100+ Women Who Care – Madison board members vet each charity upon nomination to ensure it’s a 501(c)(3) and would spend our donations in Dane County. Each charity is eligible to present for two years after vetting. Three charities are randomly chosen from the list each quarter to present at the upcoming meeting.
If you don’t see your favorite charity, it can be nominated or re-nominated by any 100+ Women Who Care – Madison member by submitting the nomination form here.
View our past Impact Award winners here.
Current Nominated Charities
Eligible for the Spring 2025 meeting
Charities expiring March 2025:
1. Madison Public Schools Foundation-Teacher Support Network: The mission of the Madison Public Schools Foundation is to support the education of every child by raising funds, developing community partnerships, and advocating for Madison’s public schools. Their vision is that, supported by the Foundation, Madison will have excellent, well-funded public schools in which learning is celebrated and all students graduate ready for college, career, and community involvement. They believe that every child deserves a high quality and equitable education. The Teacher Support Network provides school supplies and other material resources to students and teachers at all 52 MMSD schools and 3 special programs, including 26,000 students and 2,700 teachers. www.schoolsmakemadison.org Expiring March 2025
2. Porchlight: Striving to reduce homelessness in Dane County by collaborating with the community to provide shelter, affordable housing, and supportive services that eliminate barriers and empower the individuals and families we serve. They envision a community without homelessness. In keeping with their mission and values, they create innovative solutions, vibrant partnerships, and opportunities for those served. www.porchlightinc.org Expiring: March 2025
3. Sleep in Heavenly Peace: They believe that bed a is a basic need for proper physical, emotional and mental support a child needs. According to ongoing research data, roughly 3% of the total population represent children sleeping on the floor, couches or in other uncomfortable situations. Their goal is that no kid sleeps on the floor in our town! They’re a group of volunteers, dedicated to building, assembling and delivering top-notch fully furnished beds to children and families in need at no cost to them. All children deserve a safe, comfortable place to lay their heads. All donations go towards building, furnishing and delivering beds. www.shpbeds.org Expiring: March 2025
Charities expiring June 2025:
4. Family Service Center: Supporting families and a safe community since 1910, touching the lives of over 4,000 people each year. They specialize in mental health support across the age span, specializing in the treatment of children, birth through seventeen, who have experienced trauma or other stress in their young lives. Using a strength-based approach, we provide critical support through individual and family therapy, in-home parenting support, day treatment services for youth, Birth to 3 programming for children with developmental delays, and substance use prevention and education services. Their growing Steps for Success help middle school youth who are struggling in their home, school, and community due to mental health and behavioral challenges. www.fsmad.org Expiring: June 2025
Charities expiring September 2025:
5. The Rage Fund: The Rage Fund’s mission is to identify, promote, and implement solutions to foster a more inclusive and diversely-able world. They have two initiatives – the first is RAGE4CARE: a public awareness campaign to shine a light on the importance of caregivers. The second initiative is RAGE4INFO: an online platform they plan to develop to connect people to information about different avenues of becoming a caregiver and public services available in different states. www.jointherage.org Expiring: September 2025
6. Literacy Network. Founded in 1974, the Literacy Network serves approximately 1000 low-income adults each year in Dane County. They help individuals build skills and reach their goals through personalized education services and support. The adults we support improve their skills in English language communications, reading comprehension, and use of information technology. As a result, they advance their careers, help their kids succeed in school, become U.S. citizens, understand health information, or obtain their high school equivalency diploma or other degrees. www.litnetwork.org Expiring: September 2025
7. Prairie Music and Arts. An arts education organization taking artistic opportunities directly to kids, by fostering artistic exploration and inspiring personal growth through collaborative, holistic and creative experiences. The programs occur at community sites throughout the area, removing barriers to essential arts education and meeting youth where they already are. www.prairiemusic.org Expiring: September 2025
