Serving Southeastern Michigan Since 2000
The Jean Ledwith King Women's Center of Southeastern Michigan has its roots in Soundings: A Center for Women. In 1995, Soundings merged with Child and Family Services which then combined with Huron Services for Youth to become HelpSource. These mergers diluted the original Soundings focus, which was to provide affordable, women-friendly services. In mid-1999, three Soundings employees decided to try to reconstruct Soundings as an independent nonprofit and return to providing low-cost, context-informed services. The HelpSource board of directors denied their request.
Founding members Sandi Cooper, Anne Benedict, and Laura Lies, along with board member Mickey Katz-Pek remained committed to their original plan. They envisioned a community resource center where women and girls could gather for conversation and coffee; library and computer resources; personal counseling; and information about jobs, money, and legal issues. We opened for business as The Women's Center of America on January 13, 2000 just four days after leaving HelpSource.
Soon outgrowing the Eastover space on Packard donated by Betty Bishop, PhD, our small staff and counseling interns moved twice to temporary offices. In winter 2001, we settled into a small self-standing building at 2425 West Stadium.
Laura Lies relocated to Chicago in 2002 and remains an honorary board member. Anne Benedict died in 2004. Sandi (Alexandra) Cooper retired as Executive Director in 2005 and moved to Florida, where she and her partner lend their talents to the arts community. She was replaced by Kimberli Cumming, who had previously served as Assistant Director. Mickey Katz-Pek remains active with The Women's Center and is a key supporter.
In June 2006, we changed our name to The Women's Center of Southeastern Michigan to reflect the agency's regional scope. In 2009, the landlord sold the West Stadium building. Fortunately, we were able to find a new, but unfinished office condo just down the street at 510 S. Maple Road. With the help of hard-working volunteers, we designed, painted, and furnished our current space. In March 2011, we decided to honor Jean Ledwith King's advocacy for gender equity by adding her name.
Thanks to generous community support, their vision for The Women's Center remains undimmed. With the help of our volunteers, we continue to offer high-quality services and a welcoming atmosphere at affordable fees.
