How did DFW get started?

In the fall of 2002, Marsha Wallace, a former nurse and mother of four from Greenville, SC,  read an article about a group of friends who got together for potluck dinners and made donations to needy families by using the money that they would have otherwise spent in restaurants. Marsha was struck by the thought of using dining out dollars to support women and girls in developing countries. And she and her friends pooled their donations to support Women for Women International.

The first official Dining for Women gathering was in 2003. DFW attained nonprofit status in 2004. For us, tremendous growth occurred after being included in a 2005 New Ventures In Philanthropy study on giving circles. Since then, DFW has received unsolicited national media attention, having been featured in the New York Times, Woman’s Day Magazine, Real Simple, MORE, Quick & Simple, Guide Post, the Delta Sky magazine and on Good Morning America and the Today Show.

Having started out as one group, meeting in Greenville, South Carolina, DFW has grown to  more than 250 diverse chapters throughout the United States and around the world.