October Newsletter

This is it! The month we’ve been waiting for. The IWCV’s 20^th Anniversary Fundraiser Party will take place on Thursday October 23^rd! Join us for a fun filled afternoon and take a trip down memory lane with friends old and new. Everyone’s invited – our IWCV members, their partners, their spouses, the Fellows, & Guests. And best of all, all proceeds from the event will be divided between our three charities, Proyecto Vivir, Casa Ronald & Casa Caridad. See below under “Charities & Fundraising” for more details!

And, take a look under Activities below for details of the IWCV’s new “RECS” lists – lists of recommendations by our members for all those things you’re looking for like doctors, lawyers, handymen, plumbers, electricians, the all-important rooftop bars and restaurants and much more!

IWCV elections were held at our Annual General Meeting last month, and our entire Board of Directors was re-elected to the Board for a 2 year term beginning 1 January 2026. Thank you to all who were willing to run and serve again – and to everyone else, please consider becoming part of the IWCV administration! Job descriptions are available by emailing president@iwc-valencia.com, and Board members are always happy to talk to you about what’s involved and why it’s such a fulfilling experience to help this wonderful organization. Our Board of Directors includes:

President: Jane Buck

Vice President – Activities: Susan Burke March

Vice President – Membership: Janine Forbes

Vice President – Charities: Pauline Fitzgerald

Recording Secretary: Norma Acland

Treasurer: Jennifer LaChance

Member-at-Large: Susan Kaplan

Web Mistress (appointed position): Cindy Roberts

Now, take a look below for all the events we’ve scheduled for you (so far) for October and beyond. We’ve got some amazing things planned and we hope to see you at one or more of these!

IWCV FIRST TUESDAY COFFEE, Tuesday 7 October, 10:30am at MuviMas Café, located on the terraza behind the MUVIM Museum. Open to all women of Valencia, both IWCV members and those who haven’t officially joined us yet. No need to register in advance, just stop by for a cuppa and to catch up with old friends and make some new ones! First Tuesday Coffee | IWC - Valencia

FELLOWS OF THE IWCV HAPPY HOUR, Wednesday 8 October, 6pm – 8pm at Oli Bar Ruzafa, Pl. de Manuel Granero, 20, L'Eixample. Open to everyone! Come see your old friends and make some new ones! No need to reserve in advance; just drop on in and join us!

LIQUID GOLD: CHOOSING, COOKING, AND THRIVING WITH THE BEST OLIVE OIL, Saturday 18 October, 11:00am at Susan Hoover’s Apartment. Open to IWCV members, their partners/spouses, Fellows of the IWCV, and out-of-town guests. The ESSENTIALS for understanding extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) in Spain! For complete details and to sign up, click here: Liquid Gold: Choosing, Cooking, and Thriving with the Best Olive Oil | IWC - Valencia

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S CLUB – VALENCIA ANNIVERSARY PARTY (AND FUNDRAISER!), Thursday 23 October, 3:00pm – 7:00pm at Espai Llimera on C/Timoneda near the Abastos. Open to Everyone – and it’s not just a big party! All proceeds will go to support our charities! Tapas, drinks, live music and more are included, plus a raffle with amazing prizes! To register and to buy raffle tickets, go to International Women's Club - Valencia Anniversary Party! | IWC - Valencia

IWCV HAPPY HOUR (“OWL” – OUT WITH THE LADIES!), Wednesday 29 October, 6:00pm – 8:00pm at Taberna La Mora, C/Francesc de Borja 1. Everyone is invited! Come on out to see old friends and to meet new ones! There is no need to register in advance. For complete details, click here: IWCV Happy Hour - OWL (Out with the Ladies!) | IWC - Valencia

El CABANYAL: A FISHERMEN’S QUARTER WHERE TRADITION LIVES ON, Thursday 30 October, 10:20am – 12:20pm. Meet at Burger King - C. del Dr. Lluch, 299, Poblats Marítims. Open to IWCV Members, their Partners/Spouses, Fellows of the IWCV, and Out-of-Town Guests. Discover the hidden corners that make Valencia so captivating! Join this guided walking tour by historian David of Ars Magna. For complete details and to sign up, go to El Cabanyal: A Fishermen's Quarter Where Tradition Lives On | IWC - Valencia

WAITLIST - CURRENT REGULATORY CHANGES – NON-LUCRATIVE VISAS AND THEIR RENEWALS, Thursday 6 November, 4:00pm to 5:30pm at Espai Llimera on C/Timoneda, near the Abastos. Open to IWCV members, their partners/spouses, and Fellows of the IWCV. Immigration gurus Graham Tyner & Rissana Shytu from Settle-Easy will explain the regulatory changes in Spain’s new immigration laws to us, of all nationalities, who are here in Valencia on non-lucrative and other types of visas. THIS EVENT IS FULL BUT YOU CAN JOIN THE WAITLIST BY CLICKING HERE: WAIT LIST - Regulatory Changes: Non-lucrative Visas and their Renewal | IWC - Valencia

