Geena Davis Brings Her Story To Fairfield County Charity's Benefit Lunch

GREENWICH, Conn. -- Academy Award-winning actress and activist Geena Davis brought her educational message about girls and the media Thursday to a very receptive audience at fundraising luncheon in Greenwich.

Geena Davis speaks to the crowd at the Fund for Women and Girls luncheon.
Photo Credit: *Skip Pearlman*

Student Corinne Wilklow of Fairfield speaks.
Photo Credit: *Skip Pearlman*

City Council member Eloisa Melendez of Norwalk speaks to the crowd.
Photo Credit: *Skip Pearlman*

Suzanne Peters, vice president of the Fund for Women and Girls.
Photo Credit: *Skip Pearlman*

A crowd of about 700 women attended Thursday's Fund for Women and Girls luncheon.
Photo Credit: *Skip Pearlman*

Skip Pearlman

04/10/2015 5:00 a.m.

Davis was the keynote speaker at Fairfield County’s Community Foundation’s Fund for Women and Girls annual luncheon at the Hyatt Regency Greenwich, which was attended by more than 700 women.

The Norwalk-based foundation promotes philanthropy as a means to create change across all of Fairfield County.

Two young women also brought their stories to the crowd:

Corinne Wilklow, 15, a scientist from Fairfield who wants to become an astronaut, and
Eloisa Melendez, 21, a councilwoman for the City of Norwalk and the nation’s youngest Hispanic elected to public office.

Davis is the founder of the nonprofit Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media. The institute is the only research-based organization working within the media and entertainment industry to engage, educate, and influence the need to dramatically improve gender balance, reduce stereotyping and create diverse female characters in entertainment targeting children 11 and under.

Davis is also a chair to the California Commission on the Status of Women, and is a partner with UN Women in the effort to change the way media represents women and girls worldwide. She is currently the Special Envoy for Women and Girls in the field of technology for the United Nations.

In her acting career, Davis has appeared in several roles that became cultural landmarks. She broke ground in her portrayal of the first female president of the United States in ABC’s show "Commander in Chief." Davis is probably most famous for her role as Thelma in Ridley Scott’s "Thelma and Louise" and as baseball phenomenon Dottie Hinson in "A League of Their Own."

Since its founding in 1998 by Fairfield County’s Community Foundation and a small group of women, the Fund for Women and Girls has awarded more than $4 million in grants to benefit more then 4,000 Fairfield County girls and women ages 5-90.

Its recent research report “The Full Circle of Women and Girls in Fairfield County” provides a look at the diverse challenges faced by women and girls in our communities. It can be downloaded at www.FCCFoundation.org.

Fairfield County’s Community Foundation focuses on innovative and collaborative solutions to critical issues impacting the community. Individuals, families, corporations and organizations can establish charitable funds or contribute to existing funds.

The Community Foundation has awarded $180 million in grants to nonprofits in Fairfield County and beyond. For more information, visit www.FCCFoundation.org.

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