Caring, Community, Connections
Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle efforts are focused on helping in the local community, reaching and assisting women, children, and their families in need.
The members and patrons of Giving Hope have granted more than $100,000 to local organizations that serve women and families in need since its inception in 2006.
Grants will only be awarded to qualifying 501(c)3 organizations serving women and children in Western Wayne County.
If you have questions with application process please contact Beth at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 734-495-1200.
Click here to fill out the application
Giving Hope Grant Making Principles:
- To benefit women and their families.
- To encourage programs which are collaborative, comprehensive and have the potential to be continuous.
- To encourage leveraging and matching grant opportunities from multiple funders.
- To support "seed" money opportunities for innovative projects.
- To encourage the self-sufficiency and well-being of women and their families.
Applicant Organization Criteria:
- Must be a nonprofit 501(c)3 with a current State of Michigan license to solicit, if applicable.
- Must meet the mission of Giving Hope.
- Must have a specific project or program for which the funding is being requested.
- Must have clear objectives.
What Giving Hope Will (Generally) Not Fund:
While Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle remains flexible in trying to meet community needs, the following are areas that will generally not be considered for funding at this time:
- Routine operating expenses
- Travel, tours or trips
- Endowment campaigns
- Special fundraising events and sponsorships
- Organizations that do not provide services to the greater Canton and Plymouth, Michigan area
- Religious organizations for religious purposes or political organizations
- Existing obligations or debts/liabilities
- Individuals
- Issues that divide us, not unite us
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Hello Ladies of Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle,
I'd like to thank each of you for making 2022 one of the most successful years for Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle! We collected over $5600 in donations for our selected charities. We also donated four bags and 40 sets of pajamas to the Plymouth-Canton Foster Care Closet, and gave $225 in gift cards to the Rainbow Connection! Our recently re-established Emergency Granting Fund received $625 in funds, part of which came from our Giving Tuesday collection efforts. And in June Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle received $1680 from the Canton Chamber golf outing ball drop event. The sum of all these donations brings our collective generosity to just over $8000 to give back to local community needs. Additionally, Giving Hope made three grants totaling $13,000. And equally as significant, we welcomed NINE new members! What outstanding accomplishments across the board - well done one and all!
I'm sure we all are grateful that we learned more about new needs in our community, like the Plymouth-Canton Foster Care Closet, Seedlings Braille Books for Children, Lead Like a Girl, and the Rainbow Connection, and wow, did we respond generously! I hope you feel as I do, that we had fun events and made new acquaintances all while doing what we do best: Giving Hope. Things really do not get better than that! It's that strong commitment to Giving Hope that allows our organization to do so much good and fulfill our mission of growing the community of women philanthropists. My sincere gratitude for your support and participation. I have every expectation that 2023 will be just as full of fun, Hope and Giving!
As we acknowledge that commitment and success, I need to invite members once again to come forward and join the Advisory Board. Our next meeting is Wednesday, January 18th. My term was set to end now; however, I am willing to remain as Chairwoman one additional year if no one else comes forward to take on this role. Dian Slavens, our current Vice Chair, needs to relinquish that position, but will complete her term as a member at large on the board. This turn of events makes for an unexpected opportunity. As Vice Chair, you can learn about the Chairwoman position firsthand throughout the next year and then step with confidence into the Chairwoman position for 2024. I hope one of you will take this opportunity to get involved and help lead this great group of ladies. Sharon Filips, our Membership Committee Chair, and Denise Murray, our Treasurer, have both agreed to extend their term for another year as well. All of us stepped up when there was a need and I am hoping that at least four ladies would do the same now. Joining the Advisory Board is a good way to help influence the types of activities and charities we support throughout the year and meet new friends. The guidelines and committee description documents will supply you with answers and should a swage any fears about being an Advisory Board Member. Please, I am asking each one of you sincerely, to review the documents and then join the Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle leadership team. When you decide, please contact me or any board member to volunteer and we will see you in January!
Lastly, I want to thank the Advisory Board members for their support and efforts to help me do my best for the Circle. This wonderful group of ladies truly share the responsibilities of keeping things moving forward smoothly and make being a part of our Circle so rewarding. And my sincere thanks again to all of you members for doing your part to keep Giving Hope a vibrant organization that is able to continue our charitable mission. Remember: It's a Girl thing, It's a Giving thing, It's a Good thing!
Wishing everyone and their families a very happy, healthy, safe, and fun-filled holiday season!
Best wishes for a wonderful new year!
Linda J. Demmer
Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle
Advisory Board Chairwoman
Giving Hope Operating Guidelines for the Members and Giving Hope descriptions for Chair and Committee positions.
Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle was founded in 2006. At that time, a group of local women philanthropists came together to establish the organization and encourage other women to join in philanthropic giving. Their early efforts were focused on helping in the local community, reaching and assisting women, children, and their families in need. For over 15 years, Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle has been accomplishing that objective and continues to develop women's philanthropy and meet needs through fundraising and grant making.
The Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle focuses on educating its members about local needs and providing them opportunities to Give to those causes. All members are welcomed and encouraged to get involved either on the Advisory Board or on the various committees.Giving Hope's Advisory Board meets quarterly.
Annual Fall Business Meeting Event
Wednesday, October 12th 6:30 – 9:00 pm
@ Rocky’s of Northville
41122 Seven Mile Rd, Northville
Supporting Lead Like a Girl, a mentoring program for young women ages 11-15.
Hello Giving Hope, Women’s Giving Circle members!
I am happy to announce that Giving Hope will receive a check for $1680 from the Canton Chamber of Commerce. This money was ½ of the total proceeds earned by the Golf Ball drop sales which took place at the Canton Chamber golf outing May 20th and will go into our endowment fund.
