W (Power in Women) arose from a need, but has gone on to fill the needs of many. In April 2007, Amanda Snyder said she realized Texas A&M was missing a greater focus on women’s needs.
“I noticed a lack of women’s organizations in comparison with the amount of men’s organizations, and combine that with the need of women’s poverty in the world and even in America,” said Snyder, a senior anthropology major.
When researching the area, Snyder came across CARE, a philanthropic agency that aids in cases of women’s poverty.
“I combined both of those things and created W,” she said.
Snyder said the purpose of W is to empower women to go out, make a change and become leaders.
“We believe that women are often hit harder by poverty and as such, it takes unifying women to work together to get those women out of poverty,” Snyder said.
The previous two years, for a few days a time, the members of W demonstrated a homeless community on campus that provided a first-hand glimpse into the reality of women’s poverty.
“Our members lived in Rudder Plaza for 60 hours and we only subsisted on what was given to us, so we only came with the clothes on our backs and our textbooks and our notebooks,” said Executive Chairwoman of Membership Development Hayley Wren, a sophomore special education major.
“We wore the same clothes for three days, and we only ate what was donated to us,” Wren said. “Our entire purpose of having a poverty demonstration on campus was to make poverty personal to the A&M family and to show that it can be anyone.”
Poverty or homelessness, Wren said, could affect your affect your sister, friend, roommate or that girl in your biology class.
Snyder said the group took the demonstration and formed a larger event.
“We took that and expanded it into what we call poverty simulation,” she said. “We’re going to invite the campus out to basically simulate a homeless community with us. We’re going to do it very tastefully and, in a sense, educationally.”
The simulation will take place for 48 hours.
Kristen Timberlake, a sophomore biomedical science major, said that in addition to addressing real-world issues, the group takes time to have fun. W took a retreat that turned into a camping trip this semester in Austin. The members set up tents in the backyard of former members’ house.
“It was all a surprise, nobody knew what was going on and then loaded us up in cars and drove us to Austin,” she said. “It was very interesting to have 30 girls setting up tents; some went well, some not so well.”
All the tents were eventually set up, but Snyder said there was one oversight.
“We didn’t put up the rain guards and it rained in the middle of the night,” she said.
The College Station Cinemark will be among more than 400 theaters nation-wide showing “A Powerful Noise.” The movie will document the story of three women overcoming poverty. The movie will be at 6 p.m. Thursday, and W will be on campus promoting the event.
The group will present a women’s symposium in the main hallway of the Memorial Student Center on March 11 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Executive Chairwoman of Community Service Marcy Ostroff, a junior wildlife and fisheries science major, said the event will bring organizations from around the community and campus to educate women on health issues and poverty.
“We would like everyone to come out, men and women alike,” Marcy said.