Testimonials

We asked our members... Why are you involved in Soroptimist? and What does being a Soroptimist or part of Soroptimist mean to you?

"I joined Soroptimist of Downey because I value its ideals and commitment to women and children. Being a member of Soroptimist means that I get to do my part to help my community."
~Alex Gomez


"I joined Soroptimist International of Downey in order to give back to my community. I enjoy the opportunity to give service to others and I love my fellow Soroptimists. They are the most generous and wonderful women I know."
~Patricia Heineke


"Although I had been involved for a long time with other organizations, such as the Downey Symphony and Rotary, and the YMCA and the Memorial Trust Foundation of the Hospital, when the opportunity came along, I joined Soroptimist because I believed in its purpose, women helping women.

There is no other organization with this focus, and the women we help are not the sort who would ordinarily get aid from schools and establishment groups. Our Women's Opportunity Award, for example, is not given to rosy cheeked high school grads who can get many other scholarships.

These women are past the usual threshold age, and have had many bad life experiences. Only Soroptimists care about these women who have fallen and are struggling to get back up and turn their lives around. With our help, they can rejoin the ranks of those who have learned the abilities to get adequate food, clothing and shelter for their children and a sense of being worthwhile for themselves. Just being on the interviewing committee to meet these women has made Soroptism worthwhile for me.

And to fund these scholarships, we have to raise money, and I admire the tremendous energy of my fellow Soroptimitsts who plan and manage the fund raisers. Working together is a great way to form lasting friendships, and I have made new friends through Sroptimist.

Much lies ahead to free women of other cultures abroad, particularly in patriarchal societies where they suffer everything from sexual mutilation, to death for learning to read. But even in the United States much more needs to be done to empower women. The Abuse and Rape Hotline phone number has been a powerful tool for this. There are plenty of projects to keep us going, and that is why I joined Soroptimist."
~Lorine Parks

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