About Soroptimist International of the Verdugos (SITV)
Soroptimist International of the Verdugos club was chartered in the 2004, and has been very active in the Montrose, Burbank, La Crescenta, La Cañada & Los Angeles community ever since. Our meetings are held every 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month in the evening at Glendale City Hall.
What is Soroptimist?
Soroptimist is an international volunteer organization for business and professional women who work to improve the lives of women and girls, in local communities and throughout the world. Soroptimist is the largest service club for professional women in the world. Founded in 1921 with 80 women, Soroptimist has approximately 95,000 members in about 120 countries and territories today. These Soroptimist members belong to local clubs, which determine the focus of service to their individual communities.
The name Soroptimist means “best for women” and that’s what the organization strives to achieve. Soroptimist are women at their best working to help other women be their best. By joining with other women and personally engaging in awareness, advocacy and action in service to her community and society, she makes the world a better place for all. Soroptimist today continue the work that begun by their predecessors. The heart of Soroptimist’s mission is to “make a difference for women” through volunteer service to the community. Projects are carefully chosen to address the challenges unique to today’s women.
Community Projects and Awards
The Verdugos club identifies the needs of our community and then establishes projects that best address these specific needs. In addition to our commitment to our community, we also work on the issues affecting change at the national and international levels to improve the quality of life for women and girls. The following are just a few examples of how we contribute to our community:
Women’s Opportunity Award - Yearly Scholarship awarded to primary caregiver for advancement in education and skill training.
Violet Richardson Award - Financial award to young women ages 14-17 whose volunteer activities make the community and world a better place.
Strikes n Spares - This is a Verdugo’s signature “fun”draiser that financially supports local women undergoing breast cancer treatment. The funds distributed annually assist recipients with covering expenses not covered by their medical insurance such as daycare, alternative treatment or transportation to and from treatments.
Making a Difference Day - Each year in October our clubs hosts a health clinic and provides lunch for the women at the Downtown Women’s Center in the heart of skid row. Our club prepares a full lunch and provides care packages for the women at the center. We also have a mobile clinic set up with volunteer nurses that do health evaluations, glucose and cholesterol testing as well as provide necessary immunizations like Tetanus and Flu shots.
Join Us
If you are a woman ready to contribute to your community then Soroptimist is what you want to join. Meet new like-minded, compassionate friends and make a difference for women!