Celebrating 30 Years of Helping Children, Nourishing Friendships

Over 800 Women to Attend the Twilight Gathering Supporting ChildCare for
Disadvantaged Children

MILFORD, Mich., June 24 /PRNewswire/ -- The non-profit Michigan foundation
Women's Caring Program (WCP) will hold its annual "Twilight Gathering" garden
party/fundraiser, celebrating 30 years of friendship and support of children,
from 5:30 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, July 9, in Milford, MI. WCP supports early
childhood education through licensed quality childcare for working poor
families across Michigan.

WCP, which began on a front porch in 1979 as a potluck dinner party among a
handful of women who wanted to expand their circle of friends, is now an
energetic, growing public foundation raising over $300,000 in 2008 alone. The
humble potluck blossomed into the Twilight Gathering garden party, a "must-do"
event-of-the-summer attracting more than 800 women statewide.

WCP's signature statewide program, ChildCare Commitment, supports children,
ages birth to five, from working disadvantaged families and provides financial
support for their quality childcare and early education. It has helped
families in 64 Michigan counties.

"We believe that, collectively, we all have one asset too important to fail
and that is our children," said WCP founder Carol Walters. "Our organization
focuses on the needs of the children in working poor families, who need
quality early education and childcare to make them kindergarten ready while
their parents are working to provide for them. Research has conclusively shown
there is a direct correlation between the quality of early childhood care and
education and a child's future economic independence. It also shows
indisputably that children who start out behind their peers educationally
rarely catch up.

"Too often, we find that government and private assistance programs focus only
on the most disadvantaged among us. Through ChildCare Commitment, we bring
much-needed stability to the lives of working Michigan families for whom just
a little help can make all the difference, making kindergarten readiness and
future success in life more of a reality.

"When economic times are tough, it is the parents and children of low-income
families who suffer the most. This is certainly the case this year, as
Michigan's tumultuous economy continues to wreak havoc on working families
trying to find affordable, quality childcare."

Among families who pay for child care, families in poverty spend an average of
29 percent of their income and families between 100 and 200 percent of poverty
devote an average of 14 percent of their income on care.*

In Michigan, two out of every five children reside in low-income households
(income under $42,000 for a family of four). This rate is up more than six
percent since 2000, and is the highest in the Midwest. There are currently 456
families on the ChildCare Commitment's waiting list.

The WCP's Twilight Gathering has become a legendary garden party that pampers
guests by surrounding them in a beautiful garden setting among exquisitely
prepared food, refreshing drinks, lively conversations, great music and one of
the largest and best silent auctions in southeast Michigan.

"Even as our mission of helping disadvantaged children has expanded over the
years, we've always tried to ensure the original reason for gathering women
together remains the same: to laugh, relax, catch up with old friends and
possibly meet new ones," said Walters. "Women don't take time just for
themselves very often - away from the everyday stresses of juggling home, jobs
and family. This gathering provides a wonderful time to decompress and simply
enjoy our friends."

To RSVP to the Twilight Gathering, become involved as a volunteer or a silent
auction donor, and learn more about the Women's Caring Program, including a
copy of the invitation and a map to the event, visit
www.womenscaringprogram.org. Tickets are $100 in advance; $125 at the event
and corporate and individual sponsorships are available. To RSVP via email:
rsvp@womenscaringprogram.org or via telephone, call: (248) 415-1442. The
Twilight Gathering will be held from 5:30 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, July 9, at
2955 Morrow Lane, Milford.

Individuals and companies interested in supporting ChildCare Commitment,
attending the Twilight Gathering, or learning more about WCP can visit
www.womenscaringprogram.org.

*U.S. Census Bureau, "Who's Minding the Kids? Child Care Arrangements: Spring
2005." Detailed Tables, PPL Table 6 (2008).
http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/childcare.html

SOURCE Women's Caring Program

Maureen McNulty Saxton, +1-517-899-5513, Deborah Hart, +1-248-549-2594, or
Colleen Robar, +1-313-207-5960, all for Women's Caring Program