The JLGWH Blog

A Very Merry Market

2011-12-29T08:58:00.000-05:00

The Junior League of Greater Winter Haven kicked off the Holiday Shopping Season with our 4^th Annual Merry Market at Olde Towe Square in downtown Winter Haven! Vendors from Central Florida and around the United States participated in the shopping event. One of the League’s most festive fundraisers, Merry Market is a 2 day event filled with premier shopping, food and entertainment. Merry Market is a great way to get a head start on shopping for the Holidays and the funds raised benefit the local community and the JLGWH’s projects.

Junior League Members Volunteering at Merry Market

Photos with Santa were a hit at the Holiday Market

Photo Booth Fun at the Hops & Grapes kickoff party

Hops & Grapes is almost here!

2011-10-21T23:12:00.000-04:00

We are just around the corner, about 3 weeks to be exact, from the JLGWH's biggest fall fundraiser!! To kickoff Merry Market, we are having a beer and wine tasting event called The Hops & Grapes Cocktail Kickoff Party. This event will be at Olde Towne Square in downtown Winter Haven from 6pm to 9pm on November 11th, 2011. Tickets are only $35 dollars per person and include a night of beer and wine tastings, heavy Hors D'oeuvres, live entertainment, holiday shopping, gift bags, giveaways and more! We are very excited to be inviting both men and women this year, as the kickoff party has typically been a girls night only. We are jazzing up the usual with more fun and excitement!! There will be a professional photographer taking pictures throughout the night and a photo booth that fits up to 12 people! This is the perfect night to get dressed up and have some fun with your friends or your better half all while supporting a fantastic organization that helps the women and children in your community! This is truly an event you don't want to miss!

Let's Get Ready to ROCK!

2011-08-11T22:19:00.001-04:00

This evening marked the unofficial kick-off of the 2011-2012 JLGWH year. Gathered at m.marie boutique , active members mingled with wonderful women from our community interested in what membership in JLGWH can offer. In addition to welcoming potential new members hugs and handshakes were exchanged as members greeted each other after a summer break from the action of volunteering. President, Jae Lynn Akin, addressed the group with the many benefits of membership in this unique organization. The hostesses for the evening were the provisional chairs, Holly Hughes and Megan Smith, who will lead the new member group through an exciting year of training and personal development. A very big THANK YOU to Meghan Gullen, JLGWH member and owner of m.marie, for opening her doors to us and providing some awesome coupon incentives for the purchases made this evening.

Interested in learning more about Junior League but unable to attend tonight? No worries. Join us Saturday, August 13 from 1:30-3:00 at The Stable in Lake Alfred for another new member social before the year officially kicks off Tuesday, September 13th at the Chain of Lakes Club Room.

Rock the League!

2011-08-11T22:17:00.000-04:00

Are you digging the new background? It seems entirely appropriate for this year's theme: Rock the League! Rock the Community! Rock the Future! Looking forward to a great year with our "Queen of Rock" Jae Lynn Akin.

Spirit of the League

2011-03-16T14:44:00.002-04:00

When you think about our mission statement, does any one member pop into your head? We are fortunate to have

so many incredible women in our organization. The JLGWH is able to accomplish so much with women committed to changing our community for the better with their selfless, caring attitudes and leadership abilities. Among our many exemplary volunteers is there one woman that rises above? I challenge each of you to read our mission and nominate the active member you feel embodies the “Spirit of the League”. I know it is a difﬁcult decision with so many hard working women in our league.

Please take a few minutes out of your busy day to send me an email with your nominee and an explanation of why she deserves this honor. The recipient will be announced at Spring Dinner.

DOWNLOAD SPIRIT OF THE LEAGUE CRITERIA

Past Winners

2010 Tammi Haas

2009 Jill Barton

2008 Cindy Baxter

2007 Marianne George

2006 Sharon Garber

2005 Sarah Case

2004 Anna Coco

2003 Peggy Threlkel

2002 Cindy Bruce

2001 Jayne Bates

Submitted by President, Jennifer Myers

What's in a Name?

2011-01-06T13:08:00.000-05:00

Perhaps it's just an agenda to those who pick it up at each general membership meeting. But for years "League Lites" have informed members of important upcoming dates, meeting agendas, birthdays, and other tidbits of information.

Our former paper newsletter, "League Lines," has gone to digital email form. Each month members receive this update with a note from the president and relevant news and dates.

Now, in an effort to cultivate communication within our league as well as extend into our community we are creating an updated newsletter that, in addition to current and upcoming league information, will also provide readers articles with pertinent information on health, nutrition, education, and family. We hope to deliver this publication biannually in both paper and electronic forms to be as far reaching as possible. Alas, one thing is missing, a name.

