How a Book Club Has Embraced the Mission of Impact 100
Some of the Thousand Lives Book Club went to grade school together, or worked alongside each other at the local pharmacy during high school, or had kids who went to school together. Their long history includes stints on the PTO Board, as soccer moms and as book club members.
One of the wonderful offshoots of the book club group has been a growing commitment to Impact 100. Seven of the 10 members have joined the organization, some recently and others a decade or more ago. All appreciate the opportunities in our collective giving organization to learn about our community and support nonprofits that work toward making it thrive. Their membership has also helped them connect with incredible women from across the city.
The club’s name stems from author George R.R. Martin’s quote: “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies…The man who never reads lives only one.”
Some of the same intellectual curiosity and openheartedness that drives the book club is mirrored in their dedication to Impact 100 and the lessons it has to offer.
Pictured front, l to r, are Decorating Committee Chair Nancy Kenkel and core committee members Jan Englehart, Lisa Hess and Missy Puccini. Back row, l to r, are Karen Dangel, Laura Rupp and board member Sandy Weiskittel.
Experiencing a Grant Review Team
For Impact 100 member Jan Englehart, being a member of the Pearl Grant Review Team with Margaret Pasquale earlier this year was both eye-opening and gratifying. “This was my first time on a grant review team, and I was so impressed with the due diligence to make sure our funds are used wisely. People took it very seriously – reading, researching and expressing mindful, honest opinions,” Jan notes. “Each member of the review team had an opportunity to express their viewpoints and opinions.”
Jan also works on the Decorations Committee for Impact 100’s four major events, led by Chair Nancy Kenkel.
Color My World
Nancy, a retired educator, says the creativity of the committee “gives me a chance to use another part of my brain. I’m finding great joy in making our events more beautiful and a more fun place for us to meet.”
She vividly remembers attending her first Impact 100 event, an Annual Awards Celebration, some years ago: “I knew nothing about Impact 100. I started to listen and I was completely astonished by all the good work that was being done by this group of amazing women who quietly add to the community in so many good ways. I thought this was something I would love to be attached to, and now I can’t see leaving.”
Missy Puccini and Lisa Hess are newer members whom Nancy has recruited to the Decorations Committee.
Other book club/Impact 100 members are Sandy Weiskittel, a current board member, and Karen Dangel, a newer member, who is not able to attend events as much as she likes but strongly supports the work Impact 100 is doing.
Magnified Giving
Laura Rupp, a 10-year member, comments, “I joined Impact 100 because I realized that collective giving is an effective way to magnify my individual contribution to specific needs in the Cincinnati area.”
She continues, “There are multiple reasons I remain. A big one is that the group is so well led. This group of women has a committed focus on philanthropy. I value the visible collaboration and responsiveness to feedback and improvement, which meets the varying needs of its members and grant applicants.”
