Junior League of Buffalo Logo 
Perspectus 
Junior League of Buffalo Newsletter
Mid-Year Report - December 2010   
In This Issue
Message from the President
Show House 2011 Announced!
Junior Leaguers Honored
JLB Supports Gerard Place
Community Assistance Small Grants Program
Buffalo Video - This Place Matters
Annual Sustainer Picnic
JLB in the News - The Buffalo News
Provisional Class - 53 New Members!
Mary Jo Hunt Appointed to AJLI Board
JLB 2009-2010 Board:
 
President - Anne Leary
 
President Elect - Beth Montague

Recording Secretary - Elise Haremski

Communications Vice President - Karen Sperrazza

Financial Vice President -Alexandra Wehr
 
Community Vice President -Jennifer Berryman

Membership Vice President -Erin Wilkins

Sustainer Vice President -Barbara Bukowski
 
Sustainer Vice President
- Colleen Seminara
 
Strategic Plan Chair
- Ruthann Foley

Parliamentarian - Christina Pearl
 
Perspectus Editor - Terri Parsell Hilmey
 
 
JLB 2010-2011 Board:
 
President - Beth Montague
 
President-Elect - Julie Warman
 
Recording Secretary - Leslie Vanderbilt
 
Communications Vice President - Terri Parsell Hilmey
 
Financial Vice President - Angela Hall
 
Community Vice President - Liza Keenan
 
Membership Vice President - Lisa McNutt
 
Sustainer Vice President - Colleen Seminara
 
Strategic Plan Chair - Ruthann Foley
 
Parliamentarian - Lisa Mrkall
 
Perspectus Editor - Melissa Rodemeyer

Presidents' Message 

Beth Montague HeadshotDear Members and Community Leaders,


The first half of our Junior League year has been so exciting.  A new Show House location has been chosen, we have 53 new provisional members learning the ropes, and several of our members have received recognition from the community for their many exemplary accomplishments.

 

I hope you share with me a feeling of pride toward our organization and particularly in our members.  For over 90 years the Junior League of Buffalo has been developing women as community leaders--the portion of our mission that sets us apart from other organizations. 


In addition to our many internal leadership opportunities, our members have a history of successful leadership in our community.  We've been elected to school boards, we are Executive Directors of non profits, we fill countless board seats, and run some of the most successful fundraising events in town.  We are CFOs, MBAs, CPAs, attorneys, doctors, and teachers; and all of us are connected by our membership in the League, which affirms that we share the common goals of developing the potential of women, promoting volunteerism, and improving our community.  Whatever we currently "do" outside League, our mission is the thread that links our network of over 400 women locally, and 155,000 women internationally. 


There are many bright stars in our organization, and it almost seems unfair to single anyone out for recognition--we are a talented, hard working, group of ladies!   But I'm delighted to recognize just a few:  Congratulations to Mary Jo Hunt on her nomination to the position of Vice President of the AJLI Board of Directors!  Also, all the best to Cathie Gura, who has been elected Dean of the Saturn Club of Buffalo--only the second woman to hold that position in the history of the club.  Special recognition also goes to Kate Bukowski and Clotilde Perez-Bode Dedecker, for their honors as "Women of Inlfuence," as awarded by Buffalo Business First.  Well done, ladies!


We look forward to continuing on with this remarkable year of activity and growth, and service to the WNY community, and we hope to continue our legacy of success.


Sincerely,

Beth Montague, President
Junior League of Buffalo 

Highlights - First Half of the 2010-2011Year   

Show House 2011 Announced!   

2011 Show House - Bayliss Oshei ResidenceOn October 20, The Buffalo News, together with The Junior League of Buffalo, announced in an article the location for the 2011 Decorators' Show House:  The Bayliss-Oshei Residence at 360 Depew Ave. at the corner of Beard Ave.  The home sits directly across from Burke's Green on land that was originally the Lewis J. Bennett estate.

 

The Show House will be open this year from Saturday, April 30th through Sunday, May 22nd, 2001.  A Sneak Peek of the "before" residence will be held on Saturday, February 5th and Sunday, February 6th.  A Black Tie Gala will be held in the "before" residence on Saturday, March 5th, and a Garden Party in the "after" residence will be held on Friday, April 29th!

 

Click here to read the article in The Buffalo News

 

Click here to visit the Show House Section on our Website

 

Click here to join our Show House Facebook Page

Junior Leaguers Honored   
Buffalo Business First honored two of our Junior League leaders at a luncheon on September 23 with their "Women of Influence" award.

