WEST CHESTER, PA (January 29, 2019) – The Chester County Fund for Women and Girls (CCFWG) will honor Cheryl Miles – a connector, convener and passionate advocate for underserved communities in Chester County – with our Kitchen Table Award at the 14^th Annual Making a Difference Luncheon on Friday, May 3, 2019, at the Desmond Hotel and Conference Center in Malvern, PA.

CCFWG established the Kitchen Table Award in 2011 to honor a Chester County woman who has made substantive contributions through service and/or philanthropy to improve the lives of women and girls through her own time, talent or resources. It is named in celebration of the genesis of CCFWG in 1996: many conversations held around kitchen, board and coffee tables.

Cheryl Miles, a resident of Glen Mills, has dedicated 24 years to caring for Chester County’s most vulnerable and underserved women and girls. She currently works as Director of Permanent Housing Services at Good Samaritan Services, overseeing a team devoted to reducing the number of local women and children who experience homelessness. In 2008, Cheryl founded Housing to Self Sufficiency to help connect homeless single women in Chester County to affordable, shared housing and avenues of support. The organization also became a bridge between landlords and businesses to help other non-profits access affordable housing and resources.

In 2016, Cheryl founded Black Women of Chester County in Action (BWCCA) as a direct response to CCFWG’s Blueprint Report; she gathered together friends and colleagues across the county to discuss the Blueprint’s troubling findings about African American women in Chester County and brainstorm ways to engage a wider audience of African American leaders in the non-profit, education, business, faith, law, government and health sectors. Today, BWCCA is a robust group of Black female leaders poised to tackle these challenges head on.   

Cheryl also serves as co-chair of the annual Chester County Single Mothers’ Conference, focused on engaging, educating and encouraging single mothers to reach their full potential. Additionally, she chaired Chester County Housing and Food for All 365 Campaign to bring awareness to the greater community about issues of hunger and homelessness. Some of Cheryl’s other contributions include serving on the Executive Leadership Committee for Decade to Doorways, a program that convenes leaders from various sectors around ways to relieve families facing poverty in Chester County; serving on the Steering Committee of the Chester County ACEs Coalition that raises awareness and knowledge of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) to help build resiliency and foster hope; and convening the Chester County Faith Leaders Addressing Poverty group.

As a testament to Cheryl’s profound impact on others, we received multiple nomination forms and over ten separate letters of support – from former and current colleagues, supervisors, mentees and friends – all outlining distinct ways Cheryl has united the community around important issues affecting women and girls to bring about real, lasting and powerful change. In the words of her friend Reverend Dr. Deborah Tanksley-Brown, “Cheryl is an ambassador of peace and justice and extends an invitation to all to come together at the community table.” She’s a constant presence at meetings, events and fundraisers throughout the county, in many cases having either formed the group herself or stepped up into a leadership role there as needed. Despite all the time she gives, Cheryl still makes a conscious effort to pay it forward:

“I have watched as the volunteers, interns and students she has mentored continue on to grad school, lead organizations of their own, and serve as phenomenal change makers who are making a significant difference in this world. In this way, she is constantly developing the next generation… many of the young people that Cheryl has mentored have direct lived experience with these issues,” noted former colleague Adrienne Nash Melendez.

We are honored to join Cheryl’s many cheerleaders and supporters in recognizing her with our 2019 Kitchen Table Award.

Our 14^th Annual Making a Difference Luncheon will also feature keynote speaker Morgan Berman, Founder and CEO of MilkCrate, a mission driven tech company helping other mission driven organizations achieve their impact goals. Her platform powers apps for some of the world’s leading nonprofits and municipal programs. Aninternationally award-winning entrepreneur, Morgan has presented at Forbes 30 Under 30, was listed by the UN Foundation as one of the “Top 10 Female Entrepreneurs to Watch” in the world, and was invited to the White House for Clean Energy Plan talks. She has been a World Economic Forum Global Shaper, a Fellow at the Ariane de Rothschild Fellowship, and an Environmental Leadership Program Senior Fellow. In her free time, Morgan mentors young entrepreneurs, helps other mission driven groups, and competes in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. To learn more about her work, visit www.morganberman.co.

Please contact our Development Office at development@ccfwg.org or visit www.ccwomenandgirls.org/luncheon for Luncheon sponsorship opportunities.