October 2025

Our last meeting for this year. brought us three deserving charities ONCE AGAIN!

Beat the Streets (Chicago) Serving underprivileged youth within the city of Chicago using wrestling as a pathway to confidence and using these tools to succeed.

Cals Angels - Serving those with Pediatric Cencer in the Chicagoland area. They provide hope with a mission of granting wishes, raising awareness & funding research to help kids fighting cancer.

Dupage County Crisis Recovery Center - Serving those individuals/families that have an immediate adult or youth mental health crisis. They offer the choice of using the call-in center, walk-in services in Wheaton or using the mobile response team.

Our donation to DuPageHealthMatters for the Crisis Recovery Center was well received! They were extremely appreciative and our organization's name will be added to the donation wall as shown above. This project has been in the works for 15 years and open for about 4 months. They have helped so many already, including individuals along with their families as well as the Emergency Rooms across the area. It was noted that the program will most likely be a model for the future. Well done 100 Women Who Care…well actually 150+

August 2025 - Margaret's Village

Our 1st meeting this year brought nominations for 3 non-profits.

PEAK - To provide opportunities for underserved youth, with an average academic profile, to achieve academic and personal success by combining a four-year, quality, values-based high school education with the guidance and commitment of caring, adult mentors.

Margaret’s Village - providing transitional housing for homeless women, children and families, and provide experiences to support them with Two Shelters and a Senior Center in the Englewood neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago.

Scarce - Addison - Recycling Services to help people discover how easy it can be to make a meaningful difference for our kids, for our environment, for our future.

We presented our donation to Margaret's Village and they feel "blessed" with such a generous contribution to their mission. We did get to see the Maria Shelter, which services women and children.  They have made adjustments to improve the outcomes and though the number of people has declined due to longer, more intensive mentoring, the success rate has climbed.  The staff is dedicated to improving the community and have partnerships with University of Chicago and others to help.  It really is a community project and I think our donation will be beneficial. You really are making a difference!!

June 2025 - Park Lawn

Our 2nd meeting this year brought nominations for 3 non-profits.

Park Lawn - They believe everyone’s life has meaning, value and purpose. They encourage people with disabilities to discover their passion, take pride in their accomplishments, live more independently and thrive.

Margaret’s Village - provide transitional housing for homeless women, children and families, and provide experiences to support them

Beat The Streets - Beat the Streets Chicago empowers youth through wrestling. Girls and boys aged 5 - 23 find opportunity, meaningful relationships and positive role models year-round at our facilities and in our neighborhood programs across the City.

Park Lawn was chosen as our recipient!!

Park Lawn was founded in 1955, when a small group of parents came together to create a brighter future for their children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In a donated classroom in an Evergreen Park church, these determined parents began teaching their children. As word of their heroic efforts spread, other families joined and soon they established Park Lawn School.

In 1968, they were granted state funding to hire professional staff and construct the first permanent school in Oak Lawn. Shortly after, Park Lawn expanded to include programming for adults and a variety of community day services and residential facilities. Today, over 500 individuals are enrolled in Park Lawn's programs and encouraged to pursue a life of productivity, independence and happiness – the same as everyone else.

We presented our donation to Park Lawn today. They were so welcoming and grateful for the donation. We still have matching donors who will increase our donation but our initial donation is $24,004.70.  We were able to tour one of their sites and meet some of the participants.; such a worthy cause. 

Park Lawn used our donation to purchase a mini van that will allow their clients to engage with the community in a better way than with a larger bus. It will also allow more communities to visit with the extra vehicle. They are very excited about how we were able to help them.

April 2025 - Bringing Joy

Our 1st meeting this year brought nominations for 3 non-profits.

Bringing Joy - supporting cancer patients with bogs of joy

Margaret’s Village - provide transitional housing for homeless women, children and families, and provide experiences to support them

Scarce - Addison - We help people discover how easy it can be to make a meaningful difference for our kids, for our environment, for our future.

Bringing Joy was chosen s our recipient!!

Bringing Joy was founded by Joy to “bring joy” and sunshine to patients diagnosed with cancer. From a coffee gift card to helping provide rides to chemotherapy and everything in between, Bringing Joy hopes to provide support and bring joy to patients during a very trying time.

Founder and survivor, Joy received such support that she wanted to spread support to others. We presented our donation on May 5th. Joy was so very appreciative!!

October 2024 - Reclaim 13

Our 4th and final meeting this year brought nominations for three well-deserved non-profits.

Bringing Joy  (giving joy to those battling cancer) 

Roselle Food Pantry (serving Food to those in need for Roselle, Bloomingdale and Medinah)

Reclaim 13 (forging healing pathways for survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation)

Reclaim 13 was the chosen charity!

In a topic once taboo, Reclaim 13 has brought forward healing pathways for survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation. The name references the fact that 95% of survivors they work with were trafficked by the age of 13.

This worthy charity has residential programs, family programs, and many more services to help survivors reclaim themselves.

