June 2022,
Dear NWC Members,
Summer is almost upon us again, after yet another winter of canceled plans! Although we were able to hold many in-person events late in 2021 - the Fall Gathering, Nearly New Sale, and Coffee and Conversation at the Norwich Inn - in the face of Omicron we chose to host a virtual Gala in March. Now we are once more venturing out: to celebrate Norwich on the green June 5th and to hold our annual meeting at the Partridge House on June 15th. I am hopeful that this trend of in-person events can continue into the fall (See here for our Fall schedule of events)(LINK STILL TO COM>.
This year I was yet again humbled by the generosity of our members, despite the fact that we could not gather in person for our annual gala. Our online “non-event”- the Bathrobe Gala - raised an astounding $28,000, with a generous anonymous match taking our tally to $52,000. This ensures that we can continue awarding both post-secondary scholarships and community project grants through next year.
Speaking of which, this year we awarded $35,000 in post-secondary scholarships to Norwich students, including several scholarships at the $5,000 level. Given the rapidly rising costs of college and graduate school, these scholarships make a substantial difference in students’ lives. Likewise, the Community Project Grant Committee awarded just over $20,000 to 17 organizations, with an additional $7,000 kept in reserve for off-cycle grant requests.
When people ask what the Norwich Women’s Club does, I usually say that it spends the year raising money in order to give it away. This is made possible in part through levying dues on our members in order to cover all our operating expenses. This year our dues are going up for the first time in anyone’s memory - from $20 to $25 - to account for increases in our operating costs. You may have noticed that we’ve sent out fewer paper mailings than in previous years, but although this reduces our printing and postage costs, the club is paying more for online platforms including website hosting, email, online membership management and mailings, etc. As always, if you have any questions about this, please don’t hesitate to contact me or another member of the board!
Lastly, on a personal note, I want to thank the board and all the NWC members for a memorable term as the Women’s Club President. I greatly appreciate all the work the Women’s Club board and members have put into keeping the club not just afloat but thriving during these extraordinary times (I look forward to a time when I’ll never have the write that particular phrase again). I’m thrilled to welcome Annette Brown as our next president, and I hope that you’ll continue your membership and support of the Norwich Women’s Club in the coming year.
All the best,
Lily Trajman
NWC President 2019-2022
P.S. We could use your time and talent! We have volunteer roles that take skills which we know many of you may have – and which can be tailored to the time you have available. Just shoot us an email at norwichwomensclub@gmail.com to begin the conversation.