Many thanks to Maureen Visser and Noel Bittinger who manned the golf ball sales table all day!! Jane Kerjes and I, along with GH members Renee DiPonio and Jaya Wilson played in the outing representing Giving Hope.
It was a wonderful day to share Giving Hope, Women’s Giving Circle with the community!!
Best wishes and looking forward to seeing everyone at our Summer Social June 22nd!
Linda Demmer Advisory Board Chair
Hello Giving Hope Ladies,
The ladies of Giving Hope are so generous! So proud of all our ladies who donated monetarily as well as donating the spring & summer PJ's and stuffed animals to the Michigan Foster Care Closet of Plymouth. Giving Hope was able to send MFCC a check for $1400 which will be used to purchase more PJ's. We were able to take over 4 large bags of donations! About 40 more pairs of PJ's were donated through the Amazon wishlist and sent directly to MFC.
The Michigan Foster Care Closet is a 501(c)3 non-profit staffed by 100% volunteers. No one gets paid, so all of the monetary donations go directly to helping foster children & foster families. They service 65-75 individual children a month all free of charge. Clothing children with confidence and self-esteem, is what they strive for with every child that walks through their doors. They are very intentional with their help and support the whole foster family. If you are interested in volunteering at MFCC, please call Rachael Secord at (734) 664-4089. Rachael operates the MFCC in Plymouth out of the 2500 sq ft basement of her home, which is open 24/7! Their website is michiganfostercarecloset.org. You can also follow them on Facebook-Michigan Foster Care Closet-Plymouth and click follow. There are many opportunities to donate & volunteer.
We had 17 ladies join us on Zoom for our March 9th "Pajama Party" supporting Michigan Foster Care Closet in Plymouth. Rachael Secord, the president of MFCC spoke to us about the stressful situations that children experience when they are removed from their home. We also had some fun listening to the Canton/Denton ghost story with Mad Libs & playing a Kahoot.com trivia game. A Big Thank you to Karen Hanchett. Thank you to Sharon Flips for being a porch collection drop off, drawing & delivering our spa bag winner. Thank you to Becky Hurst who helped deliver the porch collections to MFCC. Thank you to Denise for the wonderful Facebook post. Thankful to be part of helping foster children in our area by supporting Michigan Foster Care Closet.
Looking forward to our summer social event on June22 in-person! Giving Hope will be supporting Seedlings, Braile Books for Children.
Raeann Neil
Special Events Chair
Hello, Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle member! Here is the next in our selection of significant philanthropic women for your reading and learning pleasure! What a wonderful legacy of Giving as women we share! Wishing you a wonderful week!
Betty Ford was chosen for her strength and bravery. She was not afraid to speak out about issues many women faced yet were afraid to talk about. Betty was candid about women’s rights and health issues, speaking out about her diagnosis with breast cancer and encouraging women to get yearly exams. Outspoken about drug and alcohol abuse and the importance seeking help and treatment. Her voice helped so many women and families.
Betty Ford
A groundbreaking First Lady, Betty Ford is often remembered for her candor in addressing the controversial issues of her time.
Elizabeth Anne “Betty” Bloomer was born in Chicago and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan. After graduating from Central High School, she went on to study modern dance at Bennington School of the Dance.
Betty returned to Michigan in 1941 and became a fashion coordinator for a department store. During this time, she continued to pursue her love of dance by starting her own performance group and teaching dance to handicapped children.
Betty became the First Lady when husband Gerald Ford became the 38th President of the United States. A few months later, Ford was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a radical mastectomy. Rather than suppressing the diagnosis, she courageously shared her story and inspired countless women across the nation to get breast examinations. During her tenure as First Lady, Ford continued to be an outspoken advocate of women’s rights, addressing public issues like the Equal Rights Amendment and increasing the number of women appointed to senior government posts.
After the Presidency 1976 Betty moved her family to Rancho Mirage, California. In 1978, following a family intervention, Ford underwent successful treatment for addiction to alcohol and prescription drugs. She again used her personal story to raise public awareness of addiction, and in 1982, she co-founded the Betty Ford Center to treat victims of alcohol and chemical dependency.
Hello, Giving Hope, Women's Giving Circle member! Here is the next in our selection of significant philanthropic women for your reading and learning pleasure! What a wonderful legacy of Giving as women we share! Wishing you a wonderful week!
Cora Reynolds Anderson (1882 -1950) was the first woman elected to the Michigan House of Representatives, serving one term from 1925 to 1926. She is also believed to be the only Native American woman elected to the Michigan House or Senate.
While in the House of Representatives, Anderson concentrated on public welfare issues and chaired the Industrial Home for Girls Committee. She was particularly interested in public health issues, especially the fight against alcoholism and tuberculosis. Prior to her term, she had organized the first public health service in Baraga County and was instrumental in securing the county’s first public health nurse. She also became actively involved in the Michigan Grange and served as the Upper Peninsula officer.
Anderson was educated as a teacher at the Haskell Institute in Lawrence, Kansas, which is known today as the Haskell Indian Nations University. She taught school in the Upper Peninsula for several years. At a time when minorities, including Native Americans, were subjected to considerable economic and social discrimination, Anderson’s determination to attend college and return the benefits of her education to her community was notable. Her role as educator, legislator, public health reform leader aided the Native American community as well as the whole of society.
I find her amazing as not only as the first women elected to the legislator in 1925, but also a minority. I appreciate her bravery and voice for the people of Michigan on education and public health issues. She was an educator and organized the first public health service in the UP.