8. More Smiles Wisconsin. Formerly Madison Dental Initiative (MDI), this nonprofit has been providing dental services to the impoverished population of Dane County since 2009. Serving all low-income individuals aged 8 and over, they believe in long-term solutions emphasizing education, prevention and access to care. They don’t just provide dental care, they work to change lives. www.moresmileswi.org Expiring: September 2025
Charities expiring December 2025:
9. Access Community Health Centers. Started in 1982, Access Community Health Centers is a non-profit organization with the mission of improving the health and lives of people who otherwise face financial, cultural, or language obstacles that prevent access to high-quality, affordable health care. Access removes the barriers our patients may experience, offering them quality care regardless their ability to pay. They provide medical, dental, behavioral health, and affiliated pharmacy services to more than 31,000 individuals from throughout southwest Wisconsin at five locations in Madison, Sun Prairie and Dodgeville. www.accesscommunityhealthcenters.org Expiring: December 2025
10. Greater Madison Resource Center. The GMRC is a serves as an initial point of contact for those experiencing issues due to homelessness or experiencing financial difficulties impacting their everyday life. They serve as a one stop resource center to provide individuals with the contacts and resources they need to resolve immediate crisis issues. Their staff works tirelessly and around the clock to respond to individuals whenever and wherever they have a need until they can get into a more stable situation, even if that is shelter. Groups that are an extension of them include Project Babies (which provides diapers and other infant needs to those in need) and Santas without Chimneys (which provides Christmas gifts to families referred by social works throughout the Madison area). www.gmrcmadison.com Expiring: December 2025
11. LOV, Inc (Living Our Vision Inclusively). Founded in 2008, LOV, Inc is a family-led community in which they mobilize their strengths and gifts to enrich the lives of people with disabilities and strengthen the civic life of the community as a whole. Their mission is to unite people with developmental disabilities to engage and build their best lives. www.lovinc.org Expiring: December 2025
12. Community Shares of Wisconsin. Started in 1971, Community Shares represents many people, many dreams, and one community. As a member nonprofit-directed organization, they bring donors together with over 70 nonprofits to address social, economic, and environmental issues. In addition to fundraising support, Community Shares supports member non-profits with shared technology, 401k plans, and leadership development training. www.communityshares.com Expiring: December 2025
13. Box of Balloons. Mission is to make each birthday happy and have every child feel celebrated. Unfortunately, that is not possible for many families. In America 18% of children live below the poverty level. Box of Balloons believes that a birthday celebration can give families the joy and hope they may be missing. Referrals come from Dane County Social Workers and advocates who identify children in need, children who otherwise would not have a birthday celebration. www.boxofballons.org/wisconsin-madison Expiring: December 2025
14. Developing Artists Murals and Alliances (DAMA). Fosters youth development through collective art experiences and trains local artists to stabilize and sustain community transformation processes. Their vision is to use mural making to help develop a network of communities whose members, especially youth, feel safe in their neighborhoods and proud of their communities. DAMA empowers artists, neighborhoods, and youth to become change agents, collaborating on projects that physically and socially improve communities. DAMA projects focus on under-resourced urban and rural communities throughout the City of Madison and Dane County. www.damawi.org Expiring: December 2025
Charities expiring March 2026:
15. UNIDOS: Their mission is to empower the community to break the cycle of domestic violence, end sexual assault and promote healthy family systems. They provide services, programming, and support to those affected by domestic or sexual abuse in and around Dane County. Services are free, confidential, and available regardless of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, or disability. To that end, UNIDOS has become a leader around the state as a resource for training and technical assistance to a variety of agencies around the state working with abused Latinas. They also provide statewide education and technical assistance to colleagues and professionals who wish to improve their services to Latinos in Wisconsin. www.unidoswi.org Expiring March 2026
16. Outreach LGBTQ+ Community Center: Committed to equity and quality of life for all Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and all other people through community building, health and human services, and economic, social, and racial justice advocacy. Their vision is to create a community where the presence and contributions of LGBTQ+ people are welcomed and celebrated; where intolerance is challenged and defeated; where justice prevails; and where civil rights of all people are valued and respected. www.outreachmadisonlgbt.org Expiring March 2026
