Annual Report
U.S. NATIONAL COMMITTEE FOR UNIFEM
June 1, 2006-May 31, 2007
Annual Meeting
June 23, 2007
UNIFEM/USA Office at Counterpart International
Washington, DC
Opening Letter from the President:
I am honored to be offering my eighth and final Annual Report. Each of these reports has been a 12-month snapshot of our achievements, activities, problems and solutions. While annual reviews are essential, they are by their nature bounded by the calendar. As I was preparing for this report and for the transition to a new President, I thought back to 1999 when I and a new team of leaders were elected to UNIFEM/USA’s board. As we reviewed the organization we were inheriting, we recognized the contributions of our predecessors and we were determined to use the foundation of UNIFEM/USA’s 16-year history to take the organization and its members to the next level so that we could be relevant to the needs of women and their challenges in the new century.
We started with corporate governance and an effort to make UNIFEM/USA more open, transparent and democratic. As a result, voting for Board Members was extended to all members rather than just those who could attend the Annual Meeting; the leadership team has included more than 96 members who have served terms as Board Members; we have passed an independent audit for each of the last 8 years and this information is available to all Board Members; we updated the By-Laws, created Policy & Procedures and signed a Recognition Agreement with our UNIFEM Headquarters in New York City. In addition, through our website each member has access to all of UNIFEM/USA’s governing documents, reports and activity summaries.
We created a sound, long-term fiscal strategy for UNIFEM/USA. Like the annual report, too often budgets were limited to12 month timeframes. To sustain and grow UNIFEM/USA, we developed a multi-year financial vision and created an Endowment Fund that now has $100,000. This will give the new team a stronger financial underpinning on which to base its future activities. In addition, we have successfully completed four national fund raising drives to support operations, with the most successful one just completed on June 22, led by Judy Ramey and Diane Olson, and raising over $35,000.
We have engaged in creative and innovative programs to raise awareness of the challenges confronting women around the world. From Spring Walks to Eliminate Violence Against Women to Neale Godfrey’s “Tap Dancing Through the Boardroom, from the "I Can Touch the Sun" DVD to the film festivals in Sarasota, our Board Members and our Chapters have helped bring the UNIFEM program new visibility and prominence. Our widely recognized website, www.unifemusa.org, has enabled UNIFEM/USA to reach out not only to our membership, but to potential new members, and to extend the UNIFEM brand into the internet.
The measure of every non-profit is how much have you raised and what have you done with the money. A preliminary review of our audits over the last eight years, including estimates for 2007, show that we have raised approximately $1.39 million from dues, events, and donations. Of this amount we estimate that $844,000 was expended in support of UNIFEM with $520,000 donated directly to UNIFEM and $324,000 used in support of UNIFEM’s education and awareness goals. Our $100,000 Endowment Fund will assist the Committee with the task of managing the organization. By any measure and benchmark, UNIFEM/USA has achieved a remarkable record of advancing the cause of women around the world.
Finally, my most important and best accomplishment over the last 8 years was to surround myself with great people. You, the members, have given me the wonderful opportunity to be your President for eight years. My gift to you is the leadership team that we have developed during this time. We have expanded the participation in UNIFEM/USA’s management and have drawn people from every corner of the U.S. and from diverse backgrounds and experience. The talent that this group possesses has empowered me and sustained me. I am confident that the wonderful women in this group and those who will continue to replenish it will be the source of UNIFEM/USA’s continuing success.
Thank you for your support and your continued commitment to UNIFEM and to women around the world.
The Board and the Executive Team have continued to make membership and increased awareness and support of UNIFEM our key objectives. This year, UNIFEM/USA (1) achieved the annual commitment to UNIFEM by donating $50,000; (2) worked with local leaders to develop a new Chapter in Chicago and to encourage forming chapters in Nashville, Houston, Connecticut and in Northern California (3) conducted a major a fundraiser in honor of UNIFEM’s 30th Anniversary to support the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM’s visibility and financial security (4) Revamped and redesigned our website to create a high-level communication vehicle for our members and an effective management tool for our Board and Executive Team (5) Retained an accounting firm to manage our financial affairs in a professional and efficient manner. (6) Raised the level of the UNIFEM/USA Endowment Fund to $100,000 and moved the funds to be professionally managed in support of Committee operations.
