Sierra Nevada Region E-Blast
Soroptimist International

E-Blast Digest

December 1st, 2024

Hello Soroptimist Int'l,


Please take the time to read this week's E-Blast so you can stay up-to-date on happenings around the Region and Federation.


NOTE: When you see at the bottom of this eblast "message clipped view entire message" click on it to see the complete eblast.

December

03 - Giving Tuesday

03 - Human Rights Day: Soroptimist International Foundation Day Appeal

11 - Electronic ballot on 2024 Proposed Amendments to SIA Bylaws closes at 11:59 p.m.

(EST)



Visit our Website
Like us on Facebook
Governor Stacey's Message


Hello Sierra Nevada Region Members, Friends and Family!

As we gather around the table this Thanksgiving, my heart is full of gratitude for

you—this amazing community of dreamers, doers, and change-makers.

Each of you brings something truly special to the world. Whether you are sharing your gifts with fellow club members, creating meaningful products, or inspiring others through

your unique passion, I see you. I see your dedication, your resilience, and the light you

shine for others.


This time of year, it’s easy to focus on the joy—the celebrations, the laughter, and the

moments of connection. And while those are so important, I want to take a moment to

acknowledge the harder times too.

The challenges we face—those moments that feel heavy, uncomfortable, or even

"sucky"— are part of what shapes us. Like the rain that nourishes the earth, these

moments help us grow, evolve, and deepen our purpose. When we embrace the suck,

we allow ourselves to fully live in the present, finding gratitude not just for the wins but

for the lessons as well.

As you move through this Thanksgiving weekend, I hope you’ll take time to reflect on all

that you’ve accomplished, the people you’ve touched, and the growth you’ve

experienced this year. And if you find yourself overwhelmed, remember these three

small but powerful actions you can take to stay connected and engaged with your

community:


1. Share a Gratitude Post: Take a moment to reflect on something or someone

that’s brought you joy this year. Share it with your audience—gratitude is contagious

and inspires connection.

2. Respond with Love: Whether it’s a comment on social media or a reply to an

email, take an extra moment to respond with warmth and kindness. It’s a simple way to

nurture the relationships you’ve worked so hard to build.

 3. Be Present in Your DMs: Spend a little time checking in with your social media

inbox. A quick “thank you for your support” or “how are you doing?” message can go a

long way in creating deeper relationships.


Remember, showing up for your audience doesn’t have to mean doing it all. Sometimes,

the smallest gestures are the ones that make the biggest impact.

From my family to yours, I want to wish you a Thanksgiving filled with love, light, and

connection. Thank you for being part of this incredible community and for allowing me to

support you in your journey. I am so deeply grateful for you all.

Yours in Soroptimists, Stacey Jensen



Stacey Jensen

Sierra Nevada Region Governor 2024-2026

Dear fantastic members of the Sierra Nevada Region,



After having spent special time with family and friends this past week, I am reminded again of how much I treasure all of you and what you do for women and girls. I still want to "shout it from the rooftops" how impactful the work we all do is.


Please take time for yourselves and those around you. You and they are unique and precious.


I look forward to the New Year and new adventures! More will be revealed in future eblasts!


Gratefully in service,

Kathy

 


Kathy Dunbar

Governor Elect 

   

SIA President Ginger Cole gives thanks for each and every Soroptimist during this season of hope and gratitude.

In 2023-2024…

  • 2,250+ Live Your Dream Awards were given
  • 24,000 girls reached through the Dream It, Be It program
  • Nearly 8,500 women and girls supported through Big Goal Accelerator Projects
  • Nearly 35,000 women and girls were impacted because of YOU!


INFORMATION ON Giving Tuesday, December 3, 2024: 

SIA’s Giving Tuesday and year-end campaign is underway! Help us raise $25,000 by 2025 to empower 2,500 women through the Live Your Dream Awards. Thanks to a generous matching gift from Sherry Luz (Desert Coast Region), Ann Rutledge (Peaks to Plains Region) and Best Access Doors, your donation will go twice as far!



 Give now or start your online fundraiser to help us reach our Giving Tuesday goal!

SIA #TechTalks

Need help paying dues? Check out your Learning Hub!

Reminder: The member portal is only open to club presidents, treasurers and admins as we move through the new due's renewal process. We will likely send the next round of invites in fall 2024. Don’t forget, you can still access member resources from the website at any time!


Top Six Burning Questions from Club Leaders:

1. I’m a club officer: where is my portal invite? How do I log-in?

2. How do I filter my roster view to only see ACTIVE members?

3. How do I add new club officers? Do they automatically get a portal invite?

4. When generating my invoice, I don’t see the button to pay, what do I do next?

5. Do I still need my six-digit club ID # to log in to the member portal?

6. How can I make a Club Giving donation outside of paying our dues invoice?


Learn More!

Holiday Sale!

Celebrate the season with up to 40% off select items in our year-end Soroptimist Store

sale! Perfect for gifting to club members, friends or even yourself—order by December

12 (December 10 for international orders) to ensure delivery before the holidays.

Key Messages

Read our new FY2024-2025 Key Messages, intended to help you understand and

speak confidently about the direction our organization is heading.


 


Nominations and Elections News

The Simply Voting electronic ballot platform for SIA Board of Directors is now open in

the following Electoral Areas and regions. The ballot system closes on January 2.

