Downers Grove Junior Woman’s Club
In early March, the Downers Grove Junior Woman’s Club hosted its largest fundraiser of the year.
The Black & White Gala featured casino tables, raffles, silent auction and music by Big Cat DJ Services. Proceeds from the event benefited the Club’s charity fund and their 2023 Charity Partner, Aging in Place with Habitat for Humanity.
Through the Aging in Place program, Habitat for Humanity helps older adults age at home and in communities of their choice.
Local Habitat affiliates collaborate with human services organizations to evaluate individual needs and provide critical home repairs, modifications and community services specific to each homeowner’s lifestyle to preserve their home and their independence.
At the Club’s March meeting, a $20,000 donation was made to Habitat for Humanity bringing the Club’s total charitable giving since September to over $87,000 – a record for the women’s volunteer group.
![Aili Flannery’s award-winning sculpture, “Process,” was made of copper, string, copper wire, glass beads, glass, rust-stained fabric, lace, turmeric sun-printed paper, and thread. It represents “the timeline of having depression to the process of healing,” Flannery explained, and the theme is rooted in her own experiences. “‘Start’ shows up again at the end [of the piece], because I was ready to start healing and to continue living.”](https://dupagemagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/26-1-DG-Scholastic-Art-Writing-Awards.jpg "26-1 DG Scholastic Art & Writing Awards")
