In April of 2013, I read a small blurb in Woman’s Day magazine about a giving circle called 100+ Women Who Care. It was a simple but impactful concept that I believed could be successful in Peterborough.

On April 21, 2013 I took a chance and emailed a dozen friends and acquaintances about starting a giving circle. By the following week, seven women had agreed to participate, with others already spreading the word among their friends. I was getting contacted by other women asking to be a part of the group, and within three weeks of my initial contact, the website was created, the logo designed and two meeting dates for 2013 confirmed. We were on our way.

The first meeting took place on July 18, 2013, at the Sharon Arts Gallery in Downtown Peterborough, with donations from local merchants including Roy’s Market, Anytime Apparel, Marilyn Weir Photography and Sharon Arts. Several dozen women attended, and 17 became the official founding members: Patty Alexander, Melissa Caron, Lyda Clark, Laura Gingras, Karen Johnson, Leslie Kenney, Tina Kriebel, Susan Leach, Ann Lessard, Arlene MacArthur, Carol Ogilvie, Phyllis Rogers, Betty Sandman, Cindy Schlosser, Lucy Shonk, Pelagia Vincent and myself.

The nonprofit chosen to receive our collective donations at our inaugural meeting was the kitchen at the Peterborough Community Center, for a total of $1,225.

Fast forward 10 years, and the giving circle has grown to over 200 members with an average quarterly donation of $10,000. To date, the giving circle has donated more than $399,000 to local nonprofits, positively impacting many hundreds of lives in our region.

Over the years, the giving circle has changed its name to 100+ Women Who Care Monadnock and also expanded its coverage area to include Francestown, Harrisville, New Ipswich, Rindge and Wilton.

I am profoundly grateful to the steering committee who took over after I stepped down from overseeing operations in July 2017 of what was at the time the only 100+ Women Who Care group in all of New England. Throughout the years, the steering committee has successfully guided 100+ Women Who Care Monadnock through a multitude of challenges and they’ve done it with grace, fortitude and a true commitment to making sure that the group that I launched will continue to thrive for the next 10 years and beyond.

Carol Nelson is the founder of 100+ Women Who Care Monadnock.