17. Omega School, Inc Omega School began as an alternative for young people over 18 years old who were not succeeding in the traditional high school setting. The school provides a homey environment, low student-to-teacher ratio, individualized instruction, and committed professional staff, creating a place where students can learn and complete their GED/HSED. www.omegaschool.org Expiring March 2026
20. Centro Hispano: Mission for Dane County to become a place where Latinx families can aspire upward to reach personal and professional goals while feeling engaged and strengthened with the tools for success. This is accomplished by Empowering Youth, Strengthening Families, and Engaging the Community. www.micentro.org Expiring March 2026
18. Sun Prairie Explore Children’s Museum: Mission is to provide meaningful opportunities, inspire participation in purposeful play, and promote lifelong learning. This is accomplished by creating a community space with meaningful content that inspires creativity, exploration, engagement, shared learning, collaboration, communication, critical thinking skills and fun for guests of all ages. Individuals take an active role in the learning environment, develop an understanding of diverse environments, and interact in social contexts. www.explorecm.org Expiring March 2026
19. The Latino Academy of Workforce Development: Mission is to strengthen our diverse communities by providing linguistically and culturally competent adult education programming that advances opportunities to ensure that individuals and families thrive socially, economically, and civically. Programs consist of education (GED, English, Digital Skills), mentorship, financial coaching and workplace skills training (construction, CDL, ServSafe, etc). latinoacademywi.org Expiring March 2026
20. Bikes for Kids Wisconsin – Formerly known as Free Bikes 4 Kidz Madison, Bikes for Kids Wisconsin has given away over 10,000 bikes to children in need. Their mission is to make bicycling sustainable, equitable, and affordable as a means of everyday transportation. They believe access to bikes betters the lives of all physically, emotionally, and economically. Now serving the Racine area as well, over 85% of the donated bikes are within Dane County. www.bikesforkidswi.org Expiring March 2026
21. Just Dane – Offering an array of direct service programs for individuals and families involved in the criminal justice system. Just Dane’s services include prison reentry programs and services for children who have an incarcerated parent. Their many programs inspire hope for individuals returning to the Dane County community after incarceration by breaking down the barriers that can prevent them from fully participating in our community and the lives of their families. Just Dane also supports the families of those incarcerated through reading programs, family visit programs and mentoring programs. This helps bring wholeness and healing to individuals and their families. www.justdane.org Expiring March 2026
22. The Playing Field (TPF) – a unique, non-profit, early childcare education program that removes barriers to high quality childcare and intentionally integrates children ages 6 weeks to 6 years from varied racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. Enrollment is based on a unique funding model: One-third pay full tuition; one-third are supported with needs-based scholarships; and a third are funded by an Early Head Start grant. TPF provides transportation in the City of Madison and meets the most basic needs of children such as clean clothes, a bath or assurance that they may have food at any time. www.playingfieldmadison.org Expiring March 2026
23. Affordable Dental Care – a bilingual non-profit dental clinic dedicated to providing quality and compassionate care to the uninsured and underinsured. Patient numbers have seen a consistent 20% increase over the last two years. Their devoted clinical team has performed over 6,000 procedures, showcasing our commitment to providing essential dental care to those in need. In addition to care, they are engaged in the community: 500+ Dental Kits given to children; hosted dental education workshops for lower-income families at local community centers and schools. www.affordabledentalmadison.org Expiring March 2026
Charities expiring June 2026:
24. Girls on the Run: At Girls on the Run South Central Wisconsin, teaching essential life skills is the cornerstone of our research-based programs. Trained volunteer coaches facilitate lessons that blend physical activity with life skill development, including managing emotions, fostering friendships, and expressing empathy. The Girls on the Run curriculum is structured around understanding themselves, valuing relationships and teamwork, and recognizing how they can help shape the world at large. Participants gain critical life skills that strengthen their potential at a time when societal pressures and conflicting messages about how to feel and act can cause doubt and uncertainty. www.girlsontherunscwi.org Expiring June 2026