We will be bringing our donation to present in the first week of November.

August 2024 - Doodlebug Workshop

Our 3rd Meeting this year brought nominations for 3 well-deserved non-profits.

Doodlebug Workshop won our nomination at our August meeting! Under the direction of Sarah Starke, Doodlebug Workshop equips the special needs community with vocational skills, all while fostering independence and building self-esteem, all with the help of our volunteers in the community.

The joy this charity brings is evident in this photo. They have a retail shop on the first floor with items like cutting boards, outdoor decor, etc. Please call ahead OR use the “ring” doorbell for assistance.

June 2024 - We are Called to Care

Our 2nd Meeting this year brought nominations for three well-deserved non-profits once again.

Bringing Joy  - Giving joy to those battling cancer 

Roselle Community Food Pantry - Serving the local community with a reliable food resource with respect and compassion.

We are Called to Care - Mobilizing churches and Individuals to actively care for Children and families in the Foster Care System.

We are Called to Care won our vote this past meeting. We presented our checks in July. We toured the house and it had "good bones" but was very neglected. They had had a walk thru with "friends and family" and in each room there was a breakdown of how much it would cost to make it a usable, functional spot for a child/children. They are on the way to finishing this portion of the project. 

April 2024 - WSDRA

Our 1st Meeting this year brought nominations for three well-deserved non-profits.

Bringing Joy  (giving joy to those battling cancer) 

Zac Plantz Foundation (shepherding young men and women who are committed to creating a better tomorrow)

WDSRA DuPage (helping families children with special needs)

We visited with some WDSRA staff and they are so appreciative of the $45,000 we have raised for scholarships!! Our Giving Circle has now hit the 1/2 million dollar mark in donations since our inception in 2016!!

Words from Lea Jackman of the WDSRA:

Kerry's memory will outlive us all.  The WDSRA Scholarship endowment will exist in perpetuity and Kerry will forever be attached to the distribution of those scholarships. Thank you, thank you, thank you on behalf of WDSRA, the Fitzgerald Family and all those future WDSRA participants who will have access to programs in Kerry's name BECAUSE of all of you! You are changing the trajectory of the lives of those with special needs.  

October 2023 - Live 4 Lali

Our last meeting of the year brought nominations from 3 worthy organizations (click for more information):

Bringing Joy  (giving joy to those battling cancer)

Easter Seals (providing services for the disabled)

Live4Lali (helping those struggling with drug addiction)   (helping Military Families During Medical Crises)

We chose Live4Lali for our October Donation!

On October 30th we presented our checks and along with our matching donors generosity we were able to give a total of $52,200!!! The staff was SO very thankful for our donation!

August 2023 - Center for Enriched Living

At our August Meeting we had 6 names in the hat for nomination. The three worthy chosen were:

1. Center for Enriched Living (Peggi D’Angelo)

2. Roselle Community Food Pantry (Ashley Bednash)

3. Called to Care (Judy Theriault)

We nominated The Center for Enriched Living!

Mission: Enriching the lives of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities by maximizing their opportunities for personal success, fun & friendship, employment, and community involvement.

Vision: People with intellectual and developmental disabilities are empowered to realize their greatest potential, thrive within the community, and achieve their hopes and dreams.

Our members are changing lives with every donation! Our members contributed $12,100 and our generous matching donors gave a total of $32,300 for a grand total of $44,400.00!!!!

When we dropped off the donation, we had a tour of the facilities and talked to staff about their very worthy organization. They were very grateful for our generosity.

June 2023 - Friends of Fisher House

Our 2nd Meeting this year brought nominations for three well deserving non-profits (click for more information):

Friends of Fisher House IL   (helping Military Families During Medical Crises)

GlenEllyn Infant Welfare Society (helping families in crisis)

Repeat Boutique (helping families in need)

It seems timely that we presented our donation to Friends of Fisher House IL so close to the Fourth of July holiday. They are so grateful for the contribution! We toured the Fisher House at Hines Hospital and met some of the board members, volunteers and staff.  Our donation is going to make a difference in many lives for a long time. Thanks to all of our wonderful women making such an impact!

April 2023 - Cesco's Heart

Our first meeting of 2023 once again brought 3 worthy nominations chosen of 5 submitted. Click on each to learn more about the charity.

1. Cesco’s Heart

2. Repeat Boutique

3. Beat the Streets
   

We are excited to say that Cesco’s Heart was the chosen recipient!

This was presented (for the 3rd time) from our member Marisa De Astis who is a dear friend of Dana Vavalle who lost her 18 month baby boy Cesco, to a rare heart defect in 2012. They established the charity to support research and advanced treatments for other pediatric cardiology. They established this charity in June of that year and have provided over $120,000 to support treatments and research

October 2022 - Misericordia

Our final meeting of 2022 once again brought 3 worthy nominations. It was a lovely evening of giving.

