Empowering Women and Inspiring Change

The Women’s Foundation of Collier County introduced two community campaigns to catalyze change in the lives of local women and girls

WLW Shop & Share supporters Susan Weiss and Jenna Buzzacco-Foerster
WLW Shop & Share supporters Susan Weiss and Jenna Buzzacco-Foerster

In existence since 1996, the Women’s Foundation of Collier County (WFCC) continues with its mission to be a catalyst for change in the lives of women and girls in Collier County through grantmaking, advocacy, and education. 

The Women Lifting Women (WLW) campaign came about after an extensive, detailed, and comprehensive needs study. There are three components of the campaign: to address homelessness and isolation affecting senior women, to empower young women to face everyday challenges so they can move forward with confidence in their career paths, and to grow the organization’s endowment to $5 million to support the foundation’s work in perpetuity.

WLW Shop & Share supporters Donna Messer, Lynda Waterhouse, Anne Fleming, Eileen Connolly-Keesler
WLW Shop & Share supporters Donna Messer, Lynda Waterhouse, Anne Fleming, Eileen Connolly-Keesler

Gather for Good is yet another recently launched campaign. It encourages local women to host brunch, golf outings, book clubs, or sip-and-shop events with their close friends with the intent to support the WLW campaign. An intimate party format is the perfect place to raise awareness and financial support for troubling trends, like homelessness. A conversation-and-cocktails event cohosted by Elizabeth A. Star and Melanie Sabelhaus at Marissa Collections raised $130,000 in one evening. 

The organization created a handy planning kit to help hostesses seamlessly execute their events, including a vendor resource list for everything from invitations to photographers. 

To date more than $600,000 has been raised to support this campaign. 

Facebook Comments