AAUW West Harris County, Houston, Texas Branch
GENERAL BRANCH MEETING AND PROGRAM
Saturday, November 15th at 9:30 a.m.
VENUE: Blue Willow Book Shop Annex
14532 Memorial Dr. (at Dairy Ashford) Houston, TX 77079
OVERCOMING ADVERSITY FOR WOMEN IN KENYA
Program Speaker: Betty Cartmell, PhD
According to UNICEF, around the world, over 230 million girls and women have been cut. Africa accounts for the largest share of this total, with over 144 million. Asia follows with over 80 million, and a further 6 million are in the Middle East. Another 1-2 million are affected in small practicing communities and destination countries for migration in the rest of the world. Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a violation of girls’ and women’s human rights. The Jerri Savuto Girls’ Center in Kenya, Africa, was established to rescue girls from having to undergo the “The Cut”. Our own “Dr. Betty” will get us out of our comfort zones and expand our horizons about this women’s rights issue. She will present the story of Jerri Savuto and how the Center came into being along with compelling stories told by some of the 72 girls protected at the Center. Although this is a grim topic, it’s important to learn there are pockets of hope.
Please join us. Guests are welcome!
Jerri Savuto Girls’ Center
Diana Guarniere, Program VP
As we enter this season of gratitude, my heart is full of thanks for you and your dedication to empowering women and girls through education. Your support this past year has been nothing short of inspiring, and it’s because of you that we have so much to celebrate.
A huge thank you to the Directory team who compiled and arranged to have printed our annual membership directories. If you have not received yours, please reach out to Kris Bybee-Finley who will arrange to have your directory given to you.
Don’t forget the Thomsen-Baker-Telfer Challenge fund is ongoing until November 15th You still have time to give and take advantage of the generosity of our anonymous donor.
I wish you and your loved ones a season of joyful Thanksgiving as we approach the end of 2025.
Thank you again for being a vital part of our mission.
Lilian Care, President
If you are in need of an AAUW nametag, you can order one today!
Introduction Video
Texas AAUW Membership Flyer
Link to more WHC information
Legacy Circle
Ever since working on 5 Star Recognition for our branch last year, I have been very curious as to what was involved regarding becoming a Legacy Circle contributor. Legacy Circle has come up again in the next generation of 5 Star. My quest was to find the easiest way to set up a Legacy Circle bequest and then encourage other branch members to look into doing the same thing. Legacy Circle funds promote equity and benefit women and girls in the future.
My first step was to check out AAUW National’s website and then contact a representative of Legacy Circle. I did not want to set up a trust, change my will, or affect any other retirement programs I already had in place. I found out all I had to do was set up a savings account at my bank naming AAUW as the Paid-on Death (POD) beneficiary. You don’t need to open the account with thousands of dollars, a few hundred will do! Most banks want a minimum of $200.00 to open an account. Then, over time, you can add funds as you wish. Even after setting up the account, if you need to withdraw any money in the future, you can do that! Not my intention, but good to know I have that flexibility. Once you have opened the account, you fill out a simple form called Legacy Circle Enrollment Form and forward it to AAUW National. That form can be found on the national website. AAUW Leave a Legacy
If anyone would like to know more, feel free to contact me. I want to encourage other WHC members to participate in Legacy Circle now and in the years to come.
Sincerely, Rose Ennis
Past President, WHC
Member News Notification
Please send Marie Helmy (mariehelmy9@gmail.com), Corresponding Secretary, any news about our members they give you permission to share.
Marie Helmy
Corresponding Secretary
To ensure that you do not miss any communications from the Branch, please send updates or corrections to your contact information to
Linda Griffin: drlgriffin@outlook.com , effective January 2025
This webpage was last modified: September 30, 2025