You remembered to move your clocks forward. Did you realize that Ojai Women’s Fund has moved forward also, starting its membership drive on March 1 and ending on May 31? We’re in the second month of the drive, and some of us have renewed our membership—Yea, to us! However, it appears the word hasn’t gotten out to the rest.
Why are we moving up the time for enrollment for the 2023 year?
Well, for two significant reasons. The most vital for the Grants Committee is to alleviate the worry and stress of finalizing the dollar amount to make good on our promises to our grant applicants. Before, with the former schedule, the membership drive would close just a week or so before voting took place. Ask any Grants Committee member about that fingernail biting time, and she will attest she gained a few more gray hairs from it.
Another good reason for the change relates to our American way of life: we all vacation in the summer, whether we board a plane, boat, or train or we staycation. One way or another, we are in a “Do not bother me” mental state. Nothing wrong with that. However, trying to run a membership drive during those vacation months results in the Membership Committee members turning into nags. Not a good look.
The Membership Committee has two planned events: On April 19, all Group Leaders are invited to an afternoon get-together to swap tips, tricks, and trade secrets on how to keep their giving groups informed, united, and eager to make their contribution count. Look for a slick-looking invite to come your way via email.
The second event is our annual “Bring a Friend” party on May 4. Let us clear up a misunderstanding: It’s great if you have a friend interested in Ojai Women’s Fund. We hope she’ll want to join us. However, we'd like for all our members to attend, bringing a friend is a bonus, so we are changing the name to "OWF Springfest."
We also encourage women who don’t know anyone in the organization, but want to learn more about OWF to come. The women in OWF have many positive attributes, but without a doubt, the most prominent of them is friendliness. And we think meeting outdoors in a month that isn’t sweltering hot (fingers crossed) is a big plus. So look for something from the Communications Committee in the next few weeks.
So, there you have it—we’re moving forward in so many ways, but for the Membership Committee, we all need to complete our re-enrollment between now and May 31. The process is being streamlined as you read this. We’re trying very hard to take out the confusion that some members experience when re-enrolling.
We’re looking forward to a new website that showcases OWF in a new and exciting format with up-to-the-minute OWF news and activities and, most importantly, a super-easy way to enroll.
Without you, Ojai Women’s Fund would not exist. Thank you! Gayle Whitaker, Co-Chair, Donna Freiermuth, Co-Chair