WHAT’S NEXT – ONE WOMAN’S STORY: WHEN THE UNTHINKABLE HAPPENS, Thursday 11 December, 11am – 12:45pm, Calle Buen Orden 8-1-1. Open to IWCV Members, their Partners/Spouses, Fellows of the IWCV, and Out-of-Town Guests. When you move to Valencia with your partner you look forward to planning for the future - learning a new language, discovering new cultures, food, traveling, and making new friends. But when the unthinkable happens and your partner suddenly dies, what do you do to survive and eventually thrive? For complete details and to register, click here: What's Next - One Woman's Story | IWC - Valencia

MEMBERSHIP

Janine Forbes, VP Membership

New members and re-joiners in September 2025

We have 410 full Members with 24 new members joining and a number leaving us. This month our joiners are from the Philippines, Belize, the US, UK, Germany, Ireland and Israel!

A huge welcome to all our new members!

Angela Avida

Ann Marie Mc Namara

Catherine Lester

Christine Begley

Christine Martinez

Debbie Sabatini

Deborah Thompson Van Dijk

Elfi Oeherwald

Elizabeth Lawrence

Ivette Flores

Jennifer Hoffman

Jerrica Spizarsky Brown

Julie Howard

Karen Brown

Karen Yan

Linda Oliver

Lis Labrada

Lynn Nugent

Marina Kira

Shirley Gowland

Wendy Wilson

Happy Birthday to all our ladies celebrating in October!

Alessandra Lopez

Angela Scott

Eland Tooley

Fiona Ward

Flora Corella

Grace Ella Hittner

Kim Varas

Lara Pennington

Laurie Harrington

Margie Spillen

Maria Mosquera

Melane Comstock

Michal Offer

Nicki Taylor

Rebecca Cabo

Susan Crochet

Susan Komormik

Yara Anabtawi

New members found us through other members referrals, web searches and increasingly Facebook recommendations.

Input from Membership VP - Janine Forbes

Welcome to ALL our new members.

Autumn has arrived and we are all looking forward to the celebration of 20 years of the IWC Valencia on the 23rd of October. Our next coffee morning meet up is Tuesday 7th October at the Muvimas terrace cafe at 10:30. We had asked our members for suggestions and ideas on how better to organize the Coffee Meet up, to improve on the integration and welcome of new members. We will be incorporating some of the ideas at the next meeting to see what works. If this is your first meeting PLEASE find me and I will ensure you are given a warm welcome. I will be wearing an Orange lanyard. As always we welcome members old and new but would especially ask our more “established” members to look out for new faces and help our new members attending for the first time to feel welcome. It is very much appreciated. I look forward to welcoming anyone who can make it!

New members really appreciate the support of an IWC Ambassador when they are relatively new to the city. Our Ambassador Coordinator, Famke Grootswagers is sadly stepping down from the role soon but has recruited the very capable Veronica Lopez to step into her shoes. If you are an existing member and you would like to help out the Ambassador team, please contact Famke on fgrootswagers@gmail.com who is currently handing over to Veronica - her details to follow. I would like to thank that Famke for all her efforts in putting together new members with the wonderful Ambassador team Thank you so much Famke!

Remember, all the really useful information about What’s On within the Club and the many, many events is on the IWC website. If you would like to join one of the many Whatsapp groups, just contact the relevant lead member or any Board Member including myself, janine_forbes@hotmail.com. I will be signing people up to the WhatsApp groups at the coffee morning so watch out for the circulating list. Of course, If you know any women in your personal network who you think would enjoy being a member of our club, please pass on the www.iwc-valencia.com and bring them along to an event. This is how the majority of women find us and referral is the best recommendation of all

CHARITIES & FUNDRAISING

Pauline Fitzgerald, VP – Charities

IWCV 20TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

October is here and THE BIG COUNTDOWN has begun to our Special 20th Anniversary Celebration on Thursday, 23 October from 3pm-7pm at Espai Llimera Cultural Center.Please save the date and book your tickets as soon as possible, you really don’t want to miss out on this fantastic event! Your Event Ticket entitles you to a variety of delicious tapas and drinks (Wine, beer & water included), Live Piano music, and a great opportunity to learn more about the three charities that we support.

Representatives from Casa Caridad, Casa Ronald & Proyecto Vivir will be present. And with your purchase of Raffle Tickets you will have the opportunity to win fabulous prizes such as gift certificates for health and beauty services, food & drink, original artwork, workshops, etc.

IWCV is a strong group of almost 400 members. You don't want to be disappointed, SPACES ARE LIMITED, make sure to purchase your Event tickets and Raffle tickets now. Embrace an afternoon of fun and laughter with friends old and new.

For complete details and to purchase your tickets, go to: Event Details & Registration | IWC – Valencia https://www.iwc-valencia.com/events/international-womens-club-valencia-anniversary-party-2

100% of the proceeds from Event and Raffle Ticket Sales will be divided equally among the three charities we support.

Our Charities team with the help of you ladies strive to support our Charities as best we can. For those of you who wish to make a private donation please note theBank details of our three charities:

Proyecto Vivir

ES75 3159 0066 9828 5328 2123

Casa Caridad

La Caixa: ES47 2100 0736 0022 0061 23102.

