Women of the Vine & Spirits Foundation dished out $187,000 in beverage industry scholarships this year

I legit had to triple-check the stats in this news item.

The Women of the Vine & Spirits Foundation is the charitable arm of Women of the Vine & Spirits, a global membership organization that pushes the wine, beer and spirits industry toward a more diverse, equitable and inclusive era. The news release this week said the Foundation has awarded more than $187,000 scholarships to 76 deserving candidates.

Surely, those figures are since its inception in 2017, right? Wrong! Those are 76 scholarships just in 2023! Since its inception, the non-profit foundation has awarded a total of $782,755 in scholarship funding! Holy cow.

The Foundation received 230 applications from candidates in 34 countries, including Australia, Austria, Barbados, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Grenada, Hungary, India, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Kenya, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, South Africa, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, and Vietnam.

“The Women of the Vine & Spirits Foundation was launched just two years after membership opened to Women of the Vine & Spirits, and we are so proud of our growth since 2017,” said Deborah Brenner, President of Women of the Vine & Spirits Foundation. “We received applications from incredible candidates residing around the globe. I am so honored to celebrate this year’s honorees for their outstanding achievements. I am so grateful to our Donors, Committee Members, and our Board. Together, we are crafting a better world for women in wine, beer and spirits.”

Here, here. Speaking of those donors …

For the fifth year in a row, E. & J. Gallo Winery donated $100,000 as a Patron Donor to its dedicated “Women Behind the Wine Educational Fund”. This year, 28 scholarships were awarded from this fund, including three $10,000 awards and 25 “Fuel Your Dreams” honors.

The Women of the Vine & Spirits Foundation also received generous donations from 12 additional companies in 2023, including being selected as a grant recipient of the Gérard Basset Foundation. Through this generous financial support, the Foundation was able to award three additional WSET Level 4 Award in Wines scholarships.

For a list of all 2023 Donors visit wotvsfoundation.org/our-donors.