Bettendorf, Iowa – Instead of writing individual checks to their favorite nonprofit organizations, nine Quad-City area women have pooled their funds to increase the impact of their giving. This week, the Leading Ladies Giving Circle made a $1,000 grant to Frontier Community Support Program, a program working to enhance the lives of seriously and persistently mentally ill residents living in our community.

Frontier, a program of Vera French, offers assistance with daily living activities and provides money management, medication management and crisis intervention services. The Leading Ladies’ grant will purchase a new washer and dryer, and will enable clients to efficiently wash their clothes.

“Being a part of the Leading Ladies has provided a more ‘hands on’ experience to making charitable gifts,” said Linda Hollins, THE National Bank BSA officer. “The circle also allows me the opportunity to directly see the benefits of my giving back to the communities where I live and work.”

A giving circle is a new trend in philanthropy where women, or men, pool their resources - typically time, talent and money to promote social change. The Leading Ladies were established in June 2007 and have awarded grants totaling $3,000. The Boys and Girls Club of the Mississippi Valley and the Douglas Park Project were recipients of distributions last year.

Approximately every four months the giving circle makes grants to a charitable organization or program of choice. The Leading Ladies don’t just hand out money; they attend regular meeting and discuss the needs of the community. The group works by consensus and its goal is to make investments in worthy programs and achieve confidence in their giving capabilities.The Leading Ladies have committed to donating $300 annually for three years, or until $10,000 of their pooled funds have been distributed. The giving circle has awarded grants to the Boys and Girls Club of the Mississippi Valley and the Douglas Park Project.

Giving Circle members include:

• Jill Bjerke
• Judy Hilgenberg
• Linda Hollins
• Sarah Slavick-Kurtz
• Susan Skora
• Laura Swift
• Maggie Tinsman
• Laurel Walker
• Shawn Zambrano

Giving circles allow women to engage in meaningful activities that benefit their community. The Community Foundation of the Great River Bend is a proud sponsor and supporter of this program.