Banco Sabadell: ES75 0081 7352 4300 0105 7311

Casa Ronald ES27 0081 1518 9300 0150 8057

It is still possible to become a family member at Casa Ronald. Every year the ⁷Casa Ronald house next to La Fe Hospital hosts more than 200 families with seriously ill children who need to be close to them during their recovery. In order to be able to assume the high costs of maintaining this, they are asking us to join their great family in a very simple way that generates a lot of stability:

Becoming a family member You decide the amount and how often you can contribute, every amount no matter how large or small helps in such a big way  https://participa.fundacionronald.org/sociocasaronaldvalencia Casa Ronald greatly appreciates the support of IWCV.

Casa Caridad continue their mission to support victims of The Dana, so many people suffered and are still struggling. They are still appealing to companies and individuals for donations, two bank accounts have been enabled for this purpose:

CaixaBank: ES2321008681530200122656

and

RENTA 4 BANCO: ES 7600830001110097130755

or you can use The Bizum number 11001.

THE HOLIDAY SEASON IS FAST APPROACHING; Don't forget to order your Casa Ronald Christmas Gift Baskets. TO ORDER YOUR BASKET(S), email Carmen Rieff mariacrieff@gmail.com 

Please provide your complete name, email address, WhatsApp (or phone) number, and the number of baskets you are ordering. Your orders must be placed by Tuesday 29th October at the very latest! When the baskets are available, you will be notified and you can pick them up at a central location in Valencia so that you do not have to travel to Ronald McDonald House to collect. Payment will be made on collection.

These baskets of treats make such lovely Christmas gifts (perfect for friends you’re visiting over the holiday or simply to say thank you to your doorman, cleaning person, etc.), and have proved very popular every year with our IWCV Ladies. The baskets will be €25 plus VAT (approximately €5). For every basket sold Grupo Navarra will donate €7.50 to Casa Ronald.

By purchasing the Charity Christmas Baskets, you are helping the Ronald McDonald House Children's Foundation continue to host families with seriously ill children who have to travel far from their usual residence to receive long-term medical treatment during such a difficult time as Christmas, when being away from home is especially difficult.

This basket comes with special packaging, very varied and complete, including:

• Bottle of Duet Mousseux Brut sparkling wine.

• Bottle of Faustino Rivero Roble D.O. Utiel wine.

• Bottle of Charmat Mimosa Opera Prima sparkling wine.

• 1 piece of Salamanca Montehonfria Iberian sobrasada (150g).

• 1 piece of Dehesa del Yeltes acorn-fed Iberian chorizo (150g).

• 1 piece of Dehesa del Yeltes acorn-fed Iberian salchichón (150g).

• 1 Picó Jijona soft almond nougat (150g).

• 1 box of Dulcestepa traditional mantecados (120g).

• 1 box of Picó cocoa-coated wafers, 75g

• 1 box of El Lobo Florbu nougat wafer cookies, 110g

• 1 box of Trapa chest chocolates, 53g

• 1 bottle of Oro del Campo Arbequina extra virgin olive oil, 250ml

• 1 package of Obando artisan mini regañá cheese

• 1 Iberian pâté in Port wine with blue cheese and almond essence, 70g

AMIGOS DE LA CALLE

We will once again support Amigos de la Calle with their holiday campaigns;

1. Sponsor a Child

2. Gift bags for the Homeless

Please watch for details in the coming weeks.You ladies are amazing, we greatly appreciate your support

ACTIVITIES

Susan Burke March, VP—Activities

Our RECS Docx Dropbox folder contains lists of recommendations by and for our members, and is continually updated with new recommendations and general helpful information for all our members. You can access the RECS documents from our Social Chat WhatsApp group. It’s very easy and very worthwhile! Learn more on the Social Chat WhatsApp group and to join, send a message to either Membership VP Janine Forbes (Janine_forbes@hotmail.com) or Activities VP Susan Burke March (activities@iwc-valencia.com).

IWCV Ongoing Activities & Special Events

Do you have an idea for an activity or event? Our IWCV ongoing activities and many of IWCV's special events thrive because members like you step up to lead them. Hosting or organizing is an excellent way to share your interests and help our community flourish. Please reach out to Susan Burke March to brainstorm your ideas—you'll receive support every step of the way.

FELLOWS OF THE IWCV

Carey Hepler, Coordinator

Details of the Fellows’ October Happy Hour are above. This event is open to Fellows and everyone else too! We hope to see you there. If you are new to Valencia (or even if you’ve been here for a while!) and your husband/partner wants to meet people and keep busy, bring him along and introduce him to the Fellows. It’s a great way for the men in your life to make friends!

The Fellows of the IWCV is open to all men of Valencia. For questions or to join, please contact me (Carey Hepler) at carey.hepler@gmail.com.

OCTOBER HOLIDAYS IN VALENCIA

Thursday 9 October Valencian Community Day

Enjoy the cooler weather this month is bringing, and we’re looking forward to a great time with all of you at our 20^th Anniversary Party this month!

Jane Buck,

President