FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For More Information Contact:
Gina Plotino, Director of Communications
201.291.4054
gplotino@bergenunitedway.org
 
 
THE POWER OF THE PURSE
Women United in Philanthropy Turn Knowledge Into Action
 
 
April 15, 2008, Bergen County, New Jersey - They are sure to inform and inspire when  Mary Ellen Schoonmaker,  Editorial Writer and Columnist for The Record, and Jennifer Velez, Esq., NJ Department of Human Services Commissioner, join Women United in Philanthropy for the organization's first educational symposium on Friday, May 16, 2008 from 1 - 6 p.m..  The afternoon of discussion and discovery about the needs of women in Bergen County is expected to attract 200 women and will be held in the Moses Family Meeting and Training Center at Bergen Community College in Paramus.  
 
"Women United in Philanthropy calls upon women to be smart, effective philanthropists who use the power of our purses to change the world around us," said Michelle Arpin Begina of Wyckoff who is serving as Chairwoman of the event.  "We believe that every woman should have access to affordable, safe housing for herself and her family, access to affordable health care, the ability to earn a living wage, and the ability to access help from the community in times of unexpected financial crisis."
 
 
The Power of the Purse symposium is sponsored by BD and includes lunch, speaker sessions and a closing reception.  The group will turn knowledge into action first gathering for lunch at 1 p.m. to hear from Schoonmaker.  Mary Ellen Schoonmaker is a long-time editorial writer and columnist for The Record. She has written about education, health care, child care and other social service issues, and has extensive experience in volunteer work in North Jersey. She is the mother of three grown children and lives in Teaneck.
 
Velez, who will close the day with a call to action, was selected by Governor Corzine to head the state Department of Human Services 2007.  She previously served as Deputy Commissioner for Family and Community Services, where she managed the Department of Human Services' Divisions of Medical Assistance and Health Services and Family Development as well as the Offices of Early Care and Education and Prevention of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. Prior to her tenure at NJDHS Commissioner Velez served as the First Assistant Child Advocate in the newly-created Office of the Child Advocate.
 
Speaker sessions during the afternoon will draw upon local experts including housing advocate Lillian Ciufo, President of the Madeline Corporation, Tricia DeBartolome, MSW who serves as Manager of The Compassion Fund at Bergen County's United Way, Tammy Molinelli, Director of the Bergen County Workforce Investment Board and Ilise Zimmerman, MPH, MS, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Northern New Jersey Maternal/Child Health Consortium.
 
 
Women United in Philanthropy is New Jersey's first women's giving circle.  Members contribute $1,000 or more annually to a pooled fund for large impact grant making.  The organization has grown from the original 15 members to 100 women from throughout Bergen County and surrounding areas.
 
"The secret to our success is in our simplicity," says Maxine Frampton, Director of the group. "We choose to invest philanthropically together because we believe we can have greater impact that way.  We are quite literally a circle of women, focused on doing one thing well: Helping women in Bergen County become financially and economically stronger by investing together in programs that help them get on their feet and stay there. The Power of the Purse symposium is designed to help us learn what women need most today and open that learning opportunity up to women throughout New Jersey."
 
To register for the symposium, visit www.wuip.org or call 201.291.0601.  Reservations are $35.