1. Cesco’s Heart

2. St. Moses the Black Food Pantry

3. Misericordia

Misericordia was our recipient! Cheri Rafferty presented for this charity near and dear to her heart as her daughter, Lauren currently resides at Misericordia. This non-profit offers a community of care that maximizes potential for persons with mild to profound  developmental disabilities, many of whom are also physically challenged. Well deserved!

UPDATE: With the help of our tireless matching donors, we were able to donate a total of $35,100 !!

August 2022 - Naperville Responds for Veterans

Our third meeting of the year brought 3 worthy nominations.

1. Naperville Responds for Veterans

2. Cesco’s Heart

3. Glen Ellyn Infant Welfare Society

NAPERVILLE RESPONDS FOR VETERANS received the most votes! This charity was nominated by Peggi D’Angelo as her late mother enlisted and served as a nurse in World War II. This non-profit assists Veterans and their families, especially those with low and moderate income by repairing, building and donating homes. Congratulations!

---

UPDATE: With the help of our very generous matching donors, we donated $34,400 to Naperville Responds for Veterans!!

June 2022 - Girls in the Game

Our second meeting of the year brought 5 requests for nominations. The three chosen from the “hat” were:

1. Glen Ellyn Infant Society (Jeanie Porter)

2. Girls in the Game (Peggy Kinander)

3. Beat the Streets (Patty Joyce)

GIRLS IN THE GAME received the most votes. This charity was chosen in 2017 and this time will have the extra benefit of our increased membership. Congratulations!!

We brought our donation to Girls in the Game on July 1st to their headquarters in Douglas Park. Our initial donation brought $10,800 with hopes for all of our matching donors to increase that amount substantially.

UPDATE: With an abundance of help from our matching donors, our total donation to Girls in the Game was $31,400 !!

April 2022 - Save Abandoned Babies

The first charity awarded this year comes from a presentation from Tracy Heming-Litwin for the Save Abandoned Babies Foundation. We presented our funds with a crowd this time around. Our presentation was featured on ABC news and was accepted by the foundation and it’s living advocate, Morgan Hill, who was found as an infant in a dumpster in October, 1995. Our members gave this organization $10,700 and our generous matching donors gave an additional $10,400 and $5,000. We also should receive matching funds up to $5,000 from the Shulze Foundation for a potential donation of over $30,000!!

UPDATE: Because of our generous matching donors, our total donation to Saving Abandoned Babies was $31,400 !!

October 2021 - The Magic Foundation

Our chosen charity for our October meeting was presented by Judy Lucas for The Magic Foundation.

Our total donation to them is $26,300.00 with another $5,000.00 to come in Feb. or March 2022 from the Schulze Family Foundation.

click HERE for more information on the Magic Foundation

Our members participation in this group is changing lives, impacting the health and welfare of people in our community. This year we have donated to children in an alternative school, helping them stay alive and participate in family and community life, helped women with Stage 4 Metastatic Breast Cancer keep up the fight and improve the health and well being of these women and their families,. we also have provided diapers and other essentials for children and families in desperate need and finally we have offered families a community and education as they are struggling with rare disorders this year! We have donated a total of $64,000 this year alone!

August 2021 - Outreach House

THE OUTREACH HOUSE was chosen for our August donation. With 70 members we were able to give $7,000 !! We also have two generous donors that have agreed to match 1/2 of our totals with each chosen charity forward, which means $14,000 for the Outreach House!! We are making such a difference in so many lives!!

Click HERE for more information on The Outreach House

June 2021 - Roots and Wings Foundation

ROOTS AND WINGS FOUNDATION

Our June Meeting was our first in-person meeting in over a year! It was so very nice to see everyone in our amazing group

Roots and Wings Foundation received the most votes!!

CLICK HERE for more info!

We dropped off the donation to Roots and Wings Charitable Foundation. We met 2 lovely ladies including the founder, Diana Keen. They were so grateful for the $6,800.00 to help those with stage 4 Metastatic Breast Cancer access integrative therapies to help them through the difficult journey they endure. Diana plans to attend our meeting August 3 @11:00am at Medinah to let us know more.

April 2021 - Christopher Lyons Memorial Fund (Glen Oaks Hospital)

Our first Nomination this year came as another virtual event. An email was sent out to membership with three chosen charities:

1. Christopher Lyons Memorial Fund (click here for more information)

2. Roots and Wings (click here for more information)

3. The Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation (click here for more information).

The Christopher Lyons Memorial Fund received the most votes!

On June 2nd, we dropped off the donation ($6,700.00) to GlenOaks Hospital Foundation/Chris Lyons Memorial Fund. We toured the school and learned a great deal about the school, staff and programs. it truly amazing the length of time some of the staff have been employed. There is so often a lot of turn over at schools and it is a testament to the program and administration. What a worthwhile cause!

In addition, The Schulze Family Foundation has matched our donation (1/2 or our total donation), so this organization received an additional $3300 !!! Thank you Peggi D’Angelo for finding this this generous foundation!