New Impact 100 members were welcomed at a reception last Wednesday afternoon at the Quail Valley River Club Boathouse, where chairs of the nonprofit’s various committees spoke about volunteer opportunities available to them within the organization. To continue to help ensure that 100 percent of member contributions are dispersed as grants, the event was sponsored by Lalita Janke.

While the Impact 100 model offers women the option of simply writing out a $1,000 check, which entitles them to vote on that year’s grants, many members have discovered that becoming involved in the organization makes the experience that much more rewarding.

“Our membership numbers drive what we give away in grants each year. And I’m really happy to announce that we have 425 members this year; 56 of those are new,” said membership chair Barbara DiMarzo, before inviting some of the other committee chairs to give an overview of their groups’ duties.

Mary Ellen McCarthy, Visioning, said they consult with those nonprofits considering the application process; Dr. Suzanne Conway, Events, organizes the various events throughout the year; Gladys LaForge, Community Partners, works with grant recipients after the fact, ensuring the projects continue to meet Impact’s stringent guidelines; and Brenda Cetrulo, Grants, manages the extensive grant application review process.

“If you want to know about Impact, join a grant panel,” said Kate Hoffmann, who was a new member last year and quickly became involved. “I can tell you that anything I’ve ever done with Impact is just outstanding. I have not ever been in a group of women who are that intelligent, who have so much fun and who have so much integrity.”

After explaining the all-encompassing review process, she stressed that members at the Annual Meeting would be able to vote knowing that there was integrity in the granting process.

“That’s why I’m so excited to be part of Impact 100,” said Hoffmann, “because it’s about integrity and making incredible changes in this wonderful community of ours.”

“This is one of my favorite events because this is where we bring more heart and energy into the organization through our new members,” said Denise Battaglini, board president, before providing an overview of activities throughout the entire Impact year, from the Kickoff Brunch in the fall to the Annual Meeting in the spring.

“This is an organization of all women; women who work together to make something really big happen. We all contribute $1,000 and everybody has an equal vote,” said Battaglini, adding that when pooled into $100,000 grants, the impact on the community is far greater than it would be individually.

This year’s Annual Meeting is April 17. For more information, visit impact100ir.com.