Newsletter February 2023

FEBRUARY MEETING …February 8, 12:30-1:30 at Starmount Country Club

Meet APRIL MASON, General Manager Plant Services, Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina

April Mason is General Manager, Plant Services. At Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina, (TBMNC) located in Liberty, N.C. The plant is Toyota’s first battery manufacturing facility in the world and, once it begins production in 2025, will employ 1,750 workers with four production lines, each capable of delivering enough lithium-ion batteries for 200,000 vehicles.

As General Manager, April will provide oversight for production control, facilities and local business planning, as well as coordinate with various regional functional teams related to battery business establishment. She joined Toyota in 1994 and most recently served as the general manager of administration for Toyota’s engine plant in Alabama.

April holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in labor and employee relations from the University of Cincinnati. She currently serves on the board of Girls, Inc. as leader of the 50th Anniversary “Invest in a Girl” Event and is a member of the International Women’s Forum, serving on the awards committee.

WPF MEMBRERSHIP INFORMATION

From Meryl Mullane, Membership Committee Chair

“The power of women gathering is Immeasurable.”  ~Author Unknown

Your WPF Membership Committee is ready for an exciting and productive new year and learning about the great applicants you’ll be proposing. We love having new members join our professional sisterhood.

Please keep in mind that prospective members must attend three meetings before the application deadline on June 1. If she hasn’t yet attended any meetings, that’ll mean three out of the next four meetings: February, March, April and May.

The Membership Application and Sponsor Form are on the WPF website. Here are the membership application procedures:

• Prospective members will attend three WPF lunch meetings with each of her sponsors, a total of three meetings, within the twelve months prior to application.

• New members are accepted once yearly.  Completed applications must be received by the Membership Chair by June 1 for membership beginning July 1.

• An Active and Active Retired member may either sponsor or co-sponsor a total of no more than two new member applications in a fiscal year.

• An Emeritus member may co-sponsor no more than two new member applications in a fiscal year.

• New members may be a sponsor after 24 months of membership.  The waiting period to sponsor a new member doesn’t apply to WPF members who have been reinstated as members after having left WPF in good standing.

• Sponsors will agree to provide any information about the prospective member as requested by the Membership Committee.

• If an applicant is rejected for membership, the primary sponsor and co-sponsors will be notified prior to notifying the applicant.

• Members of the Membership Committee, WPF President and Supporting members cannot act as sponsors.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at merylmullane@gmail.com or call me at 336-312-3381.

 

Reminder! Annual Membership Dues Are Due by March 1

2023 WPF membership renewal notices have been sent. Membership fees are due by March 1st.

You can pay dues securely online at WPForum.org website. Please note that Paypal service fees are included in your online payment.

Or you may pay your membership dues by check and mailing to:

WPF, Attn: Membership, PO Box 38594, Greensboro, NC 27438

Members who submit dues payments after March 1, will be assessed a late fee.

WPF FOUNDATION NEWS: Announcing 2023 Grants Cycle!

From Jennifer Mencarini, WPFF Grants Committee Chair

The WPF Foundation 2023 Grant Application is open! 

DEADLINE: February 15, 3023

I am excited to announce that our 2023 Grants Cycle is open through February 15, 2023. One of the ways you can help make this Cycle successful is to share the opportunity with Guilford County nonprofits supporting women and girls. For more information about the Foundation’s purpose and funding guidelines, please visit https://wpforum.org/foundation/grants/.

Click here for the press release announcing the 2023 Grant Cycle; please share this information widely with your networks to ensure that we have a robust number of applications.  If you have any questions or need additional information, please email the Grants Committee at wpff.grants@gmail.com.

Many thanks for your support of the Foundation and the Grants Committee!

 

 

PAYING IT FORWARD

From Kim Eder, WPF Foundation President

We are excited to start hearing from applicants.  The deadline is February 15th, so please spread the word quickly to any organization in Guilford County that runs programming for women and girls and encourage them to apply.  We look forward to being able to award another batch of grants this year to honor and encourage the outstanding work being done in our community.

None of this would be possible without the support of our membership.  To all of you who gave in 2022, and in all the years past… THANK YOU!  We are paying it forward to the organizations we support by awarding grants that empower Women and Girls by supporting:

• opportunities for women and girls to aspire to or further their careers;

• education and leadership development of women and girls;

• education of the public on the status and rights of women; and

• recognition of achievements and contributions of women.

If you have any questions about the grant cycle, or about the WPF Foundation, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or any of our WPFF Board members.