Membership/Chapter Development
New Chapter Updates & Development
This fall, the Chicago, IL Chapter became an official Chapter of the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM. In November, the Chicago Chapter held its first event at the Chicago Club with featured speaker M. Cherif Bassiouni, who has served the UN in a number of capacities, including as UNHCHR’s Independent Expert on the Situation of Human Rights in Afghanistan. U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM Program Director Kaytee O’Neill spoke at the event and met with the Chicago Board to discuss and review our Policies and Procedures and By-laws with the Chapter. Since the luncheon, the Chicago Chapter has continued to increase its membership and is planning to host a film festival in the near future.
The Committee also is working with four entities in various phases of formation: Connecticut, Nashville, TN, South Central Texas and Northern California. All of the forming Chapters are working to recruit members in their areas. Vice President for Membership Ruth Zeller is continuing to work with the Connecticut group that currently has 18 members. Program Director Kaytee O’Neill has been working with the Nashville and South Central Texas Chapters and Chapter Development Chair Heather Milkiewicz is in conversation with Northern California.
The Berkshire Chapter has been dissolved. The Committee determined that the Berkshire Chapter sent $8,269 of dues and donations directly to UNIFEM through the UN Foundation instead of reporting through the Committee as is required by our governing documents. While the leaders of the chapter were asked for a final report and an accounting of funds, a response was not received.
Program Development
U.S. NATIONAL COMMITTEE FOR UNIFEM Celebrate the Arts Fundraiser
On July 27, 2006, the Committee hosted its 2006 annual fundraiser "Celebrate the Arts" at Hemphill Fine Arts Gallery in Washington, DC. The evening showcased an art exhibition by Benjamin Abramowitz and the music of Lynn Revo-Cohen sung by jazz vocalist Danielle Westphal. In addition, the UNIFEM/USA quilt created by Lisa Ellis was unveiled during a silent auction. The event raised over $10,000 to benefit the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM. Special thanks to Judy Ramey for her dedication and effort to make this event a success.
"Give the Gift of Peace" Holiday Campaign
In December, the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM launched a Holiday Campaign focusing on UNIFEM’s Trust Fund efforts. The US National Committee incorporated Goodwill Ambassador Nicole Kidman into the piece since she is working with UNIFEM to raise the profile of the issue of violence against women and girls. The goal for this mailing was to increase the knowledge of the Trust Fund, raise funds for the Trust Fund and to encourage individuals to become members of the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM. During the Holiday Season, this piece was also featured on our website.
Annual Walk to End Violence Against Women and Girls
The U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM launched its sixth Annual Walk series to support the work of the UN Trust Fund in Support of Actions to Eliminate Violence Against Women. To promote the walks, the Committee created and distributed a colorful postcard to the membership referring them to the website to download registration and pledge forms. Modeled after last year’s walks, this year’s walks have also been extended through October 1, 2007. To date, the Committee’s National Capital Chapter, Metropolitan New York Chapter and Atlanta, GA Chapter have held walks.
U.S. NATIONAL COMMITTEE FOR UNIFEM Intern
This summer, the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM had the support of an intern from June to August. Rachel Gutterman, a women’s and gender studies major at the University of Indiana, worked two days a week at the office under the supervision of Kaytee O’Neill. Rachel worked with Kaytee to compile information for the website and also assisted in the preparation of the July 27th fundraiser.
Launch of U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM website
The new U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM website was launched in October. We owe a debt of gratitude to our Public Relations Chair, Diane M. Olson, for her dedication and creativity in giving us this beautiful site. Together with the tireless work and artistic sensibility of Kaytee O’Neill, Diane has brought us an up-scale site, worthy of our work. The updated website provides visitors with the basic information they need to understand the work of UNIFEM and the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM. The site includes our By-laws and Policies and Procedures. It also includes our annual reports and allows members to access Updates and Fact Sheets. With the new website, the Committee is able to accept credit/debit card payments for new memberships, gift memberships, renewals and donations. Other improvements include an individual Chapter section for each U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM Chapter, information on Goodwill Ambassador Nicole Kidman and a section for a Committee Book Club. Our section on "How to Start a Chapter" has resulted in a surge of interest from individuals across the country interested in launching new UNIFEM/USA Chapters.
