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We have heart, we have courage, we have brains, but we are looking for your help to reach our mission in developing the potential of women, and improving our community.  Slide into your ruby red slippers and “Follow the Yellow Brick Road” for an entertaining evening of charitable giving for The Junior League of Victoria’s Emerald City Ball.  We have kept with the tradition of holding our gala event at the Victoria Country Club.

This year’s date will be on Saturday,  March 5th, 2016.

The Charity Ball Committee would love for you to put on your dancing shoes and come join us for our biggest fundraiser of the year.  If you would like to be a sponsor or help in underwriting, contact Christina or Lea for more information.

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Book Review(s): American Sniper and American Wife

In October, Sustainer Amy Mundy and I had the honor of working alongside Active Katy Walterscheidt, Special Events/Marketing Coordinator for Golden Crescent Habitat for Humanity, as co-chairs of Habitat’s Speaking of Sweat Equity event featuring Taya Kyle. Taya is the widow of Chris Kyle, U.S. Navy SEAL and author of the bestselling book American Sniper, which later became a blockbuster motion picture. Following Chris’s tragic death in February 2013, Taya released her own book, American Wife: A Memoir of Love, War, Faith, and Renewal. I read both books to prepare for Taya’s visit. (To be honest, I didn’t read them; I downloaded and listened to them on Audible.)

 I enjoyed both books immensely. American Sniper is a thrilling, first-person account of Chris’s combat experiences on the frontline of the war in Iraq as the most lethal sniper in U.S. history. But it also shows the human side of war, including Chris’s personal struggle coping with the deaths of two of his close SEAL teammates. In American Wife, Taya discusses the effect of war on her marriage and on Chris. In addition to her role as a military wife, Taya takes readers through common challenges many women face—dating, childbirth and motherhood, balancing career and family, financial struggles, changing jobs, surviving a major move . . . (Warning: If you are pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant, you probably want to skip the chapter on the birth of Taya’s first son. I told Taya as much when I met her.) Following Chris’s death, Taya founded the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation, which is devoted to strengthening the marriages of veterans and first responders.  She now spends her days speaking publicly and inspiring others to find strength and overcome life’s obstacles.  

I strongly encourage you to read both American Sniper and American Wife, in that order. If you think you don’t have time, consider an audio book. All I do is read and write all day, so the last thing I want to do in my free time is sit and read. Now I listen to books walking my dog, cleaning the house, doing laundry, grocery shopping, on long drives . . . What used to be “chores” are now an enjoyable part of my day when there’s a book involved, especially when that book features an incredible story, like that of Chris and Taya.

-Sara Hounshell Meinhart

Pictured, left to right: JLV Immediate Past President Sara Hounshell Meinhart; Taya Kyle, Author of American Wife; JLV Sustaining Member Amy Mundy

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2014-2015 Grant Recipients

Dr. Jill Fox, 2014-2015 Community Vice-President got to take pictures with all of our CAF Grant recipients, each of whom was so grateful for the funds The Junior League was able to provide. 2014-2015 President Sara Hounshell Meinhart presented a check from our unallocated funds to The Food Bank of the Golden Crescent for a supplementary project.

Thank you to these outstanding organizations for all of the value they provide to our community!

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Ending the 2014-2015 League Year

 I awoke early this May 5, anxious for May Dinner and excited to celebrate another successful year with my fellow League members. Little did I know it was going to be one of those days...

It all started when I was late to Tuesday morning Partnership meeting because I couldn’t find the right pair of black heels to complete my outfit. I splurged on my weekly latte on the way to work, only to realize at my desk that the barista mixed coffee with my chai tea. There went $5 down the drain. I spent the rest of my morning shivering at my desk and cursing the GSA because the air conditioning was on full blast. I stopped by home after Rotary at lunch, only to find that my bulldog was sick, necessitating a trip to the vet. I won’t even mention what that cost. I spent half the afternoon waiting on my husband to text me back about dinner, which I had totally forgotten in the wake of May Dinner. Finally, I tried to squeeze in a desperately-needed manicure after work, but the only available manicurist destroyed my nails last time, and I was not going through that again. Talk about some first world problems! In reality, my “bad” days are still better than the very best days for many of the people the League serves.

The kids at Devereux never have to worry about what shoes they’re going to wear. Most only have one pair, usually hand-me-downs that may or may not fit. The kids are elated each spring when JLV members take them shoe shopping and they get to pick out any pair they want. You know who would love to have $5 to squander? The VISD students we serve through Blessings in a Backpack, or countless others getting meals from the Food Bank’s Community Garden. Did you know a $1 donation to the Food Bank equals 8 meals? My latte would have paid for 40 meals! That’s food for thought.

The people serviced by the Community Action Committee of Victoria would love to be in a chilly air-conditioned office come August when it’s 100° outside. When I was CVP, the League donated more than 150 box fans to CACV’s annual fan drive. That same year, the League awarded Victoria Christian Assistance Ministries with a CAF Grant to help fund the cost of asthma inhalers, insulin, and other general medications. Instead of being annoyed, I should be grateful that I’m able to care for my sick pet, when there are so many who can’t cover basic medical necessities for their children andthemselves.

If Kevin’s texting response time is his greatest fault, I’m a pretty lucky woman. I was shocked when girls at Mitchell Guidance Center said they didn’t know that being controlled, cheated on, or physically or verbally abused is not normal or okay. Fortunately, we were able to counsel them on healthy relationships and what love is. Finally, you haven’t seen a botched manicure till you’ve seen our Devereux girls after a DIY manicure lesson from some JLV volunteers. They had green glitter polish from fingertip to knuckle and couldn’t have been prouder of their handiwork. Even more, they were thrilled to spend their Saturday morning having girl time with the ladies of the JLV.

Like many of us, Mary Harriman lived a life of privilege, but she wanted to do something more. So in 1901, she and eight of her closest friends and debutantes used their positions for social reform, founding The Junior League in 1901 in order to improve the lives of those living in New York City’s poorest neighborhoods. Since 1937, JLV members have been working to better the lives of our fellow Victorians—from the people we serve through volunteer projects to our own members.

American businessman Stephen M. Wolf once said: “Each of us can look back upon someone who made a great difference in our lives, someone whose wisdom or simple acts of caring made an impression upon us. In all likelihood, it was someone who sought no recognition for their deed, other than the joy of knowing that, by their hand, another’s life had been made better.” I am grateful each day to know you all and be a part of this incredible organization that touches so many lives—my own included. It has been an honor to serve as your President this year, and I look forward to continuing our work under Melita Keith’s leadership in 2015–2016.

-Sara Hounshell Meinhart, 2014-2015 President