HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — Of the more-than 1.54 million charitable organizations in the United States, one of the newest is the Holland-based Women of Color Give.
Since being formed in 2018, its members raised and dispensed grants to community organizations in Ottawa and Muskegon counties. This year, the group has granted $41,000 to five organizations.
Kim Koeman, senior program manager at MillerKnoll in the corporate foundation and global giving program, talked to WHTC morning-news anchor Peg McNichol about how WOC Give came into being. (Listen to the complete conversation: .)
- $20,000, Latin Americans United for Progress
- $12,000, Escape Ministries, for it’s Empowered Women, Empowered Girls program
- $8,000, First Voice Generation film (in cooperation with Boys and Girls Club of Greater Holland)
- $1,000, TRIO Upward Bound
- $500, The Diatribe
Women of Color Give is an important bridge for women of color, who comprise 19 percent of the U.S. population but only receive 2 percent of charitable giving, said Koeman, a Korean-American trans-racial adoptee who grew up in the Holland area and today identifies as an Asian American woman.
The group currently has 75 dues-paying professional women, of whom about 50 are actively involved in quarterly meetings and community outreach, Koeman said.
“Historically, I think, women of color are seen as recipients of goodwill and welfare, but that’s not always true,” Koeman said, explaining that not only do members visibly demonstrate that women of color can be philanthropists, they have insights into areas of community often overlooked.
“Together, our contributions create impact in a way that’s not done here in West Michigan,” she said. “There’s so much good that happens in our community, but our voices haven’t been represented in that space in an empowered way.”
She said it’s a way of “flipping the narrative,” not only in coming together as a force, but in connecting to area businesses, some of which have sponsored memberships for their employees in Women of Color Give or otherwise partnered with the group to raise money.
Grantees are selected when member nominate organizations, and the top five are invited to make presentations each December to the the membership. The women vote in real time at that meeting, as to which applicant will get one of the five grants. The grants are disbursed in this order: 50 percent of the available total grant money to the top group; 30 percent to the second-highest ranked group; 20 percent to the third; $1,000 to the fourth and $500 to the fifth.
Beyond the benefits of supporting community groups, Women of Color Give also exists to demonstrate that women of color exist beyond the group’s membership.
“We exist everywhere, and it’s also about being intentional about how you support and treat us in every space that we’re in,” she said. “I think one of the key things is to recognize in these spaces is our experiences as women with a racial or ethnic identity may be vastly different than someone else’s. So it’s about recognizing that and thinking about hwy that might be,and what role you might play in that, whether it’s intetional or unintentional. So we’re more than just a philanthropic collective. We want to help people in the journey of understanding equity and injustice in our community.”
Three Ottawa County women created Women of Color Give: Robyn Afrik, Ottawa County’s director of diversity, equity and inclusion; Lucia Rios, workforce navigators program associate for people with disabilities at Salesforce, and Yah-Hanna Jenkins Leys, director of community impact/college success coach for the Community Foundation of the Holland/Zeeland Area.
Afrik now serves as WOC Give president and chairs the communications and development committee. Jenkins Leys is vice president. Rios is a board member.
Koeman’s board role includes chairing the nominations and distribution committee. Other WOC Give board members: Arena Ellis, board secretary; Rebekah Bakker, committees for communications and development as well as nominations and distribution; accountant Yah-Sheba Jenkins is the group’s treasurer; and Maria Simone Weithers is chairwoman of the membership and events committee.
The outreach to the community at large includes a website, https://wocgive.org, and a social media presence on Facebook and LinkedIn, as well as community gatherings open to the public, regular meetings in addition to social gatherings.
“We’re looking forward to 2022,” Koeman said, “and all of the great things that are going to come in the future.”
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