Happy Women’s History Month! As a women’s philanthropic organization, I would be remiss if I didn’t take time to reflect on the efforts and bravery of women who helped pave the way for females today, as well as the women in our community who continue to do so.

Happy New Year! Like most people, I set personal goals for 2024. As an organization, Impact100 has set goals as well … more than 300 of them! You read that right; our goal for this new year is to surpass 300 members and be able to award $300,000 in grants to our community!

I could probably start every column with “This is my favorite time of the year” when it comes to Impact100 … and that would be true! From the beginning of the year when we actively recruit members, through the spring and summer when we announce our totals and vet our applicants, to now as we announce our finalists and plan for our Annual Meeting, every bit of it excites me! There is always a chance to meet someone new, learn something new, and help create new opportunities for our community.

I love summer! It’s common knowledge that the whole season is meant just for recreation and relaxation. It can’t get better than that and I hope you got plenty of both this year! Summer is also a great time to get some projects done, and I want to thank the special Impact ladies who have spent time doing the important work of facilitating and participating in our 2023 Focus Groups.

As I write this column, it is Election Day in the Commonwealth. I hope you took advantage of your privilege to cast a ballot. And although there were just a few races at stake, I hope you took time to evaluate all the candidates to make an informed decision. It works like that in Impact100 too. Every member has the privilege to vote at our Annual Meeting on October 24 (mark your calendars now!). Prior to that, members are encouraged to join a Focus Group to help assess the applications to determine our top finalists.

Tick tock. Tick tock. Is it just me, or do you feel like time is not always on your side? Here’s a little good news: you still have time to be a 2023 Impact100 member! Whether you are renewing your commitment or joining for the first time, we accept pledges through March 31. Check your calendars, friends, that date is just around the corner. So don’t delay!

Here at Impact100, a new year always excites us with the potential to transform lives in our community one grant at a time. Like you, we set goals and work hard to achieve them. Since the inaugural year in 2005, Impact100 has consistently raised funding for and awarded two $100,000 grants, plus residual dollars, to worthy nonprofits in the Greater Owensboro area. Cumulatively, we are poised to cross the $4 MILLION threshold by the end of this year!

At the 2022 Annual Meeting on October 27, Impact100 Owensboro members voted to award $100,000 each to Habitat for Humanity of Owensboro-Daviess County and The Daniel Pitino Shelter. Impact100 members also voted to award two residual grants. Dream Riders of Kentucky, Inc. and Sleep in Heavenly Peace, Inc. each will receive $29,500. AND … Congratulations to Aubrey’s Song for being awarded the 2022 NextGen Grant for $9,200!

The 2022 Impact100 Grant Finalists have been announced and we couldn’t be more pleased with the candidates! To the members of Impact100, now is the time to educate yourself to vote. You will see that we have five agencies vying for two grants of $100,000 each. And we have four agencies vying for two residual grants of $27,500 each. The site visit information is on the Events page of this website. The two-page summaries of the Projects and site visit information is listed on the FINALIST page of our Members' Only website. We are hoping you'll both attend the site visits and read the two-page summaries for each finalist in order to make an educated decision at the Annual Meeting.