Women's Foundation of Minnesota

🌈 Happy Pride Month 🌈 We honor the history of Pride — a riot, a refusal to shrink ourselves and our love, a moment to claim our identities. That spirit lives on through everyone who shows up authentically and protects those who are waiting to join us. The fights continue. From WFM's Status of Women & Girls in Minnesota report: more than 2/3 of LGBTQ+ Minnesotans report experiencing anti-LGBTQ+ behavior in the past year. Transgender and nonbinary students are 3X more likely to experience homelessness than their cisgender peers. These aren't just statistics — the realities live in our neighbors, our young people, our community. We are grateful for our grantee-partners doing life-saving work alongside and for LGBTQ+ Minnesotans every single day Annex Teen Clinic, OutFront Minnesota, The Link Minnesota, Our Space, RECLAIM!, Family Tree Clinic, QUEERSPACE collective, Gender Justice, WE Health Clinic, Planned Parenthood North Central States, ACLU of Minnesota, and Transforming Families. We are with you.

Some leaders don’t just advocate for change. They build the systems that make it possible. Today we are proud to celebrate Gloria Perez, our Celebrate Changemakers honoree for Courage. As President & CEO of the Women's Foundation of Minnesota Gloria leads the nation’s first statewide women’s foundation—advancing research, advocacy, and community investments that strengthen economic security and opportunity for women and families across Minnesota. Earlier in her career, she helped build the Jeremiah Program from a local nonprofit into a nationally recognized model helping families move from poverty to prosperity two generations at a time. Her leadership reflects a deep commitment to gender and racial equity and to building pathways where more families can thrive. At Girl Scouts River Valleys, we believe girls develop leadership by seeing it in action. Leaders like Gloria show girls what courage look like in the real world.  Please join us in congratulating Gloria Perez on being recognized as a Celebrate Changemakers Honoree. #CelebrateChangemakers  #GirlScoutsRiverValleys  #WomenWhoLead  #CommunityLeadership  #Changemakers  #LeadershipInAction  #GirlsLead 

WFM is proud to sponsor this event by Research in Action. Get your tickets while you still can!

🌟 Welcome to the team, Melissa Cuff 🌟 As our new Senior Manager, Individual Giving, Melissa takes pride in building authentic and trusting relationships with supporters that inspire purpose-driven, values-aligned philanthropy. As a community-centered advancement leader, she has worked in the nonprofit sector for more than 25 years, primarily with youth-focused organizations. Melissa helps grow WFM's impact through meaningful relationships with donor-partners, working closely with individuals, donor advised fund holders, and giving circles. "I'm incredibly honored to join the Women's Foundation of Minnesota because I deeply believe that creating a more just and equitable future for women, girls, and gender expansive people requires both immediate investment in people's lives and long-term systems change. I'm inspired to support WFM's bold vision and work alongside this talented team in advancing gender and racial justice across Minnesota." Please give Melissa a warm welcome and congratulations! https://lnkd.in/gUivmFnV

There's still time to register! Thank you Women's Foundation California for holding this conversation.

⭐Apply to the Greater Mankato Cabinet⭐ The Greater Mankato Cabinet is now accepting applications! This regional cabinet of the Young Women's Initiative of Minnesota is intentionally creating an intersectional brave space for liberation, social action, healing, and joy for young women and gender-expansive youth. This is a great opportunity to get involved in advocacy and create change in the Mankato area. Learn more and apply at, https://bit.ly/mankato2627 YWCA Mankato #YWIMN #YWI

When the need is urgent and the stakes are high, philanthropy has to move differently. The Immigrant Rapid Response Fund (IRRF) was built to do exactly that — a coalition effort designed to get resources to immigrant communities in Minnesota quickly, equitably, and without bureaucratic delay. Now, we're sharing what we learned. Minnesota's Immigrant Rapid Response Fund: A Playbook for Collective Philanthropic Crisis Response Under System Strain was built by philanthropic leaders who met the moment. Inside, learn how we structured trust-based grantmaking under pressure, how coalition members stepped into leadership when conditions kept shifting, and how relationships — built long before the crisis — made the work possible. This isn't just a retrospective. It's a resource for the field. The playbook is designed for funders, philanthropic partners, and organizations who want to be ready before the next crisis hits — with clear infrastructure, trusted community relationships, and pathways for moving resources when it matters most. Because the communities who need rapid response funding can't afford for us to figure it out in the moment. 📖 Download the playbook here: https://lnkd.in/gCtpG-5B #IRRF #ImmigrantRapidResponseFund #IRRFMN Black Collective Foundation MN, The Constellation Fund, Greater Twin Cities United Way, Headwaters Foundation for Justice MN, Imagine Deliver, Immigrant Rapid Response Fund, Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, McKnight Foundation, The Minneapolis Foundation, Minnesota Council on Foundations, MN Latine Fund, Morgan Family Foundation, Mortenson Family Foundation, Northwest Area Foundation, Propel Nonprofits, Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation, and Women's Foundation of Minnesota.

📣Innovator Application Deadline Extended!📣 You don't need a perfect plan, just a passion and a vision. That's exactly what this program is designed to help you develop. Applications close May 18th at 11:59pm, submit yours ASAP! 👉 Apply here: 🆕 New Applicants, Apply Here: https://tally.so/r/aQE7B9 🔄 Returning Applicants, Apply Here: https://tally.so/r/xXyev9 And we're also offering some extra support. Floreo Labs is offering project brainstorm sessions. We know your idea is in there, sometimes you just need someone to help you find it. Bring your questions, your half-formed ideas, or just yourself. 📲 Book a session here: https://bit.ly/4tScGdr 🔗All the links and info can be found here: http://bit.ly/ywi26