“I call on all the Grand Mothers of Earth & every person who possesses the Grand Mother spirit of respect for life & protection of the young to rise & lead… The life of our species depends on it.”

Alice Walker “Calling All Grand Mothers,” Hard Times Require Furious Dancing: New Poems (2010)

President’s Letter

Alice Walker’s poem “Calling All Grand Mothers,” published more than a decade ago, still creates a vision that seems just within our grasp. It calls on us to possess a spirit that respects life and embraces the promise of tomorrow’s leaders. It asks a question that still goes unanswered today: How would the world be different if women led our planet? Would we feel what Walker describes as “greater humanity, and strength” through “health, happiness & sanity”? In my heart, I know that the answer is yes.

My faith in a compassionate and prosperous world, led by women, is inspired by us. These past few months, members of the Zonta Foothills Club of Boulder County have partnered tirelessly to build a better world for women and girls through advocacy, service, fundraising, and education. Every committee has been a hard-working team carrying out initiatives with determination and vision. How can we question that the world would have “greater humanity, and strength” with women leading, when we look at things like our International Women’s Day Climate Forum, our Young Women in Leadership Award and Climate Justice Scholarship winners, and our Z Clubs who are building a Culture of Respect in our community? As you look through this month’s Flash, you will be struck by the accomplishments of “Grand Mothers” who are making a difference.

This commitment to our vision really matters as we head into our annual Zing for Zonta fundraiser. Thank you to everyone ahead of time for volunteering to help our Fundraising Committee to make Zing a big success. We will need you to sign up for any number of volunteer spots on the day of the event. We need you to SELL TICKETS. You can feel confident telling your friends that if they buy a ticket, it will be a great time! They will enjoy a great lineup of artists, a fun silent auction, and best of all, a fun celebration of Zonta in our Community! Everyone is very excited to offer their time and their performance to make the evening memorable. But Zing’s financial success is only as great as the number of fans we have in the seats, the number of bids we have on our auction, and the number of votes that our fans buy to award our Fans’ Choice Award winner.

Hosting Zing in April is especially meaningful. It is a time when we also commemorate Sexual Assault Awareness Month when advocates, survivors, their loved ones, and the community, come together to talk openly about sexual violence, support survivors, increase knowledge and awareness, and identify strategies and resources to prevent sexual violence. Did you know that one in 4 women and 1 in 17 men in Colorado experience sexual violence and The Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault reports that:

73 Seconds

TIME BETWEEN SEXUAL ASSAULTS
IN US

25.5 Million

WOMEN REPORTED RAPE IN THEIR LIFETIME

2.8 Million

MEN REPORTED RAPE IN THEIR LIFETIME

This year, we are once again partnering with the Feminist Uprising Club at Front Range Community College to sponsor Take Back the Night as part of this important month of awareness raising. I hope you will join us on Thursday, April 17 from 3-5:30 as we sponsor two tables for the event. This annual partnership is a critical way to show solidarity with our community. (More information available below in the calendar and advocacy article.)

Thank you to each of you. As members of the Zonta Foothills Club of Boulder County know that your commitment makes a difference. Together, we can be sure that our efforts are impacting the lives of women and girls every day. You are all the Grand Mothers of Earth, helping to change the future.

-Pam

Committee News

Zonta Events Coming Up

Advocacy Committee Meeting - Monday, April 7, at noon Pica’s, 5360 Arapahoe Ave., Boulder
Women's Empowerment Day at the Capitol on Wednesday, April 9. Details below. Join our Z Clubs.
Business Meeting - Thursday, April 10, 5:30-7:30. Meet our Young Women in Leadership Award winners, and to commemorate Sexual Assault Awareness Month, we will compile special gift bags for the women who are at SPAN’s (Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Non-Violence) Shelter.
Take Back the Night - Thursday, April 17, 3-5:30 pm Front Range Community College, 2121 Miller Dr, Longmont, CO in the Classroom Building Courtyard
Zing for Zonta: Boulder’s Got Talent - Friday, April 18, 6:00 pm at The Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut Street, Boulder.
May Business Meeting - Thursday, May 8, 5:30-7:30 pm, Valmont Community Presbyterian Church, 3262 61st St, Boulder, CO 80301. Installation of 25-26 Officers, Induction of New Members, Meet our 2025 Z Club and Golden Z Club Scholars.
Zonta North American Interdistrict Meeting - June 20-22, Niovi, Michigan

Committee Chairs, please enter committee dates into the Collaborative Hub so Club members know about all upcoming activities.

