TCW Foundation

The TCW Foundation is a foundation inspired by
Today's Chicago Woman Magazine.

In 1989, the Today's Chicago Woman (TCW) Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) charity, was founded by Sherren Leigh, founder and owner of TCW, when she learned that less than 3 percent of all funding was earmarked for organizations that help women and children. The TCW Foundation fulfills a need by helping Chicago-area under-funded organizations with operating budgets of less than $500,000 provide essential programs and services. For the TCW Foundation, women and children are not a secondary beneficiary of programming... they are our only purpose.

Since its inception, the TCW Foundation has awarded funding to more than 100 organizations. Funds are given to support special projects and for general operating expenses. Shelters for homeless and battered women, rape crisis centers, AIDS awareness, job training and substance abuse programs are some of the services that have received financial support through our grants. The TCW Foundation is an all volunteer organization, so donors can be assured that 100 percent of their money is going toward helping local non-profits serving women and children in need.

Several years ago, the TCW Foundation created a fund within Chicago Foundation for Women, the largest funder of women and girls in the U.S. We continue to raise money independently and the grants that are allocated from CFW are earmarked to fulfill our mission of helping women and children create a stable living environment for themselves. The TCWF Fund within CFW ensures that the work we've done in the past will continue in the future. Both Foundations continue to work hard to encourage the Chicago community to provide more support for women and girls programs.

HOW YOU CAN HELP
- Consider a tax deductible donation
- Inquire about matching employee donation programs at your workplace
- Attend a TCW Foundation fundraising event
- Volunteer to serve on a committee
- Donate in-kind services or goods
- Donate an old cell phone
- Consider leaving a donation to the TCW Foundation in your will

FACTS AND FIGURES

The majority of women that the TCW Foundation assists are victims of domestic violence. Domestic abuse happens in families of every race, religion, education and income level. The statistics from the City of Chicago Domestic Violence Help Line are staggering:
- Domestic violence is five times more likely to affect women than the most prevalent communicable disease in Chicago.
- In 2002, 15,626 calls were answered from across the city; more than 500 calls a day.
- More than half of the victims of intimate violence had children under age 12 and the vast majority of victims experienced both emotional and physical abuse.
- Nationwide, nearly one-third of American women report being physically abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives
- 50 percent of husbands who assaulted their wives also frequently abused their children.

CONTACT US

TCW Foundation
150 E Huron, Ste 1001
Chicago, IL 60611
p: 312.951.7600 ext 102
sleigh@tcwmag.com