wf through the decades
Four decades of the Women’s Fund cannot be held by dates alone. This history lives in the grants that opened doors, the scholarships that changed families, the conversations that moved people to act, and the community built by those who believed gender equity deserved lasting investment.
What follows is not every moment. It is a look at the ripples created when women choose to use their voice, their resources, and their influence for something bigger than themselves.
Explore the milestones below. Remember the people behind them. Then join us in shaping what comes next.
DECADE 1: 1986-1999
Executive director: Tracy Wayson
Board chairs: Judy Murphy, Barbara Jacobus Wells, Nancy Kane, Elizabeth Orelup, Sandra Hoeh-Lyon, Michal Dawson
THE DECADE TO ESTABLISH THE MOVEMENT, AND MAKE A LASTING COMMITMENT TO IT.
When we began in 1986 women had gained important rights and opportunities, but gender equity was still far from reality. Women were entering more classrooms, workplaces, and public spaces,
yet money, influence, and decision-making power were still largely shaped by men.
That is part of why our founding mattered. We were created by women who believed philanthropy could do more for women and girls, and that women should be the ones deciding where those resources went. At the time that was not a small shift.
Many women were still being taught, directly or indirectly, to see giving and financial decisions as someone else’s role. We helped change that.
In our earliest years we invested in programs focused on safety, health, economic self-sufficiency, and the full participation of women and girls in society. We also helped launch what became the HER Scholarship Program, supporting women 35 and older pursuing their first college degree.
From the beginning, we were not only moving dollars. We were building confidence, connection, and a different understanding of what women’s leadership could look like.
THE NATIONAL LANDSCAPE
- 1986: U.S. Supreme Court rules workplace sexual harassment is illegal sex discrimination.
- 1987: National Women’s History Month officially established in the U.S.
- 1988: U.S. Supreme Court affirms states can restrict abortion funding and facilities.
- 1991: Anita Hill testifies during the SCOTUS nomination of Clarence Thomas, bringing sexual harassment into the national spotlight.
- 1992: Declared the “Year of the Woman” with a record number of women elected to Congress.
- 1994: Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) signed into law.
- 1995: UN Beijing Platform for Action adopted; established global framework for gender equality.
- 1996: All-male admissions policy at public military schools struck down.
WOMEN’S FUND RESPONSE AND ACTION
- Thirty-six Founding Mothers launched the Women’s Fund with the revolutionary “One Woman/One Thousand” campaign.
- Made our first grant in 1989, beginning lasting partnerships with hundreds of grant partners.
- Joined the Women’s Funding Network as part of a global movement for gender equality, which we are still a part of today.
- Initiated our WOMENWILL program to inspire planned/estate gifts.
- Created the annual Women and Public Policy Luncheon that attracted thousands, including many elected officials.
- Launched the WF HER SCHOLARSHIP program for women over 35 returning to education and since 1996. Since then we’ve helped more than 150 students earn Bachelor’s Degrees.
DECADE 2: 2000-2009
Executive director: Elaine Maley
Board chairs: Gwen Jackson, Wendy Reed Bosworth, Margaret Henningsen, Heidi Retzlaff, Sally Merrell, Amy Johnson
THE DECADE TO VALIDATE LIVED EXPERIENCES WITH DATA, AND SUPPORT NEW PHILANTHROPY.
By the 2000s more women were working, leading, and shaping public life. But visibility did not mean equity. Women were still underrepresented in boardrooms, executive leadership, government, and many of the places where decisions were being made.
We started leaning even more deeply into data, strategy, and systems change. We knew that if we wanted to understand what women were facing, we had to look closely at gender, race, income, and place. The numbers helped show what many women already knew from lived experiences: opportunity was not reaching everyone in the same way.
This was also a decade when we made early investments in work that would grow into something much larger. We supported emerging and community-rooted organizations, strengthened our grantmaking, became an independent entity, and helped launch giving circles that allowed communities to pool resources and fund solutions rooted in their own experience.
In many ways, this decade showed one of the most important things collective philanthropy can do: believe early, before the proof is obvious to everyone else.
THE NATIONAL LANDSCAPE
- 2007: Nancy Pelosi (CA-D) became the first woman elected speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.
- 2009: Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act was the first bill signed by President Barack Obama.
WOMEN’S FUND RESPONSE AND ACTION
- Established the Women’s Fund as an independent entity and opened an office in the Historic Third Ward, which is where we still are today.
- Co-published the groundbreaking Status of Women in Wisconsin Report. The state received a C+ grade.
- Launched Latina and Lesbian Giving Circles with the Kellogg Foundation matching grants. It changed what philanthropy looked like.
- Funded programs in criminal justice, substance abuse treatment, and girls’ leadership development.
- Invested in grassroots organizing for economic justice, paid sick leave, and violence prevention.
