DECEMBER 2022 || Volume 5, issue 4 |
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JWL Pick 3 Raffle Returns for its Second Year |
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The JWL Pick 3 Raffle is LIVE! Participants can purchase tickets online or from a JWL member until January 19, 2023. Each $20 ticket purchase gives you 28 chances to win cash prizes throughout the month of February. Raffle drawings will be held each night from February 1-28, 2023, at 11:15 PM on WRAL LIVE. The winning ticket will be the first drawn NC evening Pick 3 and must be in exact sequential order. JWL Pick 3 Raffle tickets make great holiday gifts for teachers, coaches, co-workers, family and friends. Raffle proceeds will help fund JWL's Blessing Boxes, Student Scholarships, women's leadership development programs, and ongoing league initiatives. Ticket numbers can be drawn more than once, so JWL Pick 3 Raffle tickets should be kept for the month of February. Winners will be contacted by phone and/or email with prizes mailed out at the end of the event. Follow along on our Facebook event page to stay up to date with JWL Pick 3 Raffle. Visit our website for further details. Thank you for supporting the Junior Women's League of Smithfield with your donation! |
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JWL Seeks 200 Volunteers for Meal Packing Event |
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In food-insecure households, the need for food competes with the need for other basic human necessities such as housing, utilities, transportation, and medical care. Right now, in Johnston County, 41% of children do not have consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life. The Junior Women’s League of Smithfield and River Dell Elementary are partnering to bring Generosity Feeds, an initiative of the Replenish Foundation, to our community on Saturday, January 21, 2023 for a Meal Creation Event to package 10,000 meals to fight child hunger locally. All meals created will go back to local backpack buddies programs and food pantries to be distributed to children who need them most. We need over 200 volunteers from our community, which makes this a great opportunity for local organizations to have an impactful volunteer day for a wonderful cause. We hope that you will register today to be a Meal Creation Volunteer and help us create meals together. To register, please visit Generosity Feeds Clayton, NC - Generosity Feeds. If you have a group of 5 or more volunteers, please complete this form. If you would like to make a monetary donation, you can do so at Generosity Feeds Clayton, NC - Generosity Feeds. Every $1.00 donated equals one child fed. Thank you for being a Hunger Hero for the children in Johnston County! |
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JWL Donates $1,000 to DSS Angel Tree Project |
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Since 1991, the Johnston County Department of Social Services (DSS) has assisted youth in the Foster Care program and children in the Adolescent Parenting program during the holiday season by collecting toys, clothing, shoes, and other necessities through their annual Angel Tree Project. Thanks to the generosity of sponsors from local businesses and donations from county citizens, DSS is able to meet their needs and help bring joy during the holiday season. This year, there were an estimated 300 children who were helped with an Angel Tree card and another 100 families who were available to be sponsored this Christmas as well. On December 16, JWL Board of Directors member and League Treasurer, Dawn Phipps, proudly presented a $1,000.00 check on behalf of our league to Mrs. Judy Casey at Johnston County DSS to sponsor local families this Christmas. This meaningful contribution would not have been possible without our community's ongoing support for JWL's fundraising events. The impact of your generosity is multiplied through various projects like the DSS Angel Tree throughout the year. |
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JWL in Action-Making Spirits Bright- |
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Cops and Kids Shopping Spree On Sunday, December 4, the Johnston County Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge 88, JWL members, alongside many other cheerful volunteers, joined local families and their children for a "Cops and Kids Shopping Spree". This rewarding annual event made possible by monetary donations and supportive participants of FOP's recent raffle fulfilled Christmas wishes for over 40 children this year! Each child was paired with a local police officer and given $300 to spend on gifts to fill their carts. Pictured are JWL members Kristen Brown, Dawn Genna and Dawn Willcox. |
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Christmas Parade & Reindeer Food Stations To kickoff the holiday season, JWL members spread holiday cheer with our Reindeer Food Stations at area Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremonies in the county. Pictured are Dawn Genna and Kaitlyn Sproles, JWL's "elves", who loved being back at these events, seeing the excitement on each child's face as they made their own special treat for Santa's reindeer, while chatting with parents about what the league has been working on this year. |
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JWL member, Mandy Smith, even made the Selma Christmas Tree Lighting a little sweeter by spinning cotton candy for spectators to enjoy. Members continued to share their Christmas spirit with a cruise down North Raiford Street for the Selma Christmas Parade. A jolly time was had by all! |
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Salvation Army Bell Ringers--Doing the Most Good On Saturday, December 10, JWL members spent the day volunteering with The Salvation Army for a wonderful cause. Members stood alongside the well-known red kettles while joyfully ringing bells at Belk in Smithfield. Bell ringers collect donations to provide toys for children at Christmas, warm coats for the homeless, and food for those in need throughout the year. Members, as well as their family and friends, had a cheer filled day and greatly enjoyed their 14 hours of league service in our local community. |
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JWL's Annual Coat Drive for two of our partner organizations, My Kid's Club (MKC) and Partnership for Children of Johnston County warms all of our hearts. This year, the Community Impact and Placement Committee (CIP) was given a list of 100 coats to provide between both organizations. Donations from JWL members, along with funds from community supported league fundraisers, allowed our organization to fulfill every need. |
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-Partnership for Children of Johnston County- Several CIP members joined together on December 12 to wrap the coats for PFCJC at their location in Selma. Members carefully inspected each bag after they were lovingly packaged and tagged for PFCJC's children. CIP members pictured below are Sarah Edwards, Suefan Johnson, Lindsay Wilson, Kelly Blanchard, Dawn Genna, Sharon Turner, Jean Cornell, and Sandi Gregory. |
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-My Kid's Club- On December 15, CIP members Lisa Bland, Sarah Edwards, Suefan Johnson, and Lindsay Wilson attended MKC's annual Christmas party to assist with serving meals to the children and distribute their new winter coats. JWL looks forward to this spirited event each year. Witnessing the joy the children receive from their new winter coats reminds us all of the true meaning of Christmas. |
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Santa Claus gave his elves at JWL a very special assignment: to help him spread holiday cheer to both the young and the young-at-heart this Christmas. Joy-filled personalized letters on Santa's new stationary were mailed to 216 children in 17 states across the USA this year! Additionally, JWL received donations to send 69 letters to children in Johnston County's foster care services and 42 letters to local senior citizens. We were thrilled to receive heartfelt messages and pictures from families as their little ones opened their bright red envelopes from Santa and, with their permission, wanted to share some of their Christmas joy with all of you. This annual event has become a highly anticipated tradition for JWL and we thank each of you for keeping the magic alive year after year. Proceeds from this fundraiser will feed directly into local initiatives in Johnston County. |
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