Zonta Club of Frankfort Wraps Up Club Year & Plans for 2024-2025

Article Courtesy of Jeni Royalty, Zonta Club of Frankfort Vice-President

The Zonta Club of Frankfort met recently to make plans for their upcoming club year, prompting reflection on all that was accomplished during the past several months in their work to “build a better world for women and girls.”

January: Amelia Earhart Program – Zontians, community members, family, and friends came for a relaxing evening at the Frankfort Library’s Skanta Theatre to watch the biographical film “Amelia”. Attendees enjoyed refreshments of popcorn and “movie box” candy at Intermission.

February: Fellowship Event: Game Night – Members played “Loaded Questions” which prompts players to write down answers to various questions, then try to guess who answered what – a fun way to discover how others think.

March: Chicken Noodle Dinner & Country Store – Our 31st annual major fundraiser offered both carryout and dine-in options. As always, this included our Country Store offering homemade baked goods. Funds raised support Zonta scholarships and the work of local organizations.

March: Membership Recruitment Event – Potential new members came to Old Stoney to learn about Zonta, which included an overview of our international organization and programs, district and area structure and activities, as well as what our club does locally.

April: 2024 Area 4 Spring Meeting / Workshop – As host of our Area 4 Meeting/Workshop, we welcomed fellow Zontians from the Indianapolis and Lebanon Clubs, along with district officers/chairs as guest speakers from other clubs in District 6 (Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin).

May: Annual Meeting – Several presentations were made during the evening with the first being recognition of our 2024 YWPA (Young Women in Public Affairs) Award winner, Michaela Jacobs from Clinton Central.  Michaela received a $1000 award from the Club with her application forwarded to District 6 for further consideration of an additional award of $5000 from Zonta International.

Zonta Club of Frankfort also recognized members for reaching five-year milestones: Carolyn Dunham & Marlene Brant – 40 years; Jeni Royalty – 35 years; Jenny Neal & Sharon Keck – 30 years; Kim Dahmen – 10 years; Linda Uitts, Rachel Milburn, & Tina Kimmel – 5 years. Note: Club members have over 480 years of service to the Clinton County community!

The evening included the initiation of Andrea Sheese as a member. Andrea works for the City of Frankfort, serving as Administrative Assistant to Mayor Judy Sheets, also a fellow Zontian.

Installation of the 2024-2025 Board was also conducted: Rachel Milburn – President; Jeni Royalty – Vice President; Secretary – Sharon Keck; Treasurer – Bethany Sheets; Dana Myers & Linda Uitts – Directors. Directors continuing for 2024-2025 are June Palmer and Susie Trees.

Throughout this past club year of 2023-2024 members donated essentials, such as paper goods and food items, as “BINGO” prizes for those attending activities at the Paul Phillippe Resource Center. This was and is a great way to show support and appreciation for our use of this wonderful facility to hold our meetings.

“Thank you, Dawn, and the PPRC staff,” Zonta released.

In addition to the local $1000 YWPA Award, the Club also selects a recipient for our Career Advancement Scholarship. The submission deadline for this $1000 scholarship was June 3 and applications are currently under evaluation and review.

Zonta International offers a $5000 Women in Business Scholarship and the closing date is July 26. Information and the application can be found at the Zonta Club of Frankfort Facebook Page, zontadistrict6.org/frankfort or zonta.org.