Yes, you’ve had a busy summer, a million things to do – but if you have not already registered to vote in November, do so before September 15 in order to receive a ballot. See our article

 

-FAWCO fundraising dinners are again on the agenda for the upcoming club year!  Keep an eye out for the next dinner coming soon.  If you would like to host a dinner please contact Kim.

- Interested in FAWCO’s involvement with the UN?  Why not become a Club-level UN/NGO Advocate?  The positions are open to members in any club who are interested in actively promoting the United Nations and its activities at the local level. Your role would be to organize local projects to support the UN, provide a direct communication link on the club level and to work with FAWCO Task Forces as they work to support the UN Millenium goals.  For more information please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

- FAWCO Foundation Friendship Quilt: "Celebrating Tradition"

Instructions for the 2011 quilt are now available. Moroccan zillij tiles in the colors of jewels will create a beautiful Moroccan mosaic of cloth. FAWCO would like each club to participate, as the money raised from the "Friendship Quilt" raffle will support our DGs and Awards.  If you would like to make a square please contact Kim, and please note that they need to be sent to FAWCO by Oct 10!

 

AWGLR would like to thank Lucy Laederich, FAWCO US Liaison, and John Fredenberger, International Tax Attorney, for coming to Montpellier to speak to our members about US Tax Issues.  It was a successful and very informative evening!

Did you know that as a member of a FAWCO club you are a member of a United Nations Non-Governmental Organization…and that FAWCO has special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC)?!  For the latest information on FAWCO’s involvement in UN activities go to www.fawco.org .

 

Congratulations AIWC Casablanca members in the Marathon des Sables

Congratulations to Gwen Dellar and Cynthia Smith-Ayed of the American International Women’s Club of Casablanca for having participated in Morrocco's Marathon des Sables, a seven day marathon race covering 250 kilometers in the Sahara Desert (April 4-10, 2010). On April 2nd Gwen and Cynthia (who is organizing the 2011 FAWCO Conference in Marrakech) trekked into the desert, and on April 4th they embarked on the 25th Marathon des Sables. The race is an unbelievable test of endurance where participants carry their food and sleeping bags on their backs as race sponsors provide only water. Cynthia (D22) and Gwen (D21) ran on behalf of The FAWCO Foundation to help raise funds for the Member’s Skills Enhancement Award. The Foundation offers this Award to FAWCO club members who, “are acquiring new skills or enhancing existing ones”.  The recipient may study in any country.  They proudly featured a FAWCO Foundation patch that was specially made for the event.

To read all about their experience, go to the Foundation website at

www.fawcofoundation.org where you can also see photos and check out their blog. You can also see TV5Monde coverage of Gwen’s dramatic last stage and rescue at

http://www.tv5.org/TV5Site/publication/galerie-350-1-25eme_Sultan_Marathon_des_sables.htm.

In-house dinners

We are still looking for hostesses for our in-house dinners! Too busy this spring? What about hosting a dinner this summer? Too busy this summer? What hosting a dinner in the fall? To sign up to host a dinner or to ask any questions you may have about this FUNdraiser, please contact Kim.

FAWCO and Water...Changing the flow
At the FAWCO conference the new Target Program was introduced. Its goal was to focus efforts on one issue in order to really make an impact. At the conference in Boston the Target Issue was announced…WATER.

Now, some of you may ask...why Water? Well, take a look at these recent headlines:

"The needs of thousands of children are vast and urgent. They must have access to clean water, shelter..."
"As always in the developing world, the first priority will be clean water. With drinking water distribution systems destroyed - water supplies could quickly become contaminated..."
These quotes all refer to different natural or man-made catastrophes and what stands out is that one of the first cries...is for water. There are many problems connected with the lack of clean water, but most of these are not associated with a catastrophe at all, but are part of daily existence. Water problems affect half of humanity and 884 million people lack access to safe water supplies - that's approximately one in eight people! Without food a person can live for weeks, but without water you can expect to live only a few days. In terms of being essential for life - water is the top priority! Fortunately, when you focus on solving water problems, you automatically work on many other global problems, such as education, health and the empowerment of women. This strong link between Water and other global problems makes Water an excellent Target focus!

So what's next?

Choosing the specific organization FAWCO will support is the next step. The selection of the Bull's-eye Organization & Project will follow the same sort of submission procedure as the Target issue did. Anyone can submit a project for consideration as the Bull's-eye and hopefully FAWCO clubs and Committees will be active in this phase. When looking at possible projects, keep in mind that it should be SMARTS: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time limited & Sustainable. The Bull's-eye submission form and more information on criteria can be found on the Foundation website. The following timeline is in place for this procedure:

1.     March 20 - June 30: Bull's-eye submission period
2.     September 1: announcement of 3 finalists
3.     October 15: deadline for clubs to vote for the Bull's-eye
4.     November 1: announcement of Bull's-eye winner!

While increasing the sustainable access to safe drinking water is the issue, we hope the Bulls-eye project chosen will utilize a multi-disciplinary approach to water problems. This will start a ripple effect, resulting in many other positive changes for education and health! We invite you to join in and help...Together we can work through FAWCO to change the flow!

 

18 May 2010.