Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, and Happy Kwanza. As I write this, Thanksgiving is just behind us, and there are many blessings to be thankful for. For one, we are blessed to be a band of sisters who care so much about our community. I see it in all the volunteer work and the giving spirit. We do many projects throughout the year, all in the service of our community-at-large. Thank you to all the Chairs and their committees who worked tirelessly during this past year. A huge shout out to my board, who supported me and helped me stay on track without judgment. I appreciate you all so much.
Reporting
As we move into the new year, we need to report to the New Jersey State Federation of Womenâs Clubs (NJSFWC) on all the work done in 2024. This year NJSFWC switched where projects are reported, and when you look at the changes intuitively, it makes sense. The downside for this year is that one committee did the work, but it gets reported under another committee. I scheduled a Zoom meeting, âReport Writing Made Easy,â to discuss the changes. I sent the meeting link on November 30th and the Zoom session will be on December 16th at 7 p.m. There will be a need to rebalance teams at some point in the future. Because of these changes, reports will now be due on January 10th, so Jody and I can review them.
Honors
Also in the new year, the Honor Roll and Order of the Lily committee will meet to select the next few members to be presented for these honors. Carol Frisby and April Maska, both past presidents and honor recipients, will co-chair the committee. They will reach out regarding what they need to make their selection. Meanwhile, think of members you feel deserve this award. To see who has already received it, you can look at the annual yearbook. All the names of previous honorees are in there. The purpose of getting this done early in the year is to be sure honorees are listed in the Convention Book, which is distributed in May.
Member Recognition
Patricia Dahl, NJSFWC Second VP, in charge of membership, wants to recognize members who have 25 years or 50 years of service between the Junior Womanâs Clubs and Womanâs Clubs. Linda Jones has been researching our 50-yr members and we have a few years before any of our members reach that status. However, we have quite a few who have 25 years of service. Our board decided that anyone with 25 years in, regardless of whether it was consecutive, should be recognized. Please reach out to Ann Caswell or me if you meet this criterion, so we can submit your name. Members will be recognized at the District Spring Conference.
Members who recommended two or more new members who joined in 2024 will also be recognized at the Spring Conference. While the membership team typically gets credit for this, the State wants to recognize individual member efforts, which is great. This is a team effort. Please let Ann Caswell know.
I hope to see you all at the holiday dinner so we can celebrate with each other. Until then, have a Happy and Safe Holiday!
Janice