Last month we celebrated the generosity of our 2009 Women's Fund members by awarding $365,000 in grants to five worthy local agencies.

In a few weeks you'll receive your annual opportunity to join or renew your Women's Fund membership for 2010. As we begin this year's work - researching community needs and renewing our memberships - it's a good time to look back at what we've accomplished since the Women's Fund began in 2004. The numbers alone are impressive:

• We've donated more than $2.5 million to 33 local nonprofit agencies addressing the critical needs of women, children and families.

• We've touched nearly 40,000 lives through grants focused on issues like education, physical and mental health, homelessness, hunger, foster youth and violence prevention.

• We've grown from 67 members in 2004 to 409 members in 2009 - enabling us to reach even more people who need our support.

• We've kept expenses low - 97 cents of every dollar we collect goes to local agencies - thanks to the generosity of our member underwriters and the support of the Santa Barbara Foundation, our partner and fiscal home.

Although we recognize that the economic downturn affects everyone, our most vulnerable citizens feel the impact even more. We hope you'll be among the exceptional women who continue Changing Lives Together in Santa Barbara this coming year.

If you'd like to help us with our spring membership mailing, please contact Carol Hicks at cdh210lex@yahoo.com. You can drop in at anytime - between 10 am and 4 pm, April 5-9 - and work as long as you wish. Volunteers will be contacted with details. Plenty of refreshments and chatting make this a fun volunteer effort.

And if you have any prospective members we should include in our mailing, please contact Parm Williams at 683-5775 or info@womensfundsb.org

Behind the impressive numbers illustrating our growth are the heartfelt stories of people whose lives we've touched over the years. Take Julie, for instance, who called the Breast Cancer Resource Center (BCRC) four days before her surgery, desperate to talk to someone in similar circumstances (same age, single, opting out of breast reconstruction). The BCRC's new computer system funded by the Women's Fund matched Julie with Carol Ann that same day. "She stepped in where even my closest friends were at a loss for what to say or do to support me through this ordeal."