- Supported leadership training, health promoter programs, all-women construction crews, and immigration rights.
DECADE 3: 2010-2019
Executive director: Margaret Henningsen, Lisa Attonito
Board chairs: Anne Tidmore, Eloiza Altoro, Sue Hickey, Nancy Peterson, Julie Ragland
THE DECADE TO UNDERSCORE WOMEN AND GIRLS AS CHANGE AGENTS.
The 2010s changed the way our country talked about women, power, safety, and leadership. Women were breaking barriers in the military, politics, business, and culture. At the same time movements like the Women’s March and #MeToo made it clear how much work remained.
We responded by creating space for people to gather, listen, learn, and make sense of what was happening. Through Community talk backs, book reads, public programs, and partnerships, we brought national conversations home to greater Milwaukee. We talked about women in STEM. We talked about Title IX. We talked about sexual harassment and assault.
We also talked about leadership, representation, and what it takes to change systems, not just survive them.
This was also a decade of strengthening the ecosystem around women and girls. We supported grant partners not only with funding, but with connection, visibility, and access to broader networks. We kept doing the behind the scenes work too: the relationship-building, the convening, the steady showing up. Because real change usually does not arrive with a marching band. It arrives through people who keep showing up long enough for something to shift.
THE NATIONAL LANDSCAPE
- 2013: Ban on women in military combat roles lifted in the U.S.
- 2016: Hillary Clinton becomes first woman nominated for president by a major U.S. party.
- 2017: #MeToo movement goes global, reshaping accountability for sexual violence.
WOMEN’S FUND RESPONSE AND ACTION
- Welcomed Viv Ncaus: A Hmong Women’s Giving Circle, Wisconsin’s first.
- We strengthened advocacy capacity for low-income women, built networks for LGBTQ+, reduced stigma around substance abuse treatment, and enhanced leadership skills among women of color.
- Supported organizing for humane immigration reform and political leadership training in support of more women running for office.
- Launched WOMEN’S FUND PRESENTS in 2016, bringing nationally recognized thought leaders to Milwaukee.
- Encouraged people to be WF EVERYDAY PHILANTHROPISTS with an annual gift of $365 to the Women’s Fund.
DECADE 4: 2020-present
Executive director: Lisa Attonito
Board chairs: Marilka Vélez, Monica Shah-Davidson, Beth Odian
THE DECADE TO EXPAND THE WAYS TO ENGAGE AND INSPIRE ACTION.
Then came 2020. A pandemic. A racial justice uprising. A childcare crisis. A wave of women leaving the workforce. A renewed fight over reproductive freedom. Growing questions about democracy, rights, safety, and who gets to shape the future.
We responded the way we always have: by paying attention, bringing people together, and moving resources where they were needed. Our Flash Grants supported organizations meeting urgent needs, including those serving survivors of family violence,
families facing food insecurity, and women entrepreneurs navigating uncertainty.
When Roe was overturned, we convened experts, shared information, and helped generate emergency support for reproductive care.
Today, our work includes civic engagement, advocacy, research, public programs, and community-building experiences that help people understand what is at stake and what they can do about it. Through the Women’s Well-Being Index, Civic Breaks, Women’s Fund Presents, Laundry Nights, and more, we continue to connect people with information, with each other, and with the power to act.
This chapter is still being written.
THE NATIONAL LANDSCAPE
- 2020: Kamala Harris became first woman, first Black, first South Asian U.S. Vice President.
- 2022: Dobbs decision overturns Roe v. Wade, reproductive rights rolled back across the U.S.
- 2021: Generation Equality Forum pledges $40 billion globally to advance women’s rights.
- 2024: Gender pay gap widens for second consecutive year; DEI commitments retreat.
- 2025: Nearly 1 in 4 countries sees documented backlash against women’s rights.
WOMEN’S FUND RESPONSE AND ACTION
- Launched WF FLASH GRANTS that funded essential health care after the Dobbs decision, advocacy for voting rights and fair maps, provocative art displays created by women, food for pantries after government cuts, and life changing experiences for girls.
- Formalized collaborations, organized and promoted events like Lightning Talks and Women’s Night at the Theater.
- Reimagined brand and launched WF POWER ILLUMINATORS donor recognition program.
- Deepened engagement with WF COMMUNITY TALK BACKS, WF COMMUNITY BOOK READS, WF LAUNDRY NIGHTS, and WF CIVIC BREAKS.
- Celebrated 10 years of WOMEN’S FUND PRESENTS: thousands attended, 100+ honorees named by program partners.
The next chapter is already beginning.
For four decades we have invested in women, listened to women, and helped move greater Milwaukee toward gender equity. The work continues through every grant, scholarship, program, partnership, and conversation that helps women lead, thrive, and shape what comes next.