25. Meadowood Health Partnership – Under the umbrella of the Meadowood Neighborhood Association, The Meadowood Health Partnership (MHP) was formed in 2016. The primary mission of (MHP) is to strengthen families, promote literacy, and provide neighborhood-based model health care. The unique model uses Community Health Workers to provide support to community members. The partners include: Meadowridge Library, Today Not Tomorrow, Inc, Project Babies, Meadowood Neighborhood Center, and Neighborhood Connectors. Access Community Health Centers is closely associated with this partnership and they provide technical and medical information assistance. Physicians and health care workers partner with MHP to provide health care services. www.mwhp.org Expiring June 2026
26. Families & Schools Together – partners with community-based organizations and schools to implement evidence-based family engagement programs. Engaging in authentic, culturally responsive family engagement, involving families and communities in making decisions, and addressing innate power dynamics — while providing families an opportunity to connect with other families and the community — are critical to building trust and can foster a partnership between the family, school, and community to best support children to thrive. Families & Schools Together has transformed tens of thousands of lives and continues to evolve to best engage with our partners and providers, and the children and families whom they serve. www.familiesandschools.org Expiring June 2026
Charities expiring September 2026:
27. Yada Fair Trade & Resale – Like our parent organization, The Yada Project, our mission is to help people see God at work in the world and experience His love in tangible ways. Yada Fair Trade & Resale focus their efforts on finding ways to support and empower women who have been victims of sexual exploitation and trafficking. They want every woman they serve to feel known, valued and supported—to know they’re not alone and there is someone who sees them and cares about them. www.yadaftr.com Expiring September 2026
28. Black Men Coalition of Dane County – Their mission is to foster and develop a safe and inclusive environment for those most vulnerable in Dane County through community involvement, mentorship, education, employment skills, and supported housing. By providing these opportunities they believe they are generating a sense of belonging, which is critical to social and emotional development (all genders and all races). BMC is led by Black men who have beaten the school-to-prison pipeline and other systemic barriers. The population they can reach are those who don’t trust the human service systems or don’t even know there are programs out there to help them. They provide direct and integrated support services to men and women who are willing to take a proven leap of faith to immerse themselves into an environment that is different from what they may know. www.bmcdc.org Expiring September 2026
29. Madison Reading Project – The mission of the Madison Reading Project is to connect our community with free books and literacy resources that ignite a love for reading and affirm and reflect the diversity of young readers. In 2013, Madison Reading Project was started by founder and Executive Director, Rowan Childs. On a search for reading resources, Childs discovered the alarming statistics associated with literacy rates and book ownership of families experiencing poverty. With a $1,000 seed donation, they served their first 30 children at the Salvation Army of Dane County’s after school program. Over time, they have grown to serve thousands of families, schools and community organizations by providing free books, and offering fun and engaging literacy programs to children and educators. www.madisonreadingproject.com Expiring September 2026
30. Tri4Schools – Supporting the health and wellness of kids inside and outside the classroom. Tri4Schools recognizes that a child’s development is multifaceted. It involves physical health, mental and emotional well-being. Their programs help children build resilience and confidence and the events support the overall health of all kids within partner schools. By promoting active lifestyles, teamwork, and a positive approach to challenges, Tri 4 Schools is laying the foundation for a healthier future generation. Core Initiatives: after school programs, events, school grants, and financial support for kids. Each year, Tri4Schools provide thousands of dollars to Dane County physical education budgets. This funding allows teachers to enhance the educational opportunities for their students. www.tri4schools.org Expiring September 2026
