From Striving to Thriving
“Every woman involved with WANDA is inspirational”
— Noelia Corzo
Redwood City Mayor Giselle Hale and Noelia Corzo, WANDA Alumna and Board Member
Elevating Economic Mobility for Single Mother Families
Founded by women for women, the Women’s Achievement Network and Development Alliance (WANDA) is driven by a vision to secure economic justice for single mothers and their families.
The need for our services remains high – with low-income communities in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties drastically lagging behind neighboring communities in economic and quality-of-life metrics, including income potential, educational attainment, and asset ownership. Asset ownership and wealth are fundamental measures of economic well-being. Wealth, more likely to be affected by previous generations, allows families to weather financial hardships like economic downturns, job and housing insecurity.
This year, WANDA increased the number of mothers served by 40% through our MidPen Housing pilot program — we are still collecting and analyzing the data, but the trend is showing consistent results improving annual salaries and credit scores. In addition, we received our largest grant investment to date, diversified our foundation portfolio, have grown our Board of Directors, and reached over 25 new donors. Thanks to the generous support of our donor community, we were able to achieve our matching grant goal within 18 months. We are humbled by the success and generosity of WANDA’s community of clients, alumnae, volunteers, donors and partners.
We have big goals for the next fiscal year— incorporating as an independent 501(c)(3), launching our new curriculum, continuing our partnership with MidPen Housing, and welcoming our largest cohort to date.
“After graduating from WANDA, I now have a full-time job, 761 credit score and no credit card debt as I pay it off monthly.”
– WANDA Alumna
“WANDA took all my negative thoughts and shot arrows right through them. I saw other moms who had pulled themselves up from where I was, or worse—moms without college degrees, without family support, without savings, without homes. They rose up, they told me how. They gave me hope.”
– WANDA Client (Cohort 13)
“WANDA has empowered me to be in control of my life, to have power over my finances, and to never doubt that I can reach my goals. This year, I negotiated my salary for the first time and I don’t think I would have done it without learning how and hearing other women share their successes in a WANDA class. Every woman involved with WANDA is inspirational. We all have our own story of overcoming obstacles and becoming successful. I am running for higher office because I believe that every single mom deserves the support WANDA offers.”
– WANDA Alumna and Board Member
“WANDA has taught me how to save money, opened my eyes to various opportunities, gave me hope and a community.”
– WANDA Alumna and Board Member
Donor and Sponsor Circles
LEGACY
Diane Giancarlo
Paula Hurd
Elizabeth Ronn
Sobrato Family Foundation
COMMUNITIES
Karen Fisher
PARTNERS
Corinne Augustine
Glowe Chang
Elaine Cardinale
Christina Kamra
Christina Kenrick
Wanda Kownacki
Lata Krishnan
Sue and Dick Levy
Palo Alto Community Fund
Diane Russell
Barbara Tyler
FAMILIES
Marian Kremer
Jessica Lazar
Libby Tyree Taylor
MOTHERS
Anonymous
Michael Augustine
Donna Bohling and Doug Kalish
Peter and Dodie Crawford
Lyn D’Amelio
Martha Deevy
Jeremiha Douglas
Brita Fisher
Fred Fisher
Henry Fisher
Michael Fitzgerald
Junior League of San Jose
Barbara Kaplan
Natalie Korn
Victoria Kroll
MJ Miller
Richard and Susann Mirabella
Natalie Montesano
Wen-Chih O’Connell
Don Peppers and Pamela Devenney
Valerie Pierce
Alan Polish and Merle Orelove
Maribeth Portz
Heike Schmitz
Cheryl Sendaydiego
Roxanne Vane
Janelle Watson
Jim Wunderlich
