Communityu Service Programs

“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” GFWC Florida clubs believe that creative expression belongs to everyone, not just those who can afford a gallery ticket or a concert seat.

Through the Arts & Culture community service program, our members bring music, theater, literature, dance, and cultural experiences into schools, libraries, senior centers, and community spaces across Florida.

 We are all part of something larger than ourselves. The GFWC Civic Engagement & Outreach community service program is built on the belief that active, engaged citizens are the foundation of healthy communities. Florida’s clubs work across four broad areas: citizenship and civic participation, crime prevention and disaster preparedness, supporting those in need, and honoring military personnel and veterans. 

GFWC members promote education in both children and adults.  GFWC has believed in education since before most Florida public schools existed. In the 1890s and early 1900s, Florida clubwomen lobbied for compulsory education laws and traveled the state distributing books to communities that had none. That legacy lives on in every GFWC Florida club that runs a literacy program, funds a scholarship, or advocates for a public library today. 

Florida is one of the most ecologically unique places on earth, and also one of the most vulnerable. Our waterways, coastlines, wetlands, and wildlife face constant pressure from development, pollution, and climate change. GFWC Florida members have worked for generations to protect our state’s natural heritage, because we live here too, and we understand what is at stake.

Florida’s environment is personal.

Florida is home to the Everglades, the only ecosystem of its kind in the world. Our springs, rivers, and coastal waters support billions of dollars in tourism, fishing, and agriculture, and are home to manatees, sea turtles, gopher tortoises, and hundreds of bird species found nowhere else. When GFWC Florida clubs plant trees, clean beaches, and advocate for clean water, they’re protecting something irreplaceable.

 Healthy communities don’t happen by accident; they’re built by people who show up. GFWC Florida’s Health & Wellness program takes a broad view of what “health” actually means: not just physical fitness, but disease prevention, mental wellness, food security, housing stability, and financial resilience. Florida’s clubs work on all of it, because real wellbeing covers all of it. 

 For more than 100 years, GFWC Florida members have advocated for national awareness on critical issues, not from a political position, but from a practical one, and guided by member-approved resolutions. Our members have helped shape laws on highway safety, juvenile justice, women’s suffrage, disability rights, equal pay, and protections for victims of domestic violence. This advancement area educates and mobilizes clubwomen to unite behind our legislative priorities 

 GFWC Florida’s strength is its people. This advancement area gives clubs the resources and support to grow their membership, attracting new members, retaining current ones, and building clubs where women of diverse backgrounds and talents feel welcome and valued. A strong membership base means a stronger voice for every community we serve. Sign up today!

 GFWC’s Women’s History and Resource Center (WHRC) preserves the history of the federation, its records, buildings, artifacts, and the stories of the women who built it. This advancement area supports clubs in documenting and celebrating their own histories and connects members to the broader legacy of women’s civic engagement that stretches back to 1890.