All U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM members, former members and prospect members received a postcard announcing the launch and we also sent out an announcement to our listserv. In addition, we have engaged a webmaster to keep the site current who reports through Kaytee O’Neill. Kaytee works with the webmaster and the Chapters to ensure the information on the website is correct.
UN Reform
The U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM continued to advocate for women within the context of UN Reform. Under the UNIFEM/USA President’s signature, and in consultation with the Executive Committee, the Committee sent correspondence to key players, including Coherence Panel members Josette Shiner and Kemal Dervis, as well as Senator Joe Biden, urging them to support the creation of a high level, sufficiently resourced agency in support of women which would be on a par with UNICEF and be UNICEF-like in scope and resources. The Committee also developed numerous press releases on the issue and joined other organized efforts to ensure that as work on UN Reform went forward that an agency in support of women remained a priority at the UN.
On November 9, 2006, the Coherence Panel delivered its recommendations in "Delivering as One," a report stressing the establishment of one dynamic UN entity focused on gender equality and women’s empowerment. The report also stated that "the gender entity must be fully and ambitiously funded." The U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM will continue to advocate for women, focusing our efforts in support of a budget that reflects the needs of women worldwide with a $1 billion budget for the new gender entity a realistic goal. There is much work left to be done before women have an agency that they deserve and that matches their needs.
New Membership Brochure
In February, Public Relations Chair Diane Olson and Program Director Kaytee O’Neill designed a new U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM membership brochure. This new brochure highlights UNIFEM’s four strategic areas and UNIFEM’s efforts to support these initiatives around the globe. The updated brochure also includes information on UNIFEM Goodwill Ambassador Nicole Kidman and the Committee Chapters. With this brochure, individuals can join, give a gift membership or donate to a specific UNIFEM strategic area. The US Committee can also accept credit and debit card payments. Thank you to Diane Olson and Kaytee O’Neill for creating a beautiful document that reflects well on our Committee work. A special note of thanks to Diane for her creative contributions in support of UNIFEM/USA over the last eight years.
United Nations Representation
U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM’s team of representatives has continued to monitor events at the United Nations, attending meetings and conferences throughout the year on issues concerning the work of UNIFEM. Heading the team is our UN Representative, Ruth E. Zeller, working with team members Ruth Clay Bowman, Sybil Evans, Shari Gruber and Margaret Howard. The US Committee thanks Ruth for her leadership and her team members for their important service in support of our Committee!
Alliance and Coalition Building
The US Committee has continued to be actively involved with other NGOs and women’s organizations in the Washington, DC area and are affiliated with the National Council of Women’s Organizations, the United Nations Association Council of Organizations, Friends of the UN, Women Impacting Public Policy, and the National Hispana Leadership Institute.
Public Speaking Engagements
On the local level, chapter representatives and members of the Board are often invited to speak at local events and meetings – generally about the US Committee, UNIFEM or about issues affecting women worldwide. Our "UNIFEM in Action" poster series and up to date information on our website facilitate these types of activities. The Committee is working on creating more presentation pieces for future speaking engagements.
Media Coverage
The "Ladies Home Journal" ran a cover story on UNIFEM Goodwill Ambassador Kidman in their June 2006 issue, which included a reference to UNIFEM/USA. This article has resulted in inquiries about membership and over $8,000 to support the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women. This good response underscores the importance of involving celebrity figures in raising funds for charity.
Support to UNIFEM: $50,000.
Nearly all UNIFEM/USA activities have the shared goals of increasing awareness about UNIFEM and the US Committee, increasing members, and raising funds. In addition to independently raising all of the funds needed to operate, UNIFEM/USA also raised $50,000 for UNIFEM during the 2006-2007 calendar year, meeting the goal set in the Recognition Agreement with UNIFEM. UNIFEM/USA continues our efforts to increase funds for UNIFEM to surpass the $50,000 annual goal set in the Agreement. The Committee is striving to identify unique ways of attracting members and donors to the organization.
