Supporter Stories

Are you excited about the AFFW Annual Event of October 15th? One of the things that makes the event so great is the scripting put together by long-time AFFW supporter Susan Troller Cosgrove. She has been helping AFFW achieve our mission with her expertise, time and contributions for nearly a decade.

Like many of us, her first experience with AFFW was through the annual event. Family friend Margo Melli invited her to attend, and to bring along her daughters. Inspired by the evening¹s speaker, and by the notion of women working together to help other women, she was enthusiastic about becoming involved with the organization when Melli asked her to join the AFFW marketing committee. Using her experience as a journalist, and in public relations, marketing and video production, she set about developing a brand identity for AFFW, including projects like logo creation and developing marketing materials. She then joined the executive committee, and also served on the grant making committee, where she was impressed with the efforts to "uncover the issues behind the issues" that were affecting women and girls in our community. She also served on the special events committee. One of the high points of her involvement with AFFW was the opportunity to serve as executive committee co-chair with Melli, her friend and mentor. She has now come full circle, continuing to have a role on the marketing committee by helping script the annual event.

She has also come full circle through investing in AFFW and its hopes for the future. Just as she came into the organization through Margo Melli, she is encouraging her daughters and other young friends to become involved. Her daughters have donated to the group, and have supported grant recipients, with a particular interest in programs that benefit girls at the Atwood/Goodman Community Center. She is also extremely proud of Deidre Green, a high school journalist with the Simpson Street Free Press (former AFFW grant recipient) who worked as an intern with her at The Capital Times. Deidre is winning an award this year as an AFFW Fabulous First.

Whether it's the women of her mother's generation, her own daughters, or young women like Deidre, she enthusiastically supports the mission of A Fund For Women, which encourages women, at every age and from all walks of life, to live richly satisfying lives that allow them to reach their full potential.