Service. Bringing Together Past, Present & Future. Let me introduce you to Soroptimist International of Chico!
Proudly Serving Chico Since 1930! Wow. What a legacy. Our award winning club is the largest in District VI. With approximately 130 members, we’re the largest in our whole Sierra Nevada Region and from what I’ve learned this past summer at the Soroptimist International of the America’s 42nd Biennial Convention, we’re larger than most clubs globally. But how do we remain so large and successful year after year? By keeping our focus on the 4 areas of the Soroptimist International of the America’s “Celebrating Success”! We focus on Programs, insuring we are innovative and forward thinking on our projects. We focus on one Fundraising event. We focus on Publicity to bring attention to local and global issues. But perhaps most importantly, we focus on Membership.
Members of Soroptimist International of Chico value and respect each other’s opinions. We are not a political or professional networking club. We have tremendous diversity in occupations, education, interests and hobbies, but we have all come together with the common goal to improve the lives of women and girls locally and globally. It’s the “glue that binds”.
A sentiment, commonly expressed in requests to SI Chico for help is, “If you want to get something done, ask a Soroptimist”. But we also have fun. Lots of fun. With so many different interests, we have a project or social activity for you; we have book clubs, groups who go to dinner and a movie, some projects include gardening and wine trips. there’s always something going on if you’re looking for service opportunities for fun.
As of this writing, we have 3 Friendship Links with SI Nara, Japan, SI Makati, Philippines and SI St. Albans, England. We were fortunate enough to meet up with representatives from SI Nara, Japan and SI Makati, Philippines at our annual meeting in San Francisco and several of our club members visited SI St. Albans this past year. We have a close friend in Afghanistan and were visited this spring by a member of SI Denmark. Soroptimists welcome Soroptimists in traveling the U.S. and abroad.
We work on professional and leadership development skills. When an employer invests in a woman’s membership in SI Chico, the result is to gain a stronger, more confident employee. Leadership opportunities are made available no matter when in the club year you join. And, with such diversity, we are a self contained “resource guide” for goods and services within our membership.
Our fundraiser, the SI Chico Home Garden & Antique Show is celebrating its 25th Year. Our show is the largest of its kind in Chico and the only one in the North State completely run by volunteers for non-profit purposes. The $60,000 to $75,000 we raise each year is used to fund our service projects, awards and scholarships. Because our show is run by volunteers, it is unique and changes from year to year. MARK YOUR CALENDAR NOW FOR MARCH 19th & 20th AT THE SILVER DOLLAR FAIRGROUNDS!
Want to do something fun and educational today? All of our history is archived at the California State University, Chico’s Special Collections in the Meriam Library. Actual newspaper clippings, radio scripts, event programs project descriptions and presidents’ press books are available for viewing. And, if you’re new to our website, roam around a bit and read more about who we are and what we do specifically. But do visit our site often; there’s always something new.
Come see for yourself. SI Chico meets weekly on Wednesdays at 12 o’clock (Noon) from September through June. If you’re interested in learning more about SI Chico, its dynamic women, and how we accomplish the things we do, please join us for lunch. We’d be pleased to meet you.
Sincerely,
-Lisa Fitzgerald