We have been working hard on producing all of the items that we will need to promote Zing both leading up to the big day and at the event itself. Keep sharing your emails with your friends…so far they have helped us see a bunch of tickets!

Our new promotional video will be unveiled at the event; we can’t wait to show you.

Check us out

Website - https://www.zontafoothills.org/
Instagram - zontafoothillsclubboulder
Facebook - Zonta Foothills Club of Boulder County
Pantherz ZClub Instagram - bhs.zclub

Outreach Committee - Co-Chairs Pam Malzbender & Sheila Cohen, Joan Siebenaler, Carol Smoot

The Governance and Engagement Committee - Co-Chairs Nancy Rowe and Pam Malzbender, Catherine Medal, Claudia Ibarra, Kathy Israelson, Ann Hodgson and Amanda Elsnes

Zonta EducateZ Committee

EducateZ Scholarhip Committee

Young Women in Leadership Award Winners Announced

After an exhaustive outreach to the BVSD and St Vrain Valley high schools, we are honored to introduce the winners of Zonta Young Women in Leadership Award (formerly the Young Women in Public Affairs Award). This award recognizes young women, ages 16-19, who demonstrate leadership skills and commitment to public service and civic causes, and encourages them to continue their participation in public and political life.

At our April business meeting you will get to meet Natalie Cappelletti, our First Place 2025 Young Women in Leadership Award winner and Josephine Nguyen, our Second Place winner. Natalie is a senior at Fairview High School and Josephine is a senior at Silver Creek High School. You can learn all about them here…. They are inspirational leaders who have been giving back to their communities throughout high school, and best of all you can meet them at our April business meeting!

The Zonta EducateZ Scholarship will be next. This is for a woman returning to school and needing financial assistance. The timeframe will be in May. Following that, we will move right into the Jane M. Klausman Women in Business (JMK) Scholarship with outreach to CU Boulder, Front Range Community College and others.

Natalie Cappelletti

Jospehine Nguyen

FUNdraising Committee

Our Club got their Culture of Respect message out to soccer fans on a cold windy March evening. At this year’s Boulder High vs Fairview women’s soccer game they displayed their banners, set up a table to collect signatures,and Club President Lily Beacom presented their project and read their pledge to more than 300 spectators during half time. As Lily read the pledge Club members took to the field. They hit their goal of collecting more than 150 signatures that night even from the men’s lacross team!

They also hosted training sessions for the school community, taught by our community partners at Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Non-Violence (SPAN). These workshops discussed healthy relationships, boundaries, and consent.

Join Our Club

Creating a Culture of Respect at Boulder High and around BVSD

Zonta EducateZ Committee - Co-Chairs Gaby Lopez & Claudia Ibarra, Pam Malzbender, Michelle Carpenter, Tommie Atanasoff, Margareta Bancroft, Dixie Hollingsworth, Marta Lindrose

Advocacy Committee

We’re in the home stretch for Zing for Zonta!!

Countdown: Zing for Zonta is less than 2 WEEKS. Currently, we have over 120 tickets reserved for Zing. The Gordon Gamm Theater holds approximately 200, so let’s FILL THE AUDITORIUM! Please continue to let everyone know they should buy a ticket to a fun event.

Here’s a recap to tell all of your friends!

Zing is on April 18th at the Dairy Arts Center.
Our emcee will be Ms. Eda Bagel (aka Jeffrey Kash from Premier Bank).
Greens Point from Longmont will cater the evening.
You can bid on silent auction items and vote for our talent through Bolder Events: Here is the link.
This year’s Judges are Executive Director of Rocky Mountain Equality, Mardi Moore, Assistant District Attorney, Alison Brand, and Boulder Mayor, Aaron Brockett.

Here are the performers you all helped to select! Learn more about them here.

Remember, it’s never too late to get SPONSORSHIPS or cash DONATIONS. So remember $65 Early Bird TICKETS are available NOW until April 7th. Everyone should get 5 or more people to buy a ticket. Let's fill the auditorium! Purchase your tickets here.

At our April business meeting, we ask members to sign up for specific tasks the night of Zing. We will also need a few members to help by purchasing a few specific items for the silent auction baskets. So please be ready to help out.

The FUNdraising Committee - Co-Chairs Colleen Farrell and Marta Lindrose

Community Outreach Committee

Can You Help Spread the Word?

Zervice Committee

Take Back the Night at Front Range Community College

On Thursday, April 17, we will join our community partners in the Feminist Uprising Collective to sponsor Take Back the Night at Front Range Community College. The event will run from 3:00-5:30 PM at Boulder County Campus in the Classroom Building Courtyard - 2121 Miller Drive in Longmont.

