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02.27.2009 Tiffany Circle paves the way for women’s philanthropy
For pictures from the Feb. 24 dinner, click here.
Melanie Sabelhaus is used to hearing, “I had no idea.”
It’s a common response she gets as she travels around the country, speaking to groups of women about her passion – the American Red Cross.
“So many people don’t realize the Red Cross does more than disaster,” said
Sabelhaus, who serves as the National Chair of the Tiffany Circle Society of Women, which is a women’s giving initiative for the Red Cross.
On Tuesday night, the Greater Carolinas Chapter Tiffany Circle hosted a dinner at Tiffany & Co. in South Park Mall featuring Sabelhaus as a guest speaker. Elaine Lyerly, who co-chairs the local Tiffany Circle, introduced Sabelhaus with, “Melanie makes coffee nervous.”
But it’s Sabelhaus’ energy and commitment that helped grow the Tiffany Circle into the most successful initiative in the history of the Red Cross. In its inaugural year three years ago, the Tiffany Circle had a goal to raise $1 million among eight test cities.
“Forget about it—$3.3 million. Women are an economic powerhouse,” Sabelhaus said, noting that women are responsible for 85 percent of the purchasing of all goods and services in the United States.
“As women, we are always in action. We’re following in the footsteps of Clara Barton.”
And they really are. By investing $10,000 annually in their local American Red Cross chapters, Tiffany Circle members are in a long line of women leaders who have helped the Red Cross serve the American public in times of war and peace with disaster assistance, preparedness and safety training, services the armed forces and more.
“It’s important for us as women to work together collectively, and the Tiffany Circle is a great example of that,” said Pamela Jefsen, CEO of the Greater Carolinas Chapter. “What they do has a visible impact on our local community.”
The Tiffany Circle in the Greater Carolinas Chapter is in its second year with 13 members and counting. Renee Brown and Ginger Kelly co-chair the group with Lyerly. Brown noted Tuesday night that the current economic climate is exactly why women’s philanthropy is needed most.
“It’s when times are the worst that mothers, daughters and sisters step up and lead, and now is the time for that,” she said.
More about the Tiffany Circle
The name Tiffany and the $10,000 amount have historical precedent. The society is named for the Tiffany windows in the Board of Governors Hall at Red Cross national headquarters in Washington, D.C. These windows, produced by the Tiffany Studios, were commissioned by Red Cross President Mabel Boardman in 1917. As an act of reconciliation and hope, they were paid for with a $5,000 gift from the Women’s Relief Corps of the North and $5,000 from the United Daughters of the Confederacy of the South.
Across the United States, there are now 37 chapters with Tiffany Circles that have raised more than $12 million for the Red Cross.
The Tiffany Circle will have its annual summit in Washington, D.C., June 8-9. For more information on the local Tiffany Circle, visit http://www.redcrosshelps.org/tiffany-circle or call 704.347.8230.
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All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. The Red Cross shelters, feeds and counsels victims of disasters; provides nearly half of the nation’s blood supply; teaches lifesaving skills; and supports military members and their families. To make a donation or find out more about the Greater Carolinas Chapter of the American Red Cross, call (704) 378.4620 or visit http://www.redcrosshelps.org.