Kate Bukowski
Kate Bukowski
Kate Bukowski, a Vice President at M&T Bank, was honored for her achievements both professionally and in the not-for-profit arena with the "Community Supporter" award.  She said, "In 1992, when working on the World University Games beautification project for the Junior League of Buffalo, I saw "London in Bloom" while vacationing in England.  In 1994, Buffalo in Bloom began as a project of the Buffalo Green Fund.  For the last 16 years, we have been encouraging Buffalo city residents to improve their property by planting a front garden, that in turn, will improve the look of their city."
Clotilde Dedecker
Clotilde Perez-Bode Dedecker

 
Clotilde Perez-Bode Dedecker, President and CEO of the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, was honored in the "Non-Profit Leadership" category.  Clotilde is a Past President of both the Junior League of Buffalo and of the Association of Junior Leagues International.  She cites her biggest influence coming from "The Junior League's commitment to training women as civic leaders."
 
We are so proud of these two ladies!
JLB Supports Gerard Place    
Carla Emerling
Carla Emerling Shows Off Her Tickets
The Junior League of Buffalo Supports Gerard Place

by Kari Anderson

On June 18, 2010 the Junior League supported Gerard Place's Third Annual Celebration of Hope at Shea's Performing Arts Center.  For the past 10 years, Gerard Place has offered transitional housing and job skill training to single parent families and has been partnering with Junior League since becoming the beneficiary of the 2007 Show House Proceeds.
 
Amy Braczynski
Amy Braczynski Poses with Artwork
Susan Phister, Gerard Place resident, opened the evening with a
 message of hope, sharing how she has rebuilt her life with her children, recounting the skill building opportunities afforded residents, and acknowledging the second chance she has been given.  During the art auction, our Junior League volunteers greeted patrons, collected bids, and served refreshments. Kathy Hens-Zuppa, Gerard Place's office manager, stated that they had twice as many patrons come through as in the previous year and that they were very pleased with the results of the auction.  They ask that you please remember them when you are redecorating, as they are always seeking household donations.
Community Assistance Small Grants Program 
Money Clip ArtThe Junior League of Buffalo is pleased to announce that the 2010-2011 Community Assistance Small Grants Program Committee sent out their request for proposals, which were due on November 15th.  Qualified not-for-profit agencies [501(c)(3) designated] throughout Western New York were encouraged to apply for grant funding up to $1,000.  The JLB applauds organizations and programs that support our current focus area, Families-At-Risk, with special emphasis on women's and children's issues.  Requests are now being reviewed.
Buffalo Video - This Place Matters 
This Place Matters Thumbnail
The JLB's Past President, Clotilde Perez-Bode Dedecker is currently featured in a widely-shared video about what Buffalo has to offer.  We're proud of you, Clotilde!  It's a video put together by the Buffalo Convention & Visitors Bureau.  Click on the picture to the left to view the video! 

Annual Sustainer Picnic 

Annual Sustainer Picnic

 

SusPicnic
Bonnie Clesse, Rosemary Zobel, Mary Jo Hunt and Beth Montague, JLB President

Once again, the Sustainer Annual Picnic was loads of fun!  On Wednesday, August 4, in the Saturn Club Courtyard, about 60 Sustainers enjoyed a South of the Border buffet, coupled with a beautiful Buffalo summer evening.

 

It was an evening of laughter, enthusiasm, and camaraderie. Event Co-Chairs were Barbara Bielecki, Wendy Sanders, and Janice Worobec. League sincerely thanks those Sustainers who were Patrons for the evening. Each made a contribution to the Junior League of Buffalo's 1919 Fund.

JLB in the News - The Buffalo News  
Mary Collins, JLB Sustainer

Photo courtesy of The Buffalo News

Mary Collins Profiled by The Buffalo News
Submitted by Terri Hilmey

Junior League of Buffalo's own Sustainer, Mary Collins, wife of Erie County Chief Executive Chris Collins, was recently profiled in the Sunday Buffalo News:

"After three years on the public stage...Mary Collins is now stepping into a spotlight all her own."
Did You Know?    
Katherine Hepburn
Katherine Hepburn



Did you know KATHARINE HEPBURN (1907-2003), famous American actress, was a member of the Junior League of Hartford, CT? 
Provisional Class - 53 New Members!   

53 Fabulous Woman Have Been Found:  Our 2010 - 2011 Provisional Class met for the first time on Tues, September 19.  We have a terrific group of ladies and they are ready to go, go, go!  A few more gals have expressed interest in joining League and we will be following up with them.  Thanks to all the members who helped with our recruiting efforts and who passed along names and contact information of interested ladies.  And once again, a special thanks to Anne Leary and Nancy Leed for hosting two of our Informational Sessions.

We're not wasting any time jumping right in.  Upcoming Provisional trainings will include Junior League Provisional Boot Camp on Saturday, October 19, from 9 a.m. until noon and a bus tour on Saturday, October 30, also from 9 a.m. until noon.
 
Much like last year, our Provisional Class will be meeting before General Meetings from 5:30 - 6:30.  If you are able, please take a minute to introduce yourself to our new members.

