YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS MAKE DREAMS POSSIBLE
Slide #1
Soroptimists are in the dream business. We have it within our power to help
women and girls take control of their lives and live their dreams. Every day,
Soroptimists in our 1,300 plus clubs in 19 countries and territories are working
hard to carry out our mission in their local communities. But we cannot fail to
help women and girls beyond our own community. Your contributions to SIA can
make a world of difference for disadvantaged women and girls.
Slide #2
SIA programs are the face of our organization. They define us collectively and
demonstrate our mission to the world. They effect fundamental change for
women through economic empowerment, ending violence, and advancing the
status of women and girls.
SLIDE# 3
When an individual member, club or region contributes to SIA, they support the
creation, implementation and renewal of our federation’s programs: the
1
Women’s Opportunity Awards, Violet Richardson Award, and Soroptimist Club
Grants for Women and Girls. Their dollars can also support Soroptimist Project
Matching, Soroptimist Disaster Grants for Women and Girls, STOP Trafficking and
our Domestic Violence programs.
Slide #4
It is important to demonstrate to our donors and the public at large that our
efforts to improve the lives of women and girls really do make a difference. That’s
why we measure program outcomes at the federation level. It is done annually by
surveying region and federation level recipients.
Slide # 5
Here’s what our 2007-2008 Women’s Opportunity Awards respondents told us
three years after receiving the award:
 97% reported an increased sense of self-esteem and self-confidence.
 88% reported serving as a role model for their dependents.
 80% reported an improved standard of living for themselves and their
dependents.
 69% reported earning an educational degree/certification.
2
 54% reported securing higher-paying employment despite a difficult global
economy.
Slide #6
The 2010-2011 Violet Richardson Award outcome measures tell us:
 100% are still volunteering.
 86% reported the award increased their self-confidence.
 43% reported their volunteer work is focused on women and girls.
Slide #7
Our 2010-2011 Soroptimist Club Grants for Women and Girls tell us that:
 32 clubs in six countries completed grant projects totaling a little over
$177,000 for new or ongoing projects
 5,124 women and girls were given tools and resources to help them live
free from violence; gained access to educational opportunities and
healthcare, or were provided opportunities for economic advancement.
 Clubs reported that 97% of the grant projects met their stated objectives.
3
SLIDE #8
While not all of our collective efforts are being measured, we do know that
countless lives are being changed by our other federation programs including
STOP Trafficking and Domestic Violence efforts, Soroptimist Project Matching and
Soroptimist Disaster Grants.
But as you know, there is more to our work than statistical measures. There are
many, many personal stories about the profound effect SIA’s work has on the
women we serve. A 2007-2008 Women’s Opportunity Award recipient from Sierra
Nevada Region described it this way:
“The award immediately boosted my self-confidence and self-esteem. To me, the
award had highlighted my challenges and my triumphs. I had overcome adversity,
I had been resilient, and I had done it with character and perseverance. I am
confident, I believe in myself and I know I will succeed. I can wholeheartedly
thank the Soroptimist Women’s Opportunity Award for jumpstarting that
ambition.”
4
Slide #9
Look at what we are accomplishing together! You can read more about the
impact of our work in SIA’s beautiful Annual Report available on the SIA website.
We hope you refer to this report often because it tells the Soroptimist story in a
compelling way and is a valuable tool to use when answering the question “Just
what do Soroptimists do?”
Slide #10
But let’s answer the question, just where do the donations I give to SIA go?
Slide #10a
Of the almost $1.6 million raised from our very generous members, clubs and
friends,
Slide #10b
eighty one cents of every contribution dollar is for programs.
Slide #10c
The other 19 cents covers the costs for SIA to raise funds, which include expenses
associated with the federal and state laws required of fundraising organizations,
accounting for the flow of funds, supporting audits, IRS filings, regular financial
reports, donor acknowledgements, and managing fundraising campaigns.
5
Slide #11
You should know that no contributions pay for administration, governance or
member services expenses.* That’s right, these expenses are covered by member
dues, capital gains, and investment and dividend income.
Slide #12
Throughout this year, you will hear more about Shaping the Future of Soroptimist
through Increased Collective Impact. SIA’s strategic direction has an overarching
goal of increasing collective impact in order to meet our mission of helping
women and girls.
Slide #13
Collective impact is a collective effort of SIA’s clubs, districts, regions, board and
staff as we work:
 to improve the lives of women and girls in our local communities and
throughout the world,
6
 using measurable evidence to indicate the level of sustainable
improvement made
 for increasing the socio-economic status of the Women’s Opportunity
Award recipients
 to advance SIA’s recognition as an effective global women’s organization,
and
 attract more resources to further increase our organization-wide impact in
improving the lives of women and girls.
Slide #14
I’m sure you have heard the statement that Soroptimist is a well-kept secret. Few
people know who we are and what we do. Increasing our collective impact is
going to change that.
