Cause Selection Process

Selection Committee

The Causes will be selected by a Selection Committee which will consist of at least two (2) Advisory Board members, 2 current Executive Board members, and two (2) members in good standing. The Selections Committee shall not consist of more than ten (10) members; in addition, the Selection Committee shall not have any Cause Champions as members. The members of the Selection Committee shall select the chair and submit the name for approval to the Executive Board. The Chair of the Cause Selection Committee will become the administrator of the Cause Selection process to ensure a fair and transparent selection.

Selection of Causes

The announcement of “accepting grant applications” will begin on April 1 of each year. The deadline for submission of Grant Applications will be May 15 of each year. The announcement of the selection of the Causes will be at the June Connect (business meeting) of each year. For 2024, the deadline for submission of Grant Applications has been extended to May 30th.

The allocation of the proceeds to the causes will be proposed by the committee and submitted to the BWFC Board for approval no later than June 1 of each year.

Cause Guidelines

To be considered for a BWFC Grant, these are the requirements:

• The organization must be registered and recognized as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with the IRS;
• The organization must be headquartered in Fayette County or Coweta County, GA;
• Organizations submitting an application must have a BWFC member in good standing
able to serve on the fundraising committee and willing to champion their cause; and
• The completed application must be submitted by the deadline – any applications submitted after the deadline date will not be considered

Along with the grant application, the organization must submit the following:

• Annual registration and state solicitation form;
• Last tax filing;
• A list of grant dollars received by other organizations; and
• A detailed project description and budget for the project, and/or operations budget

Selected organizations will be required to:

• Provide support at our fundraising events
• Market the fundraising effort to their contacts through email and social media

Year-End Report

The recipients of the prior year grants shall submit a year-end report detailing how the funds were utilized and how they benefited the Cause. New applicants shall submit a prior year-end (annual) report, if available.

Fundraising Event Committee Chair and Event Committee Selection

The Executive Board will appoint a Fundraising Committee Chair each year on April 1. The Fundraising Committee Chair will select a committee each year. Cause champions are required to serve on the committee.

The mission of the Business Women of Fayette and Coweta is Giving Back for a Better Community. Since our founding in 2009, we have selected causes to support through fundraising efforts each year. Below are our previous cause grant recipients:

• Coweta Community Foundation
• Healing Bridge Clinic
• I-58 Mission
• Pathway Home for Women
• Two Sparrows
• Bloom Our Youth
• Southside Support
• TEAM Alliance
• Wo Ye Bra
• Coweta Domestic Violence Resource Center (formerly Community Welcome House)
• Piedmont Fayette Cancer Wellness Center
• American Cancer Society

Through 2023, the BWFC has raised over $650,000 for these charities. We achieved this through the support of generous sponsors, donors, and dedicated volunteers. Our goal is to continue to expand our reach and improve the lives of those in our community.

If you would like to support our fundraising efforts for 2024 or would like more information, please feel free to contact our Spring Swing Chair.