2010-2011 Provisional Class Tour 

The 2010 - 2011 Provisional Class Tours the City

Submitted by Maureen Hanagan

Provisionals on Bus
Front: Gina LaPlante, Denine Jackson;
Back: Michelle Fiorella,
Hillary Banas

The provisional class has been very busy learning about League life.  A huge thanks is offered to Alisa LaPlante, 2010 - 2011 Provisional Advisor, who coordinated all the details and did an amazing job planning the Provisional Bus Tour!


Thirty-four Provisionals and the Provisional Committee met at headquarters on Saturday morning, October 30, to take an area tour of locations and agencies important to the JLB.  The class voted on the agencies it wanted to visit, which included Compass House (Sylvia Nadler, Executive Director); Child

Provisionals at CFS
From L to R: Gina LaPlante, Michelle Fiorella, Amela Dedajic, Ann Marie Williams, Katie McKenna

& Family Services (Laurie Krajna, Chief Development Officer), and EPIC (Jeffrey Bell, National Director of Development and Grant Compliance). 


The tour also included a surprise stop at the site of the 2010 - 2011 Junior League Show House on Depew  St., where Junior League Actives and Sustainers replaced their pearls and white gloves with winter hats and gardening gloves and were very busy cleaning up the grounds.

 

Tour of Darwin Martin House
Learning About the
Darwin Martin House

A special thanks is offered to Astrid Willis for taking the time to walk the class through the house. 


Additionally, a visit was a made to the Darwin Martin House.  It was a fun and informative day and nice to take the tour full circle by visiting various agencies and seeing the Show House in its "before" condition.  The busy day wrapped up around 1:00 p.m.
Mary Jo Hunt Appointed to AJLI Board    
JLB's Own Nominated to AJLI Board of Directors
Mary Jo Hunt
Click photo to read Mary Jo's bio
Submitted by Beth Montague, President

 
Mary Jo Hunt has been nominated Vice President of the AJLI Board of Directors.  She will join a proud history of Junior League of Buffalo Past Presidents, Nominating Committee members, and Board Members who have also served. 

Upon ratification of the slate at AJLI's Annual Conference in April, Buffalo's Mary Jo Hunt will serve as Vice President from 2011-2014.  AJLI has nearly 300 Leagues in four countries, with 155,000 members. 

Congratulations, Mary Jo!
 
Click here to view a great document compiled by AJLI highlighting Junior League's history, accomplishments, famous members, and the reasons Junior League remains relevant and is crucial to many communities. 
Sustainer News    

Sustainer Book Club Project  

Submitted by Janice Worobec


NancyHartDigging
Nancy, digging
RosemaryLorettaNancy
Rosemary, Loretta,
and Nancy

Are you unsure what to do with overgrown plants or plants that just don't fit into your landscaping scheme any longer? Don't throw them away...  Do what a few members of the Sustainer Book Club did:  On a cold, blustery Friday morning in late October, they met to plant flowering bushes at a Habitat for Humanity home on Fox Street.  The new build is scheduled for occupancy in late November.  Gardeners were Loretta Fruth, Nancy Hart, and Rosemary Zobel.  Come spring, the new homeowners will have the beginnings of a landscape that will enhance the beauty of their new home.

 
Did You Know? 
From page 156 of Great Lake Effects, More Than Mom's Bread Pudding makes a great addition to any holiday table:

GLE Cover1 loaf of slightly dry French bread
1 C. of raisins
Rum or bourbon
4 C. of milk
1 C. of sugar
1/2 C. paged brown sugar
1 C. chopped walnuts or pecans
1 C. shredded coconut
3 tbsp. melted butter
2 tbsp. vanilla extract
4 eggs, beaten
Rum Sauce (also found on pg. 156.)

Cube the bread into 6 to 8 cups.  Dry at room temp. for a few days or in a slow oven for a short time.  Plump the raisins in rum or bourbon if desired.

Combine the milk, sugar, brown sugar, raisins, nuts, coconut, butter, vanilla, and eggs in a bowl.  Mix well.  Add the bread cubes.  Mix gently.

Let stand until the milk is absorbed.  Add additional milk if needed for moist cubes.  Pour into a buttered 9 x 12 baking dish.

Bake at 350˚ for 1 1/2 hours.  Serve warm or cold with Rum Sauce.  Makes 12 - 15 servings.
Mission
The Junior League of Buffalo, Inc. is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable.
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Junior League of Buffalo LogoPlease feel free to contact us, to find out more about Junior League, about donating, or perhaps becoming a member.  We'd love to hear from you!

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Junior League of Buffalo
45 Elmwood Avenue
Buffalo, New York  14201
(716) 884-8865 (M-Th 9:00AM - 2:00PM)