Part 3: A look back at our second single focus area, Breaking the Cycle of Female Poverty
From 2017–2024, our grantmaking revolved around the focus area Breaking the Cycle of Female Poverty, one of the goals identified in our 2016 Research Project Voices of Hope. When this focus area began, 40 percent of families with children living in poverty were female-headed households. Over the course of eight years of grantmaking, we awarded 91 grants to 46 nonprofits for a total of $5.2 million — extraordinary funding that made a difference in the lives of an estimated 22,000 women, girls, and families across the First Coast.
These organizations contributed to a comprehensive, integrated approach of the issue, including addressing mental and physical health issues, adequate education and job training, child care and transportation to hold a job, breaking isolation and learning to forge healthy relationships, and the ability to manage money in order to build economic stability.
Jan Healy, past WGA President and current Comms Co-Chair, recalled, “This grantmaking period for WGA was unusually challenging because of the onset of COVID-19 in 2020. Despite unpredictable setbacks, our grantees managed to find creative methods to continue to serve. We were able to modify our grant criteria to address their unexpected needs, and grantees greatly appreciated this flexible funding.”
We wrapped up this focus area and honored the amazing work of our grants teams at our recent Annual Meeting and want to thank each and every Member who contributed to this important work tackling the root causes of female poverty.