Zonta Club of Denver grants over $26,000 in support of at-risk women

2026 grants will help fund art, housing and achievement badges

On behalf of the Zonta Club of Denver (ZCD), President Sheila Davis presented checks totaling $26,550 to three local nonprofit organizations at the club’s dinner meeting February 12. Big Heart Art, Open Door Ministries and Girl Scouts of Colorado benefited from the club’s fundraising efforts.

The recipient organizations will use the funds for specific projects that align with the Zonta Club of Denver’s mission: “Building a Better World for Women and Girls.”

Big Heart Art will use its $6,550 grant to fund an “Art as Healing” project at The Good Samaritan Women’s Shelter. Big Heart Art founder Theo Schwartz is passionate about sharing the deep, positive impact of art in recovery from the trauma of homelessness, and the value of communicating experiences and solutions in an art-filled environment.

The $10,000 grant to Open Door Ministries will provide funding for its Antioch II Housing Program that offers hope and solutions for women moving towards self-sufficiency. The program promotes education and job readiness as methods of improving quality of life.

Girl Scouts of Colorado also received $10,000. The money will be used for its Adopt-A-School program which establishes troops in disadvantaged schools where requested, furnishing stipends and training for leaders, as well as materials and uniforms.

ZCD service committee chair Janelle Poullier was pleased with the groups chosen to receive this year’s grants. “Our Service committee decided these organizations demonstrate Zonta’s mission in concrete terms,” she said. “In addition to the grants we awarded, our club is looking forward to continuing our relationships with these groups by donating required supplies and participating in their projects.”

The grants awarded by ZCD are made possible by the club’s fundraising efforts that will continue with the club’s 2026 Day of Film. ZCD’s 18th annual Day of Film will welcome attendees on April 18 at the Doubletree Hotel at 3203 Quebec, and feature “The Day Iceland Stood Still.” This award-winning documentary celebrates the day in October 1975 when 90% of the women of Iceland walked off the job and out of their homes refusing to work, cook, or take care of the children. Their united act brought their country to a standstill and the resulting societal changes catapulted Iceland to the “best place in the world to be a woman.” The documentary’s release last October was timed for the 50th anniversary of the strike, to celebrate those women, and remind the world that positive change is within our grasp.

The Zonta Club of Denver was chartered in 1927 and, as a member of Zonta International, is united with more than 30,000 executives in business and the professions in over 1,000 clubs in 65 countries, to improve the quality of life for women and children worldwide through service and advocacy.

Zonta Club of Denver members have raised and given nearly $3 million to local and international organizations, and volunteered thousands of hands-on service hours locally over the club’s 99-year history.

For more information about Zonta Club of Denver, grant application requirements, or the 2026 Day of Film, visit www.zonta-denver.org.