Counterpart International
The Committee continues to be fortunate in our relationship with Counterpart International where UNIFEM/USA rents a small office in Washington, DC. The rental fee includes access to a state-of-the-art Board room, a smaller conference room, kitchen and all of their electronic capabilities, including color printers, Xerox machines, fax machines, conference calling, TV, VCR, DVD and slide projector. Counterpart also provides UNIFEM/USA with vital computer and technical support. In addition, the office is included in their domain for security purposes. Counterpart’s move to Crystal City in the fall will include UNIFEM/USA.
Contract for full-time staff
The Board voted to bring Kaytee O’Neill on board in September as our full-time program director. As a full time employee, Kaytee was instrumental in the design, development and launch of the new U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM website and continues to ensure the website is kept up to date. In addition, Kaytee has developed other media and communications pieces with Diane Olson, including the new U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM membership brochure, our Holiday Campaign Piece, Annual Walk Postcard and June 22nd invitation.
Reporting to the President, another one of Kaytee’s responsibilities is database management. Kaytee is responsible for all aspects of membership – inputting data into our system from both our lock box and website, sending out thank you letters to new members, renewing members and contributors, and sending each Chapter their individual database on a semi-monthly basis. She corresponds with each Chapter to ensure their Chapter membership information is correct and also works with our Treasurer to ensure that the donations are allocated correctly.
Kaytee also provides support and materials for Board Members and Chapter Presidents. She responds to emails and phone calls and also forwards emails to the appropriate U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM contact. For our Board Meetings, she collects and compiles the materials, helps to develop supporting documentation and also works with the hotel and restaurants to accommodate our stay. It has been a great pleasure and a great help to have Kaytee on board full-time. Reporting directly to me as president has ensured that Committee priorities are set and that Kaytee has the support to conduct the work outlined in her work statement. From all reports and from my personal contact with Kaytee on a daily basis, I can assure the Board of her excellent work.
Insurance
In October, the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM renewed our Directors and Officers insurance policy with Hartford Insurance through Walterry Insurance Brokers. The $1,000,000 policy covers "any individual who has been, now is or shall become a director, officer, governor, trustee, equivalent executive, employee (whether salaried or not), volunteer, leased or temporary employee, or committee member of the Organization." We also signed a general liability insurance policy to cover "typical" events and activities organized by the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM and its chapters. Both policies are in effect until October 14, 2007.
2006 Audit
Renner & Associates performed the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM’s 2006 audit. The firm worked with Treasurer Pam Albertson and Program Director Kaytee O’Neill to assist in the transfer of financial information for the U.S. National Committee for UNIFEM. The audit was mailed to all Board members in December and shows that the Committee is in good standing. Thanks to Treasurer Pam Albertson for her assistance in the process. We have contracted for this year’s audit that will be conducted beginning in July.
Endowment
This year, the Executive Committee unanimously voted to move $16,000 from the UNIFEM/USA checking account into the Endowment Fund to cap it at $100,000. These funds will be put into the market and Ferris Baker Watts, Inc. will manage the account. The money will be used for future operations.
Advisory Council
Our Advisory Board, which started with the acceptance of Betty Friedan in 1999, continues to be an impressive group with the following members now serving in support of UNIFEM.USA: Dr. Gwendolyn C. Baker, Dr. Martha Burk, Dr. Charlotte Bunch, Ambassador Swanee Hunt, Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, Senator Mary L. Landrieu, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Ambassador Connie Morella, Dr.Elisabeth S. Muhlenfeld, Terry Neese, Ambassador Nancy H. Rubin, Gillian Martin Sorensen and Alvin & Heidi Toffler.
2007 Board Elections
UNIFEM/USA conducted our sixth election by mail ballot and the following people will be sworn in as Board members at the June 23rd Board meeting, where the board members will elect new officers: Re-elected: Pam Albertson, Neale Godfrey, Shari Gruber, Joy Mohnet, Diane Olson, Carol Poteat-Buchanan, Grace Richardson and Ruth Zeller. Newly-elected:
Maggie Forster-Schmitz, Christine Griftner, Eileen Meier and Joy Renjilian-Burgy.
President’s Conclusion
The Committee is ready to go to the next level and I wish the new president and leadership great success.
Sincerely,
Sheryl J. Swed
President, UNIFEM/USA
1999-2007