Help support the JLGA Locker project by visiting Peel Wood Fired Pizza in Edwardsville, IL on 11/12. Show this flyer and 20% of proceeds go toward the Junior League Locker. Thank you for your support!
Category: News
Dine and Donate at Peel to support Junior League Locker
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Dine and Donate at Peel on 11/12 to support Junior League Locker
Help support the JLGA Junior League Locker Project by eating at Peel Wood Fired Pizza in Edwardsville, IL on Tuesday, November 12th 11 am – 10 pm. Show this flyer and 20% of your bill will be donated. Thank you for your support!
JLGA Wins Judges Choice at Color for a Cause
The Junior League of Greater Alton was awarded $250 toward the Junior League Locker for winning Judges’ Choice in the Color for a Cause mural coloring contest Tuesday, March 12, 2019 at Alton Square Mall. Photo courtesy of Alton Square Mall‘s Facebook page.
A big thank you to everyone who came out to color and/or support us and the other non-profits that participated!
Alton Square Mall to Support JLGA, Others Color For A Cause Event
ALTON – Junior League of Greater Alton will participate in this year’s Color for a Cause, a live mural coloring contest and shopping event that raises funds and awareness for local causes, from 5-7 p.m., March 12, at Alton Square Mall.
During the event, JLGA and other participating organizations will be provided a 6-foot mural and coloring supplies. Everyone has two hours to color their mural and shop on behalf of a cause. Patrons can shop anywhere in the mall and show their receipt in center court to earn a point for a participating cause.
The mall will donate $1 for each point earned and a $250 prize donation will be awarded to the organization with the most points and winning mural design, as determined by local guest judges.
Alton Square Mall has announced the organizations participating in Color for a Cause. In addition to Junior League of Greater Alton, they are: Community Hope Center, Inc., Good Samaritan House – Shelter of Granite City, IMPACT CIL, Make-A-Wish Southern Illinois, Olga’s Kitchen in support of Boys and Girls Club – Alton Chapter, Ronald McDonald House Charities of St. Louis, Senior Services Plus, Inc. to benefit Feed the Need and TreeHouse Wildlife Center.
JLGA Delivers Thanksgiving with Community Hope Center
COTTAGE HILLS — As volunteers waited in the halls of Community Hope Center in Cottage Hills, another group of volunteers waited in the kitchen and cafeteria to begin what would be, for about 270 people this year, their Thanksgiving dinner.
The center has been delivering meals to shut-ins, the elderly, and local first responders as part of a long-standing tradition, Assistant Executive Director Denise Ukena said Thursday morning. Junior League of Greater Alton members were among the volunteers.
Junior League of Greater Alton Welcomes New Board
The Junior League of Greater Alton has installed its new board for the 2018-2019 year and has begun recruiting members for its 2018 Provisional Class.
Leading the board this year is President Laura Inlow, who replaced 2017-18 President Lauri Sholar.
Inlow joined the league in 2015 and has served as the organization’s secretary and vice president. She works at Lewis and Clark Community College as manager of the Media Services Department, which handles the college’s marketing, advertising and public relations efforts. She and her husband, David, have one daughter, Amelia.
“I’m looking forward to new projects and partnerships with other area nonprofits this year to improve the quality of life for a diverse population of women and children in the Riverbend,” Inlow said. “What makes JLGA so special is that not only do we give our members a variety of amazing opportunities to give back to our communities, but we also reinvest in their growth and development into leaders and game changers to ensure these efforts and impacts are long-lasting. I am also excited to meet the women who will join our efforts as new members this year.”
Other members of the 2018-2019 board include Vice President Nicole Fiedler, Secretary Jama Fabry, Treasurer Sarah Crause, Project Council Coordinator Jolene Sherman, Fund Development Coordinator Lisa Crause, and Sponsorship Coordinator Maggie Partipilo.
There are 32 active and 24 sustaining members of JLGA, a member organization of the Association of Junior Leagues International Inc.
JLGA is committed to educating, training and empowering female leaders through volunteerism in the Riverbend community, and has partnered with such organizations as the Boys and Girls Club of Alton, Oasis Women’s Center, Bucket Brigade, Main Street Methodist Church, Riverbender Community Center, Riverbend Head Start, First Presbyterian Church, and Community Hope Center, among others.
Women interested in joining JLGA are invited to attend a social event from 6-8 p.m. Thursday, July 26, at State Street Market. Visitors will have an opportunity to hear about the organization and mingle with current members.
Potential members must be at least age 21 to join. To learn more, visit the website and click “Get Involved.”
For more information about the JLGA Annual Social, contact Amber Haring.
Bowling Benefit to Welcome Kids for the First Time
The Junior League of Greater Alton will host its fifth annual bowling fundraiser Saturday, June 16, at Bowl Haven Lanes in Alton.
New this year, the event also is open to children. Three games and shoe rental are included and bumpers will be available for children. The format will again be team-focused scotch doubles, where players alternate shots. Prizes will be awarded to top teams, and there will be many other opportunities to go home a winner with basket raffles, 50/50, and heads or tails games throughout the evening.
Bucket Brigade Comes Full Circle for Volunteer
ALTON – Diana Kay loves her little house in the 3600 block of Horn Avenue in Alton – and especially so after Saturday’s annual Bucket Brigade event.
“It’s such an amazing gift,” she said of the annual day of donated paint-slinging. “It’s something that just freshens the house up to where it almost looks new. It was way more than I ever could have expected.”
It’s the 30th year of the original Bucket Brigade effort, founded by then-Pride Inc. President Dale Neudecker. Since then, the teams have gathered each May to paint nearly 1,500 homes.
Kay, herself, had a hand in more than a few of those.
She’d painted in Alton Bucket Brigades herself since high school. Her father led a Boy Scout troop that did the same.
“It was neat to be on that side of it, and do it for people who couldn’t do it themselves,” the career healthcare provider, with expertise in hospice work, said.
But even with her seemingly unbreakably bubbly spirit, her sentences stifle when describing what it means to be a Bucket Brigade recipient.
“I’m getting choked up,” she confides. “It was neat to be a part of it from that standpoint, and just do something for somebody. And then, a couple years ago, I found out I had a brain tumor and had a couple of strokes. Now, I can’t do that, but I need it done. These guys stepped up and are doing it for me. It’s all so incredible.”
Kay’s home, which she cheekily proclaimed the nicest on her street, was polished and painted by a team from the Junior League of Greater Alton, a loyal member of the Bucket Brigade.
League of Their Own: Q & A with Emily Hejna
Emily Hejna has been an officer with the Alton Police Department since 2007. The path that led her to this vocation was a bit different than most, as is the trail she is leaving now for those who follow. She recently spent a few minutes sharing pieces of her journey so far.
Hejna said she was “a born and raised Alton-Godfrey gal.” Her parents are both from Alton, and she and her brother have chosen to raise their families in Alton. “I left for a little bit for college and immediately following, but there’s no place like home and I couldn’t stay away,” said Hejna.
Since moving back in 2006, she has become deeply rooted in the community, professionally and personally. Hejna serves on the school board at Evangelical Elementary in Godfrey and is a sustaining member of the Junior League of Greater Alton.