SIA Program Updates

Save the Date



Want to learn more about trauma-informed practices and

how to best support program participants who have

experienced trauma? Elaine Miller-Karas, author, social

worker and co-founder of Trauma Resource, will join SIA’s

Program Team for a live webinar on Wednesday, February

19, at 8 p.m. (ET). This virtual event will feature

simultaneous interpretation in all our languages and will be

recorded for later viewing.



Video Series: Treasurer Workshop

Presenting: Knock It Out of the Park as Treasurer by SNR Treasurer Evie Wright. All the information you could ever want or need to ensure success as treasurer. Links in the presentation download are live to give you a head start to be finding all the answers you need. 




Enjoy this video series with thanks to all our presenters. 


Danielle Kennedy, Public Awareness Chair 2024-2026

"Live your Dream" Club Chair Video


The Live Your Dream Awards international deadline of November 15th has passed, and the online application system is now closed to new applications. 


Your club is welcome to accept PDF applications after the November 15 deadline when the application system closes to new applications. Please incorporate the PDF application with your judging process. It cannot be added to the application system. If a PDF application is selected as a recipient, you will report it on the online club reporting form and upload the application/references if it is your club's top recipient. 

IMPORTANT: The application system for club chairs will remain open until spring 2025! During this time, you can access applications submitted to your account, request updates, and download applications to save.


So, what’s next? Review your applications and, if needed, request updates—all in the application system!


Use our new Eligibility Processing Guidelines and Canned Responses for Incomplete Applications to help you review the applications.


***If you have questions about the application, don’t forget that you can mark it as incomplete to request updates. This will unlock the woman’s application for her to edit and remove the application from your account until she re-submits! ***


Applicants will be able to resubmit after the November 15th deadline. Be sure to give them a new deadline to resubmit their updated application.

REMINDER ABOUT REFERENCES: Only one reference is now required instead of two. Applicants might request two references but submit after only one recommendation has been submitted. If this happens, then you will see a blank recommendation form. The only part of the recommendation form that will be filled out is the reference’s name and email address.

 You are welcome to encourage the applicant to follow up for their second reference, but you cannot require a second reference. The second reference can still submit their recommendation form after the applicant has submitted their application. If you’ve communicated about this, be sure to check for this! You might have to download the application again to include the second reference. 

How can we share an application(s) with another club?

Please review the application for eligibility and mark the application as Complete and Ready to judge in the Confirm Application Eligibility stage

When the application is in the Indicate Your Club’s Decision stage, you can request to share the application with another club. Please remember that the other club must have agreed to accept this application!

Have the below information ready, because you will need to include this in the request:

-Receiving club name and club number

-Receiving club chair's name and email address 



If your club didn’t receive any applications on the application system, here are a few options to ensure you can still participate in the Live Your Dream Awards:

  1. Contact your Region Chair to see if any other clubs in the area have applications, they’re willing to share at liveyourdream@soroptimistsnr.org 
  2. Request non-local applications from SIA headquarters by completing this form: Non-local Application Request Form
  3. If you received local applications outside of the Online Application System, that's great! We’re glad you have applications to review.


If you did receive applications, watch this video for how to review applications on the application system.


Good luck and have fun,

Billie



Billie Araiza

Live Your Dream Awards

Sierra Nevada Region Coordinator

2024-2026 Biennium

Sierra Nevada Region

Soroptimist International of the Americas

SI Bidwell Rancho

SI Elk Grove

SI Grass Valley

  • Zero Waste Club Kit flyer

SI Greater Davis

SI Greater Las Vegas

  • Sweet Fantasy 2025 Flyer

SI Greater Sacramento

SI Lincoln

SI Loomis Basin

Si Mineral County

  • Shoe Drive flyer (10/21-12/21)
  • Planet Green Recycle flyer

SI Pahrump Valley

  • Christmas for Seniors flyer (10/11-12/11)
  • Voices of Change flyer (01/11)

SI Rancho Cordova/GR

  • Print cartridge recycling flyer
  • e-waste recycling flyer
  • Tru-Earth Eco-products flyer
  • Human Trafficking Education Program flyer

SI South Sacramento

  • "Show You're a Soroptimist" flyer


SI Bidwell Rancho

SI Chico

SI Davis

SI Elk Grove

SI Folsom/EDH

SI Grass Valley

  • Dec 2024

SI Lincoln

SI Loomis Basin

Find out what's happening with other SI Clubs in our region.

SI Metro Sac

SI Pahrump Valley

SI Rancho Cordova/ Gold River

SI Sacramento

SI Tahoe Sierra

SI Truckee Donner

SI Truckee Meadows

SI Woodland

Facebook  Instagram  YouTube  Web  Email
E-Blast Submission Guidelines

E-Blasts go out the 1st and 15th of each month. Email your articles, flyers or links to blastsnr@soroptimistsnr.org by the 27th of the month for E-Blast going out on the 1st, and by the 12th of the month for the E-Blast going out on the 15th. Please note the old Gmail account is no longer active.

A few pointers and notes for a successful E-Blast submission:

  • Submissions should use either Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat or can be typed into an email that I can copy and paste into the E-Blast
  • You may send me a Web Link. Ensure the link you send me works
  • Files can be no larger than 5.0mb. Constant Contact can’t handle it


I will reply that I received your submission within 48 hours. If you don’t receive my confirmation, check with me. Sometimes I'm in my garden or traveling or quilting.


Babette Maiss

SNR Eblast Coordinator