To our wonderful Women’s Foundation of Montana community:

We here at WFM recognize the extreme uncertainty that our communities are facing, not just in here in Montana, but all around the world as a result of Covid-19. We are committed to keeping our loved ones and our communities safe, which means our office will be closed and staff will be working remotely until further notice. We will continue to be accessible through email and Facebook.

We urge all of you, no matter where you are in Montana, to stay away from public places as well. If we work together by staying apart, we can slow the spread of the virus. This will be our best safeguard to protecting older folks, those with immunodeficiencies, and those with other underlying health problems in our communities.

It’s easy for us to feel helpless when we face the unknown, but there are tangible things that we can do together for our communities.

1. Use this opportunity to band together as a group of immensely capable and intelligent women and men to share resources that might be helpful for communities in other parts of Montana.
2. Reach out to local nonprofits and ask how you can help—whether that be the local food bank or a women’s shelter, or any of the other organizations in your community. There will be a huge uptick in the utilization of these resource and they need our support.
3. If you aren’t comfortable or aren’t able to physically help, consider making online donations to nonprofits in your area. These donations will be deployed into the community, allowing nonprofits to be flexible in their ability to meet needs.
4. Purchase gift certificates online from your favorite local restaurants, museums, and other businesses that rely on continued income to stay afloat.
5. Donate things like diapers, baby wipes, canned foods, and other necessities to women’s shelters, homeless shelters, and the food banks.
6. Check on your neighbors and friends. If you’re available to help them pick up groceries, medication, or anything else, let them know.

These are strange times for all of us, but by pulling together as neighbors and communities we will get through this. Thank you for your continued support of the Women’s Foundation of Montana, without which we would be able to do the work that we do.

Stay safe and stay compassionate,
The WFM team