The 18^th annual Women’s Fund Luncheon on Sept. 6 promises to be another exciting and informative day for women and men in the Fox Valley.

The sold-out event starts at 11:25 a.m. at the Red Lion Paper Valley Hotel in downtown Appleton.

A $5,000 grant from the Community Foundation’s Bright Idea Fund will support this year’s luncheon.

Keynote speaker Major General Marcia Anderson (U. S. Army Retired) will speak to an audience of more than 1,000 community members about leadership and her personal story as the first African-American woman to achieve the federally recognized rank of major general in the United States Army, United States Army Reserve or United States Army National Guard.

Becky Boulanger

“The Women’s Fund has a long history of providing a platform for accomplished women with interesting stories to inspire our audience,” said Executive Director Becky Boulanger. “We also have a long history as part of the Community Foundation family. We started as a field of interest fund almost 25 years ago, and even though we became a supporting organization in 2005, that relationship has remained strong.”

Anderson was born in Beloit and grew up in E. St. Louis. Upon graduation from Creighton University, she was commissioned through the Reserve Officer Training program. As Deputy Chief, Army Reserve, she served full-time for three years at the Pentagon and had oversight for an $8 billion budget and more than 220,000 soldiers and civilians.

She currently serves as the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court, Western District of Wisconsin, located in Madison, and is a member of the Green Bay Packers Board of Directors.

“While our luncheon is the most significant source of income for the Women’s Fund, we don’t want to lose sight of the important education opportunity gathering an audience of 1,000 provides to us,” Boulanger said. “We have a responsibility to help our community better understand how women and girls are faring locally and what we all can do to help and encourage them.”

Community members can attend a free Issue Spotlight panel discussion the morning of the event. This year’s panel will focus on the “Starting Point 2.0” collaboration between the Women’s Fund, Fox Valley Technical College and B.A.B.E.S. Inc. Child Abuse Prevention Program. Starting Point 2.0 uses a two-generational approach to help young single mothers and their families move from poverty to independence. To date, 14 women and 17 pre-school age children have graduated from the program.

For more information about the 2018 Women’s Fund Luncheon and Issue Spotlight visit womensfundfvr.org or call 920-702-7616.

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Check out our current Bright Idea Fund results from 2018 – 2019!
See how our Bright Idea Fund impacted our community last year.