What's in a name? Plenty. A professional naming firm may charge as much as $80,000 to develop a business name. Wow! Many of the 294 Junior Leagues currently have a newsletter or magazine publication. Some have names with geographic relevance as in Junior League of Atlanta's, Peachtree Papers and Junior League of St. Pete's Causeway. Others have adopted names with meaning to the league as in the Junior League of Los Angeles' publication, Inspire. Our publication is in search of a memorable name that conveys the value and uniqueness of our organization and we are leaving it to you to decide. After a brainstorming session at a general membership meeting last fall, three selections were chosen: Blossom, The Chain Affect, and JL Just Lead. All can be a part of this new publication as column heads etc., but only one will be the feature title. What do you think it should be? Cast your vote in our poll.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T21:52:00.000-05:00

What a gift! 12 new months to live life to the fullest, to enjoy new adventures, and to learn, grow, and help others along the way!

2011 will be a great year for JLGWH. Watch for posts about our A Mother's Voice project, hospital renovation completion, new website launch, spring teacher Grants 4 Greatness, Family Fit Fest, Casino Night, and more. Opportunities, possibilities, wonder. So much to look forward to. Hope you join us along the way...

NOT just business as usual

2010-12-19T08:23:00.000-05:00

The holiday season is in full swing. One of the highlights of this festive season is spending quality time with family and friends. With that in mind JLGWH holds a "cluster" of meeting opportunities in December rather than one general membership meeting. This year members were invited to enjoy lunch at The Sundown Southern Eatery, share tea with Mrs. Claus at Sweet Magnolias Tea Bistro, and gather for shopping and great food at m.marie and Kate's Cafe.

Tea hosts, Lora & Paula

m.marie meeting hosts, Jae Lynn & Meghan

Holly, Joanna, Megan, Crista

MaryAnn, Lisa

Of course there were a few items on the agenda but it was not business as usual. The magic of the season is alive with JLGWH. We appreciate our member hostesses and the area businesses for accommodating us. Wishing you and yours the happiest of holidays.

Merry Market Kicks Off the Holiday Season!

2010-12-08T21:48:00.001-05:00

The 3rd Annual Merry Market took place the weekend of Nov 19&20. One of two major fundraisers for our organization we strived to raise money through merchant fees, ticket sales, raffles, and a silent auction. All of the proceeds from this event directly impact our community projects and member development that you can read more about on our website.

Merry Market provides so much more to our organization. It takes a lot to put on an event such as this. Our provisional members took on the responsibility of planning Champagne & Shopping, Friday's VIP event and we are so proud of their efforts. The event committee took on the rest of the weekend headed up by fund development chair, Jill Bentley. Over 80% of our active membership participated in this event as volunteers, vendors, ticket sellers, patrons, or a combination. Sustaining members were seen shopping as well as attendees of Friday night's event. Past President, Donna Sheehan, served as master of ceremonies. Merry Market brings our organization together. We learn skills to use for future events and other community organizations, we learn about each other, and we secure funding for our work in the community. Truly a special way to kick off the holiday season!

Click to read the November 21st article in the News Chief. Visit our facebook fan page to see more photographs.

Pampering with Provisionals

2010-09-29T05:11:00.001-04:00

Provisional chairs Amy Smith and Eva Chambers organized a fun event Tuesday evening hosted by Estee Lauder make-up artists Jessica and Nicole at our local Belk's department store. The evening included skin care and eye make-up demonstrations and offered a relaxed atmosphere to meet and greet some fantastic women interested in joining our cause. We were fortunate to have all membership levels represented: provisional, active, advisory active, and sustainer.

The Committee Grows...

2010-09-23T23:28:00.001-04:00

And we say the more the merrier! There are great things in store for all attendees of the November 19-20th Merry Market fundraising event. The committee met Wednesday afternoon to continue going through the details and were joined by a group of energetic and ambitious provisional members. This year's VIP Girls Night Out shopping event themed, Champagne and Shopping, will be brought to life by this talented group of women. Stay tuned for the specifics of this exciting evening of shopping with friends. And make sure to get your tickets early. This exclusive event is limited to 250 guests. Tickets are available online at www.jlgwh.org or from Jessica Fischer, jess.fischer@me.com. Members sign out tickets from Jessica now or at the October general membership meeting.

Advisory Active Member Showcased in Community

2010-09-16T13:05:00.004-04:00

Look who's in the news!

Peggy Threlkel, advisory active member and former president of JLGWH, graces the cover of September's issue of Focus Magazine. Peggy lives the mission of JLGWH daily as she strives to promote voluntarism, develop the potential of women (girls:) ), and improve our community as the Executive Director of Girls Inc. Pick it up on newsstands now or click on the link in the sidebar to view online. You go girl!