Regardless of the size of the community, it only takes a handful of dedicated citizens to make a massive impact.

In Cass County, the local 100 Women Who Care have spent the last three years doing their part to bolster the efforts of other nonprofits and agencies.

In spite of their size, the members are making a big difference.

“Last winter, we gave to the Salvation Army,” said Kim MacGregor, president of the Cass County 100 Women Who Care. “Because of our gift, they were able to stay open all winter. Otherwise they would have had to shut their doors for a few months. We truly do make a difference.”

MacGregor was joined by fellow 100 Women member Ordeana Sala to talk about the work they and the other philanthropists have done to help uplift the county during Thursday’s meeting of the Dowagiac Rotary Club at the Elks Lodge.

The two were invited to speak to the members of the service organization by Rotarian and 100 Women Who Care member Kathy Emans.

The Cass County organization was inspired by similar 100 Women Who Care groups throughout southwest Michigan and beyond. MacGregor, a financial advisor with the Dowagiac Edward Jones office, decided to form the group with a group of her friends in late 2013 after attending a meeting with other Edward Jones advisors across the area, where one of the attendees talked about the 100 Women Who Care concept.

“I thought to myself, ‘You know, that is the ticket,’” MacGregor said. “My $100 may not make that much of a difference, but if I get 100 women to give $100, that is $10,000. That is a lot of money, and that can make a true difference.”

Meeting once every quarter at different locations across Cass County, the members select the names of three Cass County service organizations out of a hat at the beginning of each meeting, with representatives from those places then giving a short presentation about what they do and how they would use the money donated to them, Sala said. Following those talks, the members then cast a vote for which organization they wish to donate to, with each woman then writing a $100 check directly to the winning agency.

So far, the 40 active members of the 100 Woman group have donated more than $40,000 to a dozen different area nonprofits, most recently donating nearly $3,000 to Fitch Camp following their meeting in July.

“I can’t tell you what kind of warm feeling I get to be able to hand over a check to someone with a needy organization, who is trying and struggling to help the community and Cass County,” Sala said. “It is a great organization, and I welcome any woman who wants to join us in our quest of ours.”

The group will host its next meeting at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26, inside the Foundation Room at Southwestern Michigan College’s Dowagiac campus. For more information about the organization people can visit the Cass County 100 Women Who Care website at http://casscounty100wwc.webs.com.