The GABWA Foundation - Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys

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The GABWA Foundation

a 501(c) (3) organization, to facilitate GABWA’s charitable and educational activities.

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 570032, Atlanta, Georgia 30357

In May of 1983, GABWA founded The Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys Foundation, Inc. (“the GABWA Foundation”), a 501(c) (3) organization, to facilitate GABWA’s charitable and educational activities. Like GABWA, the GABWA Foundation’s mission is to provide services to the community that further the interests of women and children throughout Georgia and that increase the representation of black women in the legal profession.

Each year, proceeds from GABWA’s signature fundraiser, the Glitter Gala and Auction, help support the GABWA Foundation’s long-standing, award-winning programs.

Since 2002, the GABWA Foundation has awarded more than $650,000 in scholarships to deserving African-American women law students attending law school in the state of Georgia. In addition, the Foundation has served other segments of the community through programs including its Sister2Sister® Mentoring Program, the Civil Pro Bono Wills Project and the Community Health Fair, in partnership with the Center for Black Women’s Wellness.

In addition to the above-referenced programs, the GABWA Foundation also provides assistance to various other noteworthy programs throughout Georgia. For example, the GABWA Foundation provided significant contributions to help create the Isabel Gates Webster Nursery at the Andrew & Walter Young Southwest YMCA. The nursery is named in honor of Isabel Gates Webster, one of the first African American women attorneys in Atlanta.

The GABWA Foundation was also a supporter of the Color of Justice Program of the Georgia Supreme Court’s Committee on Access and Fairness in the Courts. And, the GABWA Foundation has been a long-term supporter of the Atlanta Bar Association’s Summer Law Internship Program (SLIP), which offers summer opportunities to Atlanta area high school students who are interested in learning more about the legal profession.

Should you have any questions, please contact GABWA Foundation's President Rita Treadwell (foundationpresident@gabwa.org) or Vice President Lisa Collins (foundationvicepresident@gabwa.org).

Founders Awards

The Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys established the GABWA Founders Awards in July 2006. These awards recognize GABWA members, community leaders, and organizations who strive to achieve social, political and economic equality for Black people; advocate for positive change on behalf of Black Women and Children; and advocate for inclusion of Black Women regarding laws and policies affecting Black people.

The Leah Ward Sears Award for Distinction in the Profession recognizes a GABWA member who has been practicing at least ten years who, like Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears, has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to the highest professional and ethical standards, and whose legal career exemplifies excellence in the practice of law. This award recognizes individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of black women in the legal profession.

Sister2Sister®

In 2001, The Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys, Inc. and the Fulton County Juvenile Court, with the assistance of the Georgia Supreme Court’s Commission on Equality, began the Sister2Sister Mentoring Program® (“S2S”).

S2S is designed to assist teen girls, many of whom have entered the juvenile court system, through adult mentoring and bi-monthly workshops/trainings. S2S workshop/trainings address topics such as: the importance of self-worth, practical ways to avoid negative peer pressure, health education, public speaking, and many more.

In addition to its two workshops a month, S2S also offers academic assistance and ACT and SAT preparatory assistance for its student participants. S2S also partners with other community entities to host an annual free health and wellness fair for the Mechanicsville Community.

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Gala & Auction

The Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys Foundation, Inc. (“GABWA Foundation”) and the Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys (“GABWA”) invite you to experience Hollywood Noire, A Vintage Ebony Carpet Affair, the 2024 Glitter Gala and Auction on Saturday, July 27, 2024, at the InterContinental Hotel Buckhead. Sponsorships and tickets are available at https://gabwagala.givesmart.com/.

The Glitter Gala and Auction is the signature fundraiser to support the important work of the GABWA Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization. All proceeds from the Glitter Gala and Auction will benefit the GABWA Foundation. The Glitter Gala and Auction also presents an opportunity for GABWA to recognize outstanding individuals and organizations serving Georgia communities through the Founders Awards. Congratulations to each of our Founders Awards recipients, and we look forward to celebrating all that you are and do for our community.

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Civil Pro Bono Wills Project

The Civil Pro Bono Project (“CPP”) focuses on providing legal and educational assistance to the marginalized in our society. In April 2007, the GABWA Foundation established the Civil Pro Bono Wills Project, a partnership between GABWA and the Atlanta Legal Aid Society, Inc., through which GABWA members provide advanced health directives and wills to citizens of Atlanta who suffer from AIDS/HIV, cancer, and other terminal illnesses.

In June 2008, the National Conference of Women’s Bar Associations (“NCWBA”) recognized the Civil Pro Bono Wills Project by awarding it their 2008 Public Service Award. Another long-standing service of CPP is its partnership with Foreverfamily.

As part of the partnership with this outstanding organization, the GABWA Foundation provides back-to-school supplies and other assistance to the children of incarcerated parents. Wills training occurs once per year in the Fall, usually late October or early November. For more information on upcoming trainings for GABWA’s Wills Project, please contact Director Ashley Palmer.

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Community Health Fair

In 2016, the Sister2Sister Mentoring Program® recognized there was a need for better access to medical services and health education for the program’s participants and Mechanicsville, the community in which Sister2Sister began.

Since one of the tenants that Sister2Sister teaches its mentees is the importance of community service, Sister2Sister decided that hosting its own Free Community Health Fair would be a great way to serve its participants and the community-at-large while simultaneously teaching its students the value of making investments into their community.

In partnership with the Fulton County Juvenile Court, Sister2Sister hostedits first Free Community Health Fair on July 9, 2016.

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Scholarships

The GABWA Foundation is committed to providing scholarships to black women attending Georgia law schools to ensure that the pipeline of black women entering the legal profession remains strong.

Since 2002, the GABWA Foundation has awarded over $500,000 in scholarships to African American women law students.

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