – 3rd grade children: LFRW club members distribute personal dictionaries that include American heritage information to third graders. Source: Mary French’s “The Dictionary Project”.
3. Privilege/Right to Vote –5th grade children: LFRW club members provided info on the process of voting and conducted an essay contest.
4. U.S. Constitution and Amendments – 10th grade children: LFRW club members distributed pocket – sized booklets of the Constitution to 10th graders. Source: Heritage Foundation More than 79% of our clubs participated and 27 of 39 clubs donated money. Excellent public relations coverage.
SECOND PRIZE WINNER
Alabama
Bobbie Lou Leigh —State President
CFR Chairs Janie Dollar and Mary Saggus
….state has 6,000 foster children from 67 counties. The project started in 2008 with a goal to send each child a card and gift on their birthday. All clubs have participated in volunteer hours and individual donations and seven clubs also donated money. Raised close to $18,000.00
HONORABLE MENTION
California
Kathy Brugger —State President
CFA Chair Dorothy Wedel
At least 40 clubs participated with time and money to send cards, items, letters; and assisting children and spouses during the holidays with gift baskets, and donated toys, blankets, books and toiletries to be sent to thousands of abused and neglected children. Donated to Operation Gratitude for our troops. We donated food and paper items to Haven Hills Assistance for Battered Women.
Virginia
Brenda Campbell —State President
CFA Chair Anna Lee
Provided cam socks for the military, valentines for the veterans, worked with chemical dependent women, sharing Christmas with the Alternative House Teenagers. Sixty Three Points of Life project. Very strong statewide club participation.
Idaho Federation
Donna Montgomery —State President
CFA Chair Marie Eier
Governors C. L. Otter’s meth project. Worked to inform the public and especially school children on the dangers of meth. Fourteen clubs donated $2060.00 and many volunteer hours.
North Carolina
Valerie White —State President
CFA Chair Kathy Hildreth
Filled Easter Baskets that was delivered to A Kid’s Place, Reach, and the Sheriff’s Dept.
Contributed $2000.00 from our scholarship fund to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. This non-profit provides college educations to surviving children of fallen Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corp Special Forces personnel.
Nevada
Michele Turner —State President
Sent boxes of cookies, care packages, Christmas cards to soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Sent boxes to the National Guard, adopted troops of the National Guard,
Sent blankets to Nellis Air Force Base and donated phone cards. Nineteen clubs participated.
Pennsylvania
Joyce Grant —State President
CFA Chair Barbara A. Bustard
PPRW C for A project was in conjunction with Online Angels, a 501-c3 non-profit. Members contribute 6-inch crochet knitted squares, then volunteer sew the squares together to make lap robes. They are then sent to those in need from babies facing critical health issues, to senior citizens. Pull-tabs from aluminum cans go to charities that support the Ronald McDonald House, and cancelled stamps are for the Online Angels project.
Wisconsin
Ginny Marschman President
CFA Chairs Sandra Ermeling/Charlotte Rasussen
Sixteen of the twenty clubs collected food and personal items and donated them to food pantries, women’s shelters, veteran’s homes and boxes that were sent to the deployed troops. This is an ongoing project.
Ohio
Karen Skillings —State President
CFA Chair Beth West
Supported and donated funds to the Fisher-Nightingale Houses, Inc., located at Wright-Patterson AFB. Twenty-five clubs participated. Some clubs also participated by cooking and donating food.
Arizona
Cyndi Collins —State President
CFA Chair Mary Baumbach
Worked on the Arizona Adopt a Highway Project. Were committed to cleaning a one-mile strip of Interstate 10. We clean this twice a year in return the Arizona Dept of Transportation has provided a permanent sign. Another project is participating members donating blood at our three times a year state meetings.
Mississippi
Rita Wray — State President
CFA Chair Ruby Ainsworth
Implemented an outreach of Armed Services Project called “Cell Phones for Soldiers” Cell phones collected during the 2009 legislative Day at the State Capitol.
Maryland
Pat Parker —State President
CFA Chair Carol Bowis
Many Maryland clubs supported the Fisher House. Held many fundraising events and donated significant amounts of money. Many volunteer hours.
Texas
Toni Dashiell —State Presiden
CFA Chair Barbara Perales
Project “Honoring Their Service with Our Caring Efforts” which involved making caps that were worn inside a soldiers helmut. The creator was Susan Fischer who developed a knitting pattern that was distributed throughout Texas. For non knitters they donated the yarn and monies and then a handwritten thank-you note was attached to each one. A group of ladies would go to the airport where the soldiers were being deployed and distribute them. This state was also involved in the Sew Much Comfort Project which are clothes that are created to meet the needs of wounded soldiers in hospitals, and care centers. Over 95% of the clubs were involved.
California -Northern District
Kathy Brugger —President
CFA Chair Diana Reniz
One member Pat Everette interviewed numerous World War Two veterans and prepared written reports to the Library of Congress. Also involved with an orphanage in India and worked with the “Salute American Heroes” which provided money to help with veterans return to civilian life – housing, education, employment. Many volunteer hours.