31. Horizon High School – Horizon High School provides students with an alcohol- and drug-free school environment. We support high school students in recovery from substance use disorders (SUD), including those who may have co-occurring mental health disorders. The school fosters emotional, social, and academic growth for youth who would benefit from a student-centered learning environment with a low student-to-teacher & counselor ratio of 5:1. Students are encouraged to participate in a variety of activities, both at school and after school, in order to help them maintain their recovery and to grow into well-rounded community members. Since Horizon’s creation, over 200 young people have attended. Today many of these former students are enrolled in colleges and universities, in the military, or working as contributing members of our community. www.horizonhs.org Expiring September 2026
32. Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestra (WYSO) Music Makers Program -WYSO’s mission is to provide transformational music education experiences for all kids. From orchestra programs that provide expanded experiences building on school music and private lesson training and the Music Makers program for kids who may not have ever picked up a musical instrument before, WYSO erases financial barriers for families and creates access to life changing music education programming. www.wysomusic.org Expiring September 2026
33. The Rainbow Project – Restorative healing and hope for young children and their families who have experienced trauma, building a foundation for the mastery of life-sustaining skills. Providing a full continuum of prevention, early intervention, deep trauma treatment and crisis/emergency services that are comprehensive, best practice, evidence based & trauma informed services for young children and their families (infants through middle school age) who have experienced trauma/s, including, child abuse, neglect, exposure to community violence, gun violence child sexual abuse, domestic violence, community violence, natural traumas, severe accidents, child sex-trafficking, grief/loss, drug endangered children. www.therainbowproject.net Expiring September 2026
34. NewBridge – Imagine a world where every older adult is well fed, has a place to live, has access to affordable health care, and does not live in isolation. On January 1, 2019, four area Senior Coalitions merged to form NewBridge, a non-profit organization serving older adults in Madison and Monona. NewBridge provides a variety of services and activities for older adults, age 60+; access to programs and essential services, engaging them in a variety of activities that allow them to remain active, independent and happy as they age. A special emphasis is placed on reaching out to individuals from marginalized communities and those in the lower income brackets. www.newbridgemadison.org Expiring September 2026
35. YMCA of Dane County – Helping people of all ages reach their full potential, improving community health, and supporting local families. Purchased memberships serve to cover the overhead expenses for the organization so that donated dollars can all be used to support their mission. Their strategic plan identifies five areas of focus: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI); Community Support; serving their Membership; and addressing the needs of Families and their children aged 13 and younger, as well as Seniors. They offer a variety of programs, including preschool, 4-year old kindergarten, and before and after school care with 33% of participants receiving financial assistance. Each year they give back a minimum of 5% of revenue dollars to make sure everyone can join their programs through financial assistance and scholarships. For example, the YMCA worked with school social workers and other non-profits to identify kids and provided $250,000 in camp scholarships to enable them to attend camp. www.ymcadane.org Expiring September 2026
36. The Salvation Army of Dane County – The Salvation Army of Dane County Social Services is committed to supporting women and families in their journey from homelessness to housing. They provide a safe warm environment for all seeking shelter while eliminating barriers to stable housing through concentrated strength-based case management and holistic service delivery. They work to nurture resilience and a legacy of empowered self-sufficiency. www.centralusa.salvationarmy.org Expiring September 2026
Charities expiring December 2026:
37. Waiting to Exhale – Committed to celebrating Black culture by providing a space where women can release their vulnerabilities and find solace. www.waitingtoexhaleevents.org Expiring December 2026
38. Movin’ Out – Movin’ Out’s mission is to advance disability justice by co-creating safe, affordable, community-integrated homes. Movin’ Out works to improve housing access and support, helping to build healthier, more resilient communities. www.movin-out.org Expiring December 2026
39. Rooted WI – We are committed to collaborations rooted in food, land, and learning so that people can grow and thrive in healthy, equitable, and sustainable neighborhoods. Our work is grounded in racial justice, food sovereignty and sustainable neighborhoods. www.rootedwi.org Expiring December 2026
40. Boys and Girls Club of Dane County – Leads the way in youth development programs by working with local businesses, foundations, and community programs to produce positive outcomes for thousands of young people and their families. www.bgcdc.org Expiring December 2025
