sexuality, personal hygiene, good nutrition, and other personal needs which will promote
their self-esteem and support their development into womanhood.
•
The Desire Academy, a private school serving children from the Desire Street public
housing project.
18
The WBL is also a sustaining sponsor of the Greater New Orleans Science and Engineering
Fair in Region IX.
19
As a sustaining sponsor, the women of the WBL coordinate volunteers and
personally give hundreds of hours each year. They promote the fair to area students and teachers,
register students for participation, and assist with the awards ceremony. Every year, they seek to
improve the effort which led to Betty Van Norman voluntarily designing an on-line registration
form. After the event, the group also invites the winners to their meeting to present their project
at a WBL meeting and honor them for their efforts.
Another committee supporting children is the child advocacy group led by Nancy Simoneaux
and Margaret Ransone. Each of these women has been unwavering in her pursuit of protecting
children who might easily be the most vulnerable of Louisiana citizens. Often poorly represented
and underserved due to a shortage of funds and overwhelming demand on the system, these
women have advocated on behalf of neglected and abused children throughout the state. But
their strongest impact has been in Orleans Parish. Nancy Simoneaux was one of the first
members I met when attending the tea in December 2001. She provided a tour of the new Child
Advocacy Center, a child-friendly place. It was created and designed to help traumatized
18
The WBL gave a cash contribution to purchase age appropriate books for the school library. Encouraging the
director to use the money at a book fair fundraiser for another nonprofit agency, she reported back that the fair
attendant gave an additional 50% discount. Thus two organizations were helped with one donation, and one was
able to essentially double the value of the donation.
19
Region IX is the Educational District covering Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard Parishes.
Convention