Project W, a women’s giving circle, awarded $60,000 in grants to four local non-profits
at their Annual Meeting on June 15th. Project W members are committed to improving the
quality of life for women and their families in Delaware County. In the four years since its
inception, Project W’s 136+ members, distributed over $260,000 in grants and donations.
Thirty-one organizations applied for the 2022 grant cycle. Grants are awarded in four
focus areas: Health, Education, Family, and Small Grants. After evaluating and discussing the
applications, Project W members completed site visits with select applicants to further
understand their work and chose an applicant in each focus area to receive one of four grants.
At the Annual Meeting, members were privileged to hear presentations from each
organization. Members then voted for the organization to receive the top grant of $30,000.
Project W members agree that being able to make an impact on the community,
especially to women and families in need is a worthwhile contribution to make each year.
Ariadne Petrucelli, Project W Communications Chair, remarked that “seeing the amazing things
that great women working together can accomplish has been one of the most impactful things
from my experience with Project W.” Cheryl Haze, a Project W Founding Member, commented,
“I appreciate the investment that our thirty-one grant applicants have made to better our
community and I certainly appreciate the investment by the Project W members, each of whom
have contributed funds and time to provide worthy social services that benefit women.” Donna
Maple noted that she “felt that joining Project W was a great opportunity to give back. It has
been an opportunity to work alongside women that were as passionate as I am about using my
resources to help those who are less fortunate.” Donna has been moved by actually spending
time volunteering at one of the organizations that Project W funds. “There is nothing like
witnessing the impact of what we can accomplish as a group.” A multi-generational member
team to Project W, Laurie and Clare Collins noted that they value “working with women from
Delaware County from diverse backgrounds and experiences, who, through thoughtful collaboration, arrive at a common final decision to support organizations that are so phenomenal
in the work that they do.”

---

2022 Project W Grant Recipients

Making a Change Group (MACG) (Family Focus Area) was awarded a $30,000 grant
for their Connected Visions Program which helps low and moderate-income families (the
majority are female led) residing in Chester, PA, and surrounding communities as they address
trauma, break cycles of poverty and achieve healthier lives.

African Family Health Organization (Health Focus Area) was awarded a $12,000
grant which will be utilized to support transitional housing for women (African or Caribbean
immigrant and refugees) who have been victims of domestic violence.

Pennsylvania Institute of Technology: Practical Nursing Program (Education Focus
Area) was awarded a $12,000 grant which will be directed to support underserved women in the
Practical Nursing Program by closing a gap in funding to complete their education.

Centro de Apoyo Comunitario (Small Grants Focus Area) was awarded a $6,000
grant to create a website to increase awareness of available services and information about the
community with challenges reading and writing in Spanish.

---

Project W is a Giving Circle that operates under The Community’s Foundation’s (TCF)
charitable umbrella. TCF offers administrative and fiduciary services to a variety of community-
minded groups across Delaware County, as a means to empower everyday citizens to take
philanthropy into their own hands.

We want to continue to get the word out about Project W and the great work we are doing in the community. You can help us by following us on social media and most importantly by sharing us with friends and family. Help us grow our membership and the impact we can make in Delaware County.

Please Follow Us and Share Us on:

Facebook: Project W

Instagram: @ProjectWDelco

LinkedIn: Project W Delaware County 

Twitter: @projectwdelco

Visit our website at https://projw.org/