Kathy Powell and Myrna Whitehead, delegates from PEO Chapter OK Perry, and Lori Gilroy, delegate from PEO Chapter DE Perry, attended the 127th annual convention of the Iowa State Chapter PEO Sisterhood, held June 1-2 in Des Moines.
With the theme “The Gift of PEO,” Kate Raun, Chapter OR Norwalk, presided over some 750 delegates and visitors. Twenty chapters from eastern Iowa served as the hostess group for the convention. The hostess committee was headed by Betsy Helmich of IB Davenport, Marsha Pedersen of JS Davenport and Laurie Derby of AH West Liberty.
Attendees participated in workshops and heard from recipients of PEO’s six philanthropies and the Iowa PEO Project Fund Inc. The convention concluded with the installation of the 2019-2020 executive board officers, headed by President Bev Templeton of FN Garner, Vice President Sue Aanes of EV New London, Organizer Carol Goldsmith of CB Ida Grove, Treasurer Carrie Wilkinson of OP Cedar Rapids and Secretary Christin Smith of HL Dubuque.
PEO is a philanthropic organization in which women celebrate the advancement of women and educate women through scholarships, grants, awards, loans and the stewardship of Cottey College. PEO sisters motivate each other to achieve their highest aspirations.
PEO is one of the pioneer societies for women and was founded Jan. 21, 1869, by seven young women at Iowa Wesleyan University in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. Originally a campus friendship society, PEO soon blossomed to include off-campus women. Today PEO has grown from that membership of seven to almost 250,000 members in 6,000 chapters in the U.S. and Canada.
Iowa is the second largest state chapter, with 377 chapters and more than 16,000 members. Des Moines is the international headquarters of the PEO Sisterhood.
The PEO Sisterhood is passionate about its mission: promoting educational opportunities for women, and the sisterhood proudly makes a difference in women’s lives with six international philanthropies: the PEO Educational Loan Fund, PEO International Peace Scholarship Fund, PEO Program for Continuing Education, PEO Scholar Awards, PEO STAR Scholarship and the ownership of Cottey College in Nevada, Mo.
