Demands from family, work, friends, church and a million other things strain our resources, especially time and money, making us choose wisely where we invest them. For women who have more time than money, The Rosies, a local volunteer group, seamlessly combines socializing with friends, meeting new people, and giving back to our community.
Just over a year ago, in February 2012, Kat Vanden Hueval held the first meeting of The Rosies in her living room. “It was an idea I had had for a while after leaving the YMCA when I had my second child,” said Kat. “I decided to give it a go. The idea was to get a group of ladies together and give time while learning about different organizations in the Valley, and having fun doing it.” This is the kind of thing Kat does in her free time, but her working hours are also spent at nonprofits. It’s no wonder she was nominated for Woman of the Year in 2013.
Kat is just one example of the impressive women involved with The Rosies. “They are cool people doing cool things,” said Jody Stanislaw about why she enjoys being a Rosie. They attract like-minded individuals from all walks of life. The only requirement is being a woman (sorry, fellas).
Jenna Resko, another Rosie, loves that the group is so inclusive. “Women can participate when they can. There are no minimum requirements and no judging,” she said. The core group consists of about 15 women with a total of around 30 members active in some way.
On the first Wednesday of each month, the women meet at various members’ homes—meetings last an hour and a half with the first half hour dedicated exclusively to socializing. They then present events for the next month and vote, as a group, to choose two activities to officially help with. Events they prefer are those that require multiple people and are, of course, fun. Information is posted on their Facebook page along with information about the events that don’t make the cut, so members can still get involved on their own if they want to.
The Rosies main focus is to act as a go-to resource for local nonprofits. They have participated in events such as timing races for the Special Olympics Nordic Regionals hosted by Higher Ground, serving ribs at Nathan vs. Ribs (a fundraiser for the Special Olympics and Blaine County School District Transition Program), ushering and bartending at V-day the Advocates 2013, prepping the grounds for the move of Sagebrush Equine Training Center for the Handicapped to Swiftsure Ranch, as well as helping out with other events like the ERC’s Hawaiian Bingo night, Hunger Coalition’s Empty Bowls event and many more. To date, they have volunteered over 280 hours.
Nonprofits have notoriously low budgets and depend on volunteer forces to accomplish their missions. Unfortunately, time and money are always in short supply. Although it may seem like writing a big check is the only way to make a difference, this couldn’t be farther from the truth. A lot of great work is accomplished through the generosity of the wealthy residents of the Wood River Valley and organizations like The Rosies, where time can be worth its weight in gold.
Whether it’s easier for you to donate time or money isn’t important. What matters is getting involved in the community and giving what you can because, in the process of giving to a cause, we inevitably end up giving back to each other.
If you are in need of volunteers or are interested in getting involved with The Rosies, check out their Facebook page or contact Kat Vanden Hueval at kkpenguin@yahoo.com or 208-720-4556.
