The PWA Charitable and Educational Fund Continues the PWA Tradition of Bringing Aid to Those in Need

Lending assistance to those in need has been a proud part of the history of the Polish Women's Alliance for the last 107 years. From its beginnings, the organization has helped not only its members and their families but also the communities and parishes where its members lived, worked, and worshiped. In addition, PWA has always been a leader in supporting Polish institutions here in the U.S. as well as churches, charities, and individuals in Poland.
The PWA Charitable and Educational Fund was established in 2002 in order to provide a formal structure to PWA's aid programs and to allow donors the benefits of deducting their contributions in accordance with U.S tax law. Funds had always been collected and disbursed in support of many worthwhile causes, but now, contributions and bequests could take full advantage of the tax benefits granted to donations that are made to a charitable foundation, as prescribed by law.

A Long History of Giving:
Radium, Bomber, and a Shrine

We all know many of the stories of PWA's proudest moments in charitable giving: helping the Blue Army volunteers who went to fight for Poland's freedom in World War I; helping Marie Sklodowska Curie fund her radium research; helping Ignacy Paderewski in his diplomatic mission in World War I; selling war bonds to pay for a B-25 bomber that flew sorties in World War II with the name "Polish Women's Alliance of America" painted on its side; establishing the first Polish American Congress; supporting children's hospitals and orphanages in Poland; sending packages during wars and floods and martial law; supporting the Polish Church and its work under the communist regime.
Children have always had a special place in the heart of PWA members who turned this love into action by buying vans for handicapped children in Poland, by supporting hospitals, schools, and orphanages as well as the work of the nuns and priests who tirelessly devoted themselves to the care of the youngest and poorest of society's members.
In the U.S., the PWA led the fundraising efforts to refurbish Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty; PWA has always been a staunch supporter of the Orchard Lake Schools, the Bishop Abramowicz Seminary, and the Polish Museum of America; it helped build the Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in Doylestown (and also generously supports the original shrine to Our Lady, Patroness of Poland and of the PWA, in Czestochowa, Poland); it worked closely with the Pope John Paul II Foundation to ensure a worthy legacy for our beloved Polish Pope; and, more recently, it has worked to establish a Center for Polish Studies in Chicago and to support Habitat for Humanity's Poland Project .
The list goes on and on-these are just some of the most illustrious entries in PWA's "Charity Hall of Fame."

Supporting Many Causes:
Big and Small

Of course, PWA has also helped thousands of individuals who are not popes or presidents or politicians or Nobel Prize winners. Through the years, the greatest amount of money has been donated to those whose names would not make any headlines: sick and blind children; families living below the poverty line; nuns and priests struggling against all odds to survive in their ministries; those who lost everything due to tragedy and war. While these donations do not make front page news, they are at the heart and soul of PWA's charitable giving.
Most requests come to the PWA in the form of a simple letter and the Executive Board considers each one and then makes a decision about which ones to respond to and how much to donate. Our charitable fund is made up of many individual donations from our members and the contributions disbursed by PWA are often small. But sometimes the compassion and solidarity that can be extended to a person in need is worth as much as the monetary value of the actual contribution. The emotional letters of thanks that the Board receives attest to the power of even the smallest donation to make a huge difference in people's lives.

"Dziecko Polskie"
Helping Polish Children

From the very beginning of its existence, PWA has been a strong supporter of the children of Poland. As women and mothers, PWA members understand the needs of the youngest and most vulnerable members of society and know that they are often the ones who suffer the most in difficult economic and political times. Children are our future and their welfare is the joint responsibility of all members of a responsible society.
The fund for donations that support individual children in need as well as orphanages, summer camps, schools, and children's hospitals, especially the Hospital for Blind Children in Laski, has been called "Dziecko Polskie" which simply means "Polish Child." This has been the favorite charity of many PWA members, Groups, Councils, and Districts that have made donations, both large and small, at their meetings, seminars, and conventions. To this date, we still receive many contributions earmarked for "Dziecko Polskie" and the Board makes regular donations to Poland to help young children in need.

Pope John Paul II
Cultural Center

The National President of PWA and the Board announce special fund-raising drives from time to time and ask members for donations to be earmarked for that purpose for a certain amount of time. Focusing on one cause usually results in increased donations to that cause. Together, we can make a huge impact!
Currently, we are asking for donations to the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington DC. The center is devoted to the legacy of our first Polish Pontiff and as we prepare ourselves sadly for the day when he will no longer be with us, donating to the center that will be entrusted to preserve his memory takes on special meaning and urgency.
Finally, why not remember the PWA Charitable and Educational Fund in your will as a special way to ensure your legacy as well as help PWA to continue helping others?.