Women’s Giving Circle awards $25,000 in grants to 7 local nonprofits

As the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque’s Women’s Giving Circle celebrates its 20th year in 2026, it also is celebrating nonprofits that are meeting the needs of women and children across Eastern Iowa. 

During the Circle’s annual Gifts and Grants Ceremony on June 10, the members awarded $25,000 to seven organizations that support women fleeing domestic violence, children transitioning to foster homes, families in need of food, and other populations.

“Twenty years ago, you all said yes to an idea,” Women’s Giving Circle President Angela Gallogly told attendees. “You believed women could come together, pool their resources, learn about community needs, and make a lasting difference. Because of your vision and courage, we come together tonight not only as a giving circle but as a community of women committed to creating opportunity and hope for others.”

Although severe thunderstorms forced the Circle to relocate from the Dubuque Arboretum and Botanical Gardens to the Community Foundation’s McCarthy Center in the Roshek Building, the weather couldn’t dampen the spirits of the 60 and nonprofit representatives who received grants ranging from $1,500 to $5,000.

This year’s grantees are:

• Crescent Community Health Center, which will use its grant for its new lactation consultation services. This funding will allow up to five Crescent employees to become certified lactation consultants and support pregnant and postpartum mothers with breastfeeding.
• Monticello Ministerial Association, which will use its grant to help Jones County residents access brain health services. The association comprises local churches that provide assistance programs like a food pantry, rent and utility assistance, and brain health services.
• My G.E.A.R. Outreach, which will use its grant for its Duffels Full of Dignity program. When children are removed from households experiencing crisis and placed with foster families, My G.E.A.R. Outreach provides them with duffel bags filled with necessities, from hygiene products to blankets, to help meet their needs and provide comfort.
• Project Rooted, which will use its grant to increase access to healthy food through its Rooted Bucks program. Rooted Bucks, provides families participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program $30 to spend directly with local farmers at the Dubuque Farmers Market, along with educational materials that support healthy eating and food prep.
• Vision To Learn Iowa, which will support its work to bring vision screenings, eye exams and glasses to children at no cost to schools or families. Vision To Learn, which the Community Foundation brought to Iowa 10 years ago, helps children with uncorrected vision overcome a major barrier to learning: Lack of access to vision care.
• Waypoint Services for Women and Families, which will use its grant to support its fleeing assistance program. With this program, Waypoint provides assistance – such as car repairs, cell phone minutes and temporary shelter – that can help women and children escape dangerous home situations.

• YWCA Clinton Empowerment Center, which will use its grant for its Her Home Fund. This flexible funding allows for rapid response to prevent eviction, ensure safety and maintain stability by helping women overcome small barriers, such as support for rent or utilities, before they become crises.

   

In addition to awarding seven grants, the Women’s Giving Circle announced that the Red Basket Project will be the beneficiary of a service project this fall. 

“Sometimes we can respond to a need with our hands in addition to our checkbook,” Gallogly said.

The Red Basket Project provides free packages of period products, distributing them at local sites where someone might need them, assisting those who might not be able to afford these essential products.

For nonprofits, grants like those from the Women’s Giving Circle can mean the difference between growing a program or shutting it down, meeting a need or not.

“This grant means we can say ‘yes’ more often,” said Alexis Chadwick, domestic violence victim services program coordinator for Waypoint Services. “From the bottom of our hearts, thank you.”

Women’s Giving Circle grants are made possible by the Women’s Giving Circle Endowment Fund, which is supported through membership gifts. As with all endowments, these gifts are pooled together and invested. Annual distributions provide opportunities for grantmaking, and as the investments grow, so do the distributions.

To date, the Women’s Giving Circle has granted over $230,000 to nonprofits, and its endowment has grown to more than $611,000.

“Every gift matters; every membership renewal matters,” Gallogly said. “Because an endowment is more than a fund. It is a promise – a promise that women in this community will continue helping women and children not only today but for years and decades to come.”

To learn more about the Women’s Giving Circle, visit dbqfoundation.org/wgc or contact Natalie Ludovissy at natalie@dbqfoundation.org.