Community Service Overview
The Woodcroft Women's Club supports selected charities throughout the club year with donations and some volunteer participation. Additionally, members offer their support and services to local community projects and activities. All members are invited to participate in some or all projects, and are encouraged to suggest other community support activities for consideration.
The Woodcroft Women’s Club regularly supports three local charities - Families Moving Forward (FMF), Durham Crisis Response Center (DCRC), and Food Bank/Food Drive. From September through May, we collect donations each month, rotating among the three which allows for three collections per charity per club year.
Families Moving Forward - a Durham program which assists families to ‘move forward’ out of their current homeless situation. For many years the WWC has provided Families Moving Forward support in a variety of ways including donations towards their Barrels of Joy program, and participation in their Dine and Learn program.
Durham Crisis Response Center - Since 2006, the Woodcroft Women’s Club has been collecting donations for DCRC, a shelter which provides a safe place for women and children of domestic or sexual violence. The DCRC shelter houses over two hundred women and children every year, requiring many items to keep the household running and DCRC relies on gifts from the community to make stays at the shelter as comfortable as possible.
Food Bank / Food Drive - The Food Bank of Eastern North Carolina is grateful for donations of food supplies based on a list of current supply needs. The club sponsors regular Food Drives during the club year and collected items are delivered to the Food Bank of Eastern North Carolina.
IN ADDITION to the regularly supported Charities, the Woodcroft Women's Club participates in other community support programs during the club year.
Adopt-A-Trail - this group meets one day every other month to clean a section of the American Tobacco Trail that runs through Woodcroft and neighboring communities. We have a strong desire to keep our Durham community beautiful and inviting to nature lovers.
Dine and Learn (FMF) - Volunteers prepare and take a simple meal to serve to the families prior to an enrichment program for the parents. On occasion, after dinner the volunteers watch the children for an hour while the parents attend their class.
Epworth Backpacks - The club assists in supporting the Epworth Backpack project at the Epworth United Methodist Church. This project packs and supplies food for the weekend for children with food insecurity so they will not be hungry while not in school. Volunteers meet on a weekend and can participate in setup (Sat.) or packing (Sun.) or delivery (Fri). Dates and times are set by the Epworth Backpack project.
Recycling/Pay It Forward - Our goal is to take care of our planet for the next generations by keeping as much out of the landfills as possible. We maintain a comprehensive listing of ways to recycle, where to recycle, how to reuse or donate, suggestions for repurposing, and use of alternate eco-friendly products.
Share Your Holiday - The WWC purchases, wraps, and delivers gifts for 10 local elderly women each club year. Local families in need have been receiving gifts from Durham residents for over 30 years through the Share Your Christmas program sponsored by the Durham Co. DSS, The Volunteer Center of Durham, and The Durham Herald-Sun Newspaper. https://thevolunteercenter.org/holiday/
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Year End Contributions - At the end of each club year, monies collected from fundraisers and donations are distributed among 3-4 charities selected by voting members. Whenever possible, the selected charities sponsors are invited to attend the final general meeting. Previous Year-End Supported Charities