Whether it’s an unexpected health care bill, the sudden loss of a job, a domestic violence situation or any other emergency, A Woman’s Work has been there to help community members through difficult times for the past two decades.
The organization celebrated its 20th anniversary Friday with a sold-out luncheon of around 325 people. The annual luncheon’s theme each year is based on traditional bridal gifts, so this year was china, and the group hosted a tea party.
“For me, it’s one of the most heartwarming events that we do, because it’s really very mission focused,” said Kate Gaddis, the organization’s executive director. “We get to hear from some of the people we’ve helped.”
At the event, twenty previous board members read first-person testimonies from people who the organization has assisted.
“There were a lot of wet eyes in the audience … I got choked up,” Gaddis said. “It was really just a powerful testament to the longevity of the organization and also the commitment to the organization by all these women who have served.”
Cindy Noble, who served as the organization’s executive director from 2003 to 2013, worked with Gaddis to write “love notes” to the past board members and staff who attended the luncheon. The letters were hand-delivered with flowers donated by Longmont Florist.
“We also embarked on a fundraising challenge to try to raise $20,000 from all of our board and staff who have served, as a gift to the organization and its longevity,” Gaddis explained. “The women raised well over $20,000.”
Noble and Julie Stapp came up with the idea for the organization in 2003. Noble was the director of the Longmont Community Foundation at the time, and was well-positioned to promote A Woman’s Work. A board of eight people was formed, and they discussed an important question.
“Where does somebody who has an emergency — who doesn’t necessarily need public services and aren’t already on Boulder County services, but they have nowhere else to turn — where do they go? They determined that even though there are so many wonderful nonprofits in the area, there really was a little bit of a gap in resources for people like that,” Gaddis explained.
The board asked 100 women to donate $100 each for the organization’s seed campaign, and the group set a goal of raising that money in 100 days. But the fundraiser only took 13 days, Gaddis said.
Two decades later, the board has grown to 16 members, and more than 100 people volunteer for the organization.
“The thing that I love about A Woman’s Work, is that the help we give is often quiet, in that not a lot of people know we’re doing it — except the family that’s receiving it,” Gaddis said. “As a staff person, I know the names of the women we help, but most of our board doesn’t know — it’s all anonymous.”
The organization has quietly given nearly $2.5 million to 2,743 women since its inception, Gaddis said.
“We work alongside the people we help, and our kids go to school with their kids, and we shop in the same grocery aisles,” she explained. “There’s a power in that — we’re all just sort of walking alongside each other in life, and we’re intersecting where these women need it … it’s quiet and it’s not always known, but it’s making a big difference for women.”
