P.E.O. convention to land at space center

MADISON COUNTY – The Alabama Chapter of Philanthropic Educational Organization or P.E.O. Sisterhood has chosen Huntsville as the site of its annual state convention. Several Madison and Huntsville women hold membership in local chapters.

The Huntsville Marriott Hotel and Convention Center at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center will accommodate the event on May 4-6. Chapters M and AD in Huntsville and Chapter Q in Decatur are hosting the 59th convention. More than 200 P.E.O. members are expected to attend.

Becca Monk-Sims with Chapter AD in Huntsville is serving as convention chair. The convention is open to all active P.E.O. members.

State Chapter President Shirley Paramore with Chapter T in Birmingham has selected the 2017 theme, “Pursue Every Opportunity,” to highlight the goal of P.E.O. The organization supports six philanthropies that provide scholarships, loans and grants to women seeking higher education.

Keynote speaker will be Mary M. Elliott with Chapter Y in Glasgow, Ky., who joined P.E.O. in 1999. Elliott serves as vice chairperson of the International Chapter Foundation. A native of Lebanon, Ky., Mary is a graduate of Western Kentucky University with degrees and graduate work in library science. She was elected to Kentucky State Chapter’s Executive Board in 2006.

P.E.O. supports philanthropies, such as Educational Loan Fund, International Peace Scholarship Fund, Program for Continuing Education, Scholar Awards and STAR Scholarship Fund for graduating high school seniors.

The P.E.O. Sisterhood was founded in 1869 at Iowa Wesleyan College in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. Established in 1961, the P.E.O. Foundation is a nonprofit corporation to encourage tax-deductible giving for the sisterhood’s charitable projects.

The Alabama P.E.O. Sisterhood consists of 39 chapters with more than 1,300 members. P.E.O. has generated more than $283 million in educational assistance to 99,000-plus women.

For more information, visit peointernational.org.