Commemorating Sexual Assault Awareness month, this event raises awareness of sexual violence and brings together organizations from around Boulder County in support of survivors. It will feature guest speakers, music, food, community resources, and a candlelight vigil. The keynote speaker will be Filmmaker and activist Isabella Grace Cohn, creator of Watch You Rise and recipient of the YWCA Energizing the Future Award.

All are welcome to this free event—let's stand together for a violence-free world!

Feminist Uprising Collective Creates a Culture of Respect at FRCC

And that’s not all. The students in the Feminist Uprising Collective decided to implement our Culture of Respect Project. As a group, they created their pledge and we supported them by producing a 4 x 6 foot banner that they hung in their school on April 1. This pledge will hang all month long and be a part of their TBtN event. They hope their student body will endorse their pledge, which invites the entire Boulder County Community to Say NO to Violence and YES to gender equity. More information will be available soon.

Climate Video Almost Completed!

You may remember that earlier this year, our Advocacy Committee received a grant from Zonta District 12 to produce a video promoting Zonta Says NOW and our important work around Climate. The Climate Forum on March 8th kicked off the project, and the recipients of our Zonta Foothills Climate Scholarship have allowed us to film them in their labs and highlight their work and their mission. All of the hard work is almost completed! Sheila King and Sara Gillespie have been spearheading the production along with a local production company. “They had me in tears,” Sara explained. She was inspired by the passion they displayed for their work and their gratitude for the scholarship funds, the exposure provided by the Forum, and their interactions with our Zonta Club members. We hope to have a rough edit in a few weeks.

One of our Scholars, Brigid Mark, shared some great news. The team was selected to receive the Campus Sustainability Award for Student Leadership. The professor who wrote the amazing recommendation for the Scholarship application, Nadav Orian Peer, also received the Faculty version of this award. They are doing inspirational work!

The EducateZ Scholarship Committee - Co-Chairs Nancy Rowe and Michelle Médal, Margareta Bancroft, Kathy Bousquet, Jan Cheney, Dana Rae Vaughn, Kay Meyer

The Advocacy Committee - Co-Chairs Sheila King and Sara Gillespie, Lisa Lesniak, Ranelle Randles, Kay Meyer, Pam Malzbender, Elizabeth Freedman and Dana Rae Vaughn

Governance and Engagement

Welcoming New Members

The Governance and Engagement Committee is looking forward to installing Sharon Goodman and Kay James at our May meeting. We are also making plans for our new member orientation. More information to come.

We will be staffing an information table at Zing for Zonta so if you would like to be an ambassador for our Club at Zing let us know. This is a great opportunity to spread the word about our programs and reach out to perspective members.

North American Inter District Meeting NAIDM, INC.

Be sure to check out the Zonta North American Great Lakes Summer Camp on June 20-22 in Novi, Michigan. A few of our Club members will be going to network with Zontians from around North America and the world. The Zonta International board will be in attendance and will share updates on the board activities, international projects and more. On Friday we will also have two longer sessions on programs to end Human Trafficking and Climate Justice, a hands-on service project and fun summer camp activities that you won’t want to miss! Learn more and sign up here.

Gift Bags for SPAN

At our April meeting we will be creating gift bags of necessities and fun stuff for the Boulder Safehouse. The Club will provide bags along with the items to populate each bag. Currently, there are 12 adults and 20 children living at the shelter. But we will make extras so that they have a supply for the future. We will have stations of merchandise set up on tables and you can choose an adult or children's bag. The filled bags will be delivered to the Safehouse on Friday, April 11th.

Several years ago our Zonta Club provided dinner for the residents of The Mother House and they would like for us to reinstate this event. It's a great opportunity to share a meal and socialize with the residents of the Mother House - date and time TBD.

After Zing, when the weather warms up, we will do another book sorting at the storage lockers just to tidy up and make everything more accessible. Date and time TBD.

Zonta Service Committee - Co-chairs: Marta Lindrose and Catherine Bailey, Tommie Atanasoff, Dixie Hollingsworth, Cheri Magin, Kim Prosser-Noonan, Joan Siebenaler, Carol Smoot

Z Club Scholarships Open to Applicants

Each year our EducateZ Committee administers the promotion and award of our two Z Club-related scholarships. This year’s application process for the Pantherz Z Club Scholarship and the Golden Z Club Scholarship are now open through April 11. We will invite our winners to our May business meeting.

Our Golden Z Education Fund is available all year for Golden and Platinum Z Club members who need support covering extra expenses.