41. CC Cattle Company – Philanthropy farming: raises beef and agricultural products to help feel the food insecure in Madison and Milwaukee. Future plans are to build an equestrian program to help wounded vets and first responders suffering from PTSD. www.cccattleco.org Expiring December 2026
Charities expiring March 2027:
42. Morgan’s Caring Connection – Committed to support and education for families with special needs dependents by providing grants to cover legal fees for critical documents. www.morganscc.org Expiring March 2027
43. Camp HOPE – Inspire Hope, Love and Joy for grieving children and their families through a free camp week-end; where they’ll connect and share with others who have also experienced the pain of loss and are committed to healing together. www.camphopeforkids.org Expiring March 2027
44. Ryan’s Case for Smiles – With a chapter in Madison, one of the few organizations solely dedicated to addressing the emotional aspects of pediatric cancer and other life-changing childhood illnesses and injuries. While other great organizations focus on research and finding a cure, we work to improve the quality of life of children and their families as they undergo treatment. Studies show that the enhanced emotional well-being of patients paves the way for physical recovery. We have developed one of the first initiatives to address pediatric medical traumatic stress (PMTS) and include an insert card with each pillowcase to alert caregivers to the risks and provide resources for self-assessment, referrals, and coping tools. www.caseforsmiles.org Expiring March 2027
45. Simpson Street Free Press – We publish newspapers. Our writers are kids. Our mission is to spark school success and bridge achievement gaps. At Simpson Street Free Press, student reporters in grades 3-12 investigate topics like science, history, geography, and the local arts. Then they write, revise and publish their work. We work in neighborhoods where access to high-quality academic programming is limited. Older and experienced students assist younger peers. We publish five student newspapers and enroll about 200 students. www.simpsonstreetfreepress.org Expiring March 2027
46. Madison Starlings Volleyball Club – Founded in 2010, the local chapter is committed to providing high quality club volleyball to all athletes, regardless of income. All are welcome and encourage to become involved as players, coaches or volunteers. Madison Starlings believe in the inherent dignity and worth of every player and guide our decisions as best we can to reflect this principle and eliminate financial and other access barriers. The athletes to compete at the highest level in volleyball, while attempting to equalize access regardless of economics www.starlings.org/madison Expiring March 2027
47. Zeteocommunity – Serving women who have been sexually exploited by providing residential programming and a supportive community in which they are free to dream and thrive, no matter where they are on their journey. We work with women who have children as well as those who don’t. We come alongside women of all cultural, ethnic, and religious backgrounds www.zeteocommunity.org Expiring March 2027
48. Joey’s Song – Fighting epilepsy with music in memory of Joseph Gomoll, who died in 2010 just shy of his fifth birthday after suffering a debilitating form of epilepsy called Dravet Syndrome. The organization raises money to provide vital funding to find treatments and cures for epilepsies that are taking lives and stealing futures. We are a 100% volunteer organization with no paid staff or office overhead so we have an operational expense rate ~5%. www.joeyssong.org Expiring March 2027
49. Meriter Foundation – Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (CAP) – Serves young people 6-18 who are experiencing severe mental health challenges, such as depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, ADHD, or self harming behaviors. These disorders are often further complicated by trauma, neglect, sexual abuse, or race or sexual orientation discrimination. CAP’s compassionate team provides support and services to children who have reached a critical point in their lives. Last year CAP cared for 1,000 children traveling from across 48 counties and as far as Arizona. www.unitypoint.org/locations/unitypoint-health—meriter—child–adolescent-psychiatry Expiring March 2027
50. Art House 360 – Provides a multicultural co-workspace supporting individual artists, arts educators, and arts organizations, and to create access and inclusion to arts education and arts programs for our diverse, multigenerational community so more people may experience the transformative power of the arts. www.arthouse360.com Expiring March 2027
51. Safe Communities – The Falls Free Dane coalition of Safe Communities builds partnerships with people and organizations, collaborating to reduce older adult injury and complication from falls. Falls are preventable and we utilize both evidence-based and evidence-informed programming to help older adults remain independent, upright, and healthy. www.safercommunity.net Expiring March 2027