Slide #15
For Soroptimist to successfully Increase Our Collective Impact, we must focus our
efforts and reserve our resources in support of our own mission and goals. How
will we be able to effectively increase our collective impact if we dilute our
strength of focus and resources by contributing to causes other than our own?
7
Many members serve on community boards – their local hospitals, the cancer
organizations, the local domestic violence shelter. And when they do, they also
participate in fundraising for those organizations in addition to Soroptimist. Often
their proven ability to raise funds for Soroptimist is part of the reason they were
asked to join that board. Perhaps as a result of their involvement, their
Soroptimist club includes that organization as a part of its local giving.
But those organizations probably don’t give money to Soroptimist, do they?
What those organizations have learned is to make THEIR mission a priority. We
need to do the same within Soroptimist!
Slide #16
OUR mission is critical in today’s world – in fact it’s more important than ever
before because in every country in the world—women and girls still face
enormous obstacles because of their gender.
8
Slide #17
The SIA website contains a section called Why Women and Girls that outlines
some of the gender challenges, such as the fact that one in three women have
been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in their lifetimes; 60 percent
of the working poor are women; two-thirds of the world’s illiterate adults are
women; and by age 18, girls have received about 4.4 years less education than
boys.
There is much work to be done and each of us – in our clubs and individually need to make Soroptimist a priority if we are to be effective in meeting our
mission and helping the women and girls who are depending on us.
Slide #18
So - how do we begin? We begin by all clubs participating in OUR Women’s
Opportunity Awards to increase OUR collective impact. And by making SIA
programs your cause of choice … to help women and girls in OUR 19 countries
and territories. You can do this in two ways: through your personal contributions
to Laurel Society and by encouraging your club to participate in the Club Giving
President’s Challenge.
9
Slide #19
What is the President’s Challenge for Club Giving?
Slide #19a
2012-2013 SIA President Raquel Arreola Ruiz is challenging EVERY club – 100
percent of all clubs – to give at least 10 percent of the funds they raise locally to
support the programs that we—clubs, regions and the federation— agree to carry
out together. By doing so, we prove to ourselves and to prospective donors that
we, the members of SIA, are invested in our programs both locally and globally,
and that together we can do great things.
Slide #20
By investing in and growing the programs we have established, and measuring
our program outcomes for the social change we affect , we are able to
demonstrate, all together, the return on investment a contribution to SIA will
make. It’s called social investing and it capitalizes on our united focus for
improving the lives of women and girls.
10
Slide #21
Clubs are not being asked to go out and raise more money. The challenge is to
REALLOCATE just a small portion of the funds they raise locally to SIA. By
reallocating at least 10% of the funds a club raises to Club Giving, clubs are
increasing Soroptimist’s collective impact and advancing our recognition for
making necessary social change.
By giving a little more, clubs can help Soroptimist reach many more women and
girls.
Slide #22
This is not just a matter of big clubs giving big gifts. It means every club moving
SOROPTIMIST up on their own giving list. There is no better way for a small club
to have a BIG impact than by making Soroptimist a giving priority. By giving in this
way, a club allows its funds to be multiplied along with the gifts of hundreds of
other clubs.
11
Slide #23
Clubs are encouraged to report whether their Club Giving contribution is at least
10% of the club’s funds raised locally and what percent of the rest of their funds
raised are used for education related programs. By sharing this information with
headquarters SIA will be able to report on the total funds spent on programs that
empower women and girls to improve their socio-economic status through
education. There is now a check box on the financial transaction form and on the
Club Award form for clubs to indicate that their gift is at least 10% of their funds
raised.
Slide #24
Information about the President’s Challenge for Club Giving is on SIA’s website in
the member’s section under Fundraising. The document describes the President’s
Challenge for Club Giving and outlines the benefits to the clubs for their
participation. There are benefits for each recognition level. And while those
incentives are nice, the important thing to remember is – Club Giving
contributions are the fuel that fires OUR programs - enabling women and girls to
achieve social and economic empowerment.
12
Slide #25
So I am asking you to please have your club support President Raquel’s Challenge
for Club Giving by putting Soroptimist in the top spot for your club’s charity of
choice. Together we can achieve 100% of clubs giving at least 10% of their funds
raised and significantly increase the number of women and girls we can help
through our programs.
Slide #26
There is an anonymous saying that reads:
Slide #26a
“Many small people, in many small places, doing many small things, can alter the
face of the world.”
Your volunteer service and your contributions are vital to improving the lives of
women and girls through Soroptimist programs. Together we are empowering –
and will continue to empower - women and girls to live full and productive lives
and live their dreams. After all, we are in the business of making dreams come
true.
13
*Presenter’s Note:
SIA’s definition of administration, governance and member services:
 Administration is what is required to keep the corporate status of SIA
functioning.
 Governance includes all expenses related to the Board of Directors,
Fundraising Council, governors and other region leadership.
 Member services includes expenses related to the support of member
clubs, publication of the magazine Best for Women, public relations
activities, development of club resources, the SIA websites, and expenses
for Soroptimist International. It’s what is spent to serve members so they
can do their work in support of our mission.
14