Women United affinity group of United Way of Knox County, Ohio
Newsletter July - December 2021
If you have not renewed your membership, please take moment to do so by clicking the Women United Dues link below and selecting the membership level of your choice.
Stay up-to-date with Women United events and activities by visiting our website and Facebook.
I hope you find this happy, healthy, and ready for a new year!
We at United Way certainly are. It has been so long since we’ve been able to get together and do what ladies do best, create opportunities, fund life-changing programming, and most importantly support one another!
We are planning three events so far in 2022. Please put them on your calendars and follow social media for all of the details as it gets closer.


Women in Recovery Luncheon
The Alcove, Thursday, February 10th at noon.
Call 740.397.5721 to reserve a seat.
It is always a wonderful, uplifting message from ladies who will inspire you.

Power of the Purse Returns
Friday, May 6,  2022, at Ariel Foundation Park-Schnormeier Event Center
Doors open at 5:00 P.M.
Dinner begins at 6:00 P.M.
The event begins at 7:00 P.M.
Join us at Ariel Foundation Park and enjoy plenty of room for this amazing event!
Call 740.397.5721 to reserve your tickets and/or table today!

Stuff the Bookbags
Thursday, August 11, 2022, at noon
Box Lunches will be provided
Ramser Activity Center
We will stuff 200 bookbags with all of the necessary items needed for elementary school children and deliver them to the Salvation Army for distribution.

2022 is going to be a great year and we can’t wait to get started!

Warmest Regards,
Kelly Brenneman
Women In Recovery Luncheon February 10, 2022
ROX
The fifth grade ROX group at Pleasant Street Elementary school completed Session 4 the week before Christmas. This module focused on empathy, and the girls participated in an activity that taught them about walking in someone else’s shoes. They drew an outline of their shoe on a piece of paper and wrote several statements in the shoe pertaining to them. These statements included things such as favorite activities, number of family members, favorite color, or even a class they struggle with. After passing the shoes around, they identified one thing they had in common with each girl and learned about differences they all had. The outcome of this session taught the group about what empathy means and how to apply it in their daily lives. The girls also received their ROX t-shirt and sunglasses!
This school year, United Way has been able to fund 13 Knox County ROX Programs across several ages and schools for the 2021-2022 school year. Currently there are groups at the Knox County Career Center, Danville Local Schools, Fredericktown Local Schools, Mount Vernon City Schools, and Centerburg Elementary School. This year, we were able to train several new social workers and school counselors, and we even added two additional programs at Fredericktown Elementary and Middle School that will begin in the spring!
Women United Grant
Thanks to the generosity of our members, Women United was able to fund The Period Care Kit Project which is an initiative designed to provide feminine hygiene products to students in the Knox County School System. The project was started due to the lack of financial assistance for young women to access feminine hygiene products, specifically students. This grant will specifically allow The Period Care Kit Project to provide kits to all of Mount Vernon City Schools. The project creates Care Kits with (at least) one month of period products and then works with school counselors to deliver the kits to the schools. The school counselors are able to identify students who may need a kit and notify them that they are available. The kits come in small bags and each kit contains 6 regular pads, 4 nighttime pads, 5 tampons, 10 panty liners, 4 hygiene wipes, and 3 reusable pads. In an upcoming Women United Luncheon, founder Julia Greenich-Suggs will speak to members further about this project and what it entails.
Local volunteerism is the power behind long-lasting change. United Way of Knox County has long prioritized volunteerism. Introduction of a new, dynamic online platform will amplify volunteer engagement and impact in Knox County. Nonprofits and other agencies in the area have already started posting their volunteer opportunities, special events, and engagement activities online in hopes of increasing the variety of ways for individuals to get involved. This web-based system, Volunteer Knox is administrated by United Way and available at www.volunteerknox.com.
Organizations and volunteers will utilize the tool for free under one United Way of Knox County Ohio, Inc. agreement. Contact United Way of Knox County Ohio, Inc. office for more information!