Issue Number 1
eCONNECT
La
Leche League US Western Division
Forming
Connections Leader to Leader
TEAM 2004 - Bringing the Essential Pieces Together!
Introducing Publications/Online Workgroup
Breastfeeding Outreach in Sheboygan County, WI
World Breastfeeding Week Celebration Questions & Answers
Leader Applicant Work Sessions Using Appreciative Inquiry
Printable
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Robin Rziha, Hoisington, KS, WBW Planning Team
Q: How is the money raised through WBWC events divided, and why?
A:
The Area World Breastfeeding Week Celebration Coordinators (AWC) for each
Area were invited by the WBWC Planning Team to brainstorm in the discussion
of how the proceeds from the WBWC should be divided. The AWCs were encouraged
to dialogue with Leaders in their Areas so that the final decision would
be representative of a large number of Leaders. The breakdown as decided
on by the 109 members of the WBWC e-list and coordinated by the WBWC Planning
Team is as follows:
50% Group: To be used by the Groups to support their needs and to help
further the LLLI mission in their community through continuing education
for Leaders and for outreach, etc.
15% Area: To help Areas lower Leader and member costs associated with
continuing education events, communications, publicity and outreach, etc.
20% Division: To help with costs associated with developing materials
for administrators, Leader outreach and support, increased US Web site
presence, educational events, scholarships to LLLI events, etc.
5% LLLI: To support the work of our international organization.
5% Joint Division Projects: To be held by the Divisions and used as start-up money for Leaders working together on projects that further the mission of La Leche League in the USA.
Editor’s Note: If
you have an idea but lack funding, contact Barbara Emanuel, US Western
Division Director, for further information.
5% WBW expenses/start up: To pay the administrative costs of the event,
including prizes and postage.
Q: If Joint Division Projects money is to support WBWC, why does an additional 5% go to cover WBWC expenses?
A: The Joint Division 5% does not support WBWC. The Joint Division projects are just that - projects that could be jointly coordinated by the Divisions’ Leaders to further LLLI’s mission in the USA. This is different from the 5% for expenses/start up. That 5% is to be used for any expenses that the WBWC would have above beyond what may be covered by WBWC prize sponsors. There are always some expenses involved in the planning of the WBWC. For example, if a member of the LLLI staff must be used, such as Web site services, then the WBWC has to pay for these services. The WBWC also pays for postage, and any prizes that are not covered by WBWC prize sponsors’ donations. The WBWC planning team thought it wise to have this "seed" money in place from year-to-year just in case we should ever have a bad year in finding WBWC prize sponsors, or in the event the WBWC planning team would want to do more – e.g. offer more types of publicity with the WBWC that would involve paying a fee for these services.
Q: Why does the Division get more than the Area? Since many more Groups are feeding money into the Division, shouldn't Areas be able to give a smaller amount?
A:
The two US Divisions who coordinate the WBWC are the ones taking responsibility
for and accepting the risk for the success and overall coordination of
the WBWC in the USA. Although the Area portion was increased by 5% for
2005, it is the Divisions who coordinate the WBWC. The WBWC Planning Team
represents the two Divisions, and it is the WBWC Team that is responsible
for such things as organizing and setting up all materials available on
the WBWC Web site, for soliciting WBWC prize sponsors for the event so
that there will be prizes, and for publicizing the event, for tracking
the registrations, awarding prized, etc.
While it is true that the Groups are doing the fundraising, it is the
Divisions (WBWC Team) that are providing all of the forms and publicity
material for Groups to adapt, as well as sharing all the many fundraising
ideas. Each Division provides a support person for Area World Breastfeeding
Week Celebration Coordinators (AWC) (in some cases, the Division support
person is also the AWC), and they provide regular memos to the AWCs, answer
questions, and provide other support as requested
Q: Why should my Group participate in a
World Breastfeeding Week Celebration?
A:
A few Leaders, Groups, and Areas participate in the WBWC, yet the proceeds
from this project benefit ALL of LLL. When all Leaders participate, then
all of LLL benefits even more, which ultimately means that more mothers
and babies benefit.
The WBWC has seen a steady decline in Group and Area participation over
the past several years. A few Areas choose to not participate at all.
The top Areas that participated in the 2004 WBWC for the USWD were:
- Arkansas/Oklahoma $4,014.32
- Illinois $5,784.40
- Kansas $28,568.59
- Missouri $7,578.75
- Texas $4,088.66
If we look at this even further and compare the number of Groups and Leaders in these top five Areas with the amounts that they raised for 2004, here is what it shows:
What if every Leader in the USWD set a goal of raising $100 for the WBWC? This could be done as a Group effort too; if a Group has three Leaders, the Group could help meet the goal of $300. The Group, of course, would keep half of what is raised. Do you know what kind of outreach could be accomplished if every Leader were to participate? With the example of a Group raising $300 and $150 of this amount staying with the Group, outreach might include sending Leaders to an Area Conference, offering membership scholarships to low income mothers, purchasing new books for the Group Library, printing and distributing Group flyers to doctors’ offices, etc. The outreach from the WBWC would be huge!
The total amount of money raised would be significant as well. If each of the 1,887 Leaders in the USWD (data from 2004) raised $100, the distribution of funds would look like this:
- Groups, $94,350
- Areas, $28,305
- USWD, $37,740
- LLLI, $9,435
Just think of the outreach and continuing education that could be done with this money! If you’d like some ideas for how you can raise $100 for WBWC, contact Robin Rziha, WBWC Planning Team at 663 NE 120th Road, Hoisington, KS, 67544; phone 620-653-4587; email scottr@hoisington.com.