2024 100 Women Who Care
CORNWALL – One evening, one $100 contribution and one vote. That is all it takes for local women to put real money behind a community project at the next 100+ Women Who Care Cornwall and Area giving event, set for Wednesday, November 4, 2026, at the Best Western Parkway Inn.
Doors and registration open at 6 p.m., with presentations and voting beginning at 7 p.m. Members are encouraged to arrive early to mingle and visit the display area, where applicant organizations set up before the formal portion of the evening gets underway.
A simple idea with a big local impact
The concept behind the group is about as straightforward as charitable giving gets. Each member contributes $100. Cornwall-area charities and organizations each have three minutes to make their case. Members then vote for the one project they most want to support, and the pooled funds go to the winner. With 100 or more women taking part, a single evening can direct more than $10,000 to a local cause, and every dollar of members’ contributions stays in the community.
Members bring a $100 cheque with the recipient left blank, or cash, in exchange for a ballot. Women who have contributed but cannot attend may designate a friend to cast their vote. While ballots are being counted, attendees hear updates from last year’s recipients on how the money was put to work.
“The idea remains refreshingly simple: women learn about local needs, contribute $100 and decide together where their giving can have an immediate local impact,” said co-organizers Donna Chisholm-Forget and Jo Ann Langstaff, both local realtors.
Growing year after year
Since its first event in 2018, the group has directed $74,500 to local organizations across six recorded giving years. That first year ended in a tie, with $9,200 split between the Cornwall Community Hospital Foundation and Maison Baldwin House. By 2025, contributions had climbed to $20,100, more than double that original total, with The Gathering receiving $7,000, Baldwin House $6,000 and the Agape Centre $5,000, along with smaller amounts shared among Centre 105, the OSPCA and Koala Place.
Other past recipients include Beyond 21, Carefor Hospice, Centre 105, Rachel’s Kids and United Way/Centraide.
Charities invited to apply
Cornwall-area charities and organizations with a qualifying local project are invited to review the application information on the group’s website and apply for a chance to present at the November event.
Women who want to take part can register online at womenwhocarecornwall.jimdoweb.com, where they can also see who has signed up so far, review past winners and find answers to frequently asked questions.
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