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Women on a Mission
Organization continues to make positive impact
October 22, 2008 - By Dick Lindsay, Berkshire Eagle Staff
10/20/2008
When you scan the list of early presidents for the Junior League of Berkshire County, the married women are identified by their husbands' names: Mrs. Henry D. Brigham, Mrs. John Russ, or Mrs. Albert I. Ris.
Gradually the members of the all female civic organization began using their own first names, with no reference to their spouses at all.
"It shows how women have more of an identity today and how their role in the community has grown," said Carol Rodman, a Junior league member for over 50 years.
Rodman was among the 45 current and former members who gathered at the Country Club of Pittsfield yesterday for a very special 75th anniversary celebration.
Today's trained volunteers are working moms, single moms, and stay-at-home moms, compared to the demographics 50 years ago.
"When I joined we were all at-home mothers, sharing baby-sitting duties and taking turns working the thrift shop," said Jean Ryan, a member for more than 40 years.
The Junior League Thrift Shop operated for almost 50 years, the last 30 on North Street, closing in 1998.
Ryan's experience as a Junior League volunteer also helped her enter the workforce.
"I was director of volunteers at BMC for 25 years after my husband died." Ryan said of her getting a job at Berkshire Medical Center. "The Junior League had given me the training and organizational skills."
The Junior League grew out of the "Cat Club", a group of 14 young women who met once a week to sew for the House of Mercy in Pittsfield, the forerunner to Pittsfield General and later BMC. It was officially recognized by the national organization in 1933.
The first Junior League was formed in New York City, 107 years ago, and now numbers 293 in four countries with 193,000 volunteer members.
Longtime members and relative newcomers reminisced how the Junior League of Berkshire County has evolved over the years to keep improving their community through various fundraisers and its own programs and projects.
The local chapter was ahead of its time, forming a dental health clinic for children from 1934-1947, which was turned over to the Pittsfield Health Department. The organization co-sponsored a day care center in the mid-1960s. This year's project is partnering with the state Department of Social Services to connect foster children with potential foster parents.
These are three of the numerous accomplishments highlighted in the 75th anniversary history booklet produced by Rodman.
"It's so important to keep the history of the organization alive, so you know where you've come from," said Rodman.
The Junior League is also about helping their own.
When the organization heard that Amy Wolfe's 9-year-old daughter, Allison, was having her third open heart surgery last January, they didn't hesitate to collect $750 on behalf of the fourth-grader.
"I broke down crying," Wolfe recalled after being handed the money.
"I'm good at doing things for the community, but not used to having it turned around on me," added Wolfe, who helps oversee community programming for the Junior League.
Merle Ferber, of Pittsfield, experienced that same compassion 25 years ago when she became a quadriplegic following a car crash.
The current president of Ad Lib Inc., a nonprofit independent living center in Pittsfield, was president of the Junior League in 1983.
"(The members) literally brought me food for my family and visited me in the hospital," said Ferber "They never let me feel out of (the league)."
The Junior League of Berkshire County also makes outsiders feel welcome.
"I made some amazing friends who I wouldn't have met otherwise," said Amy Noble Novitsky, a past president who moved to Lenox in 2001 and began raising a family.
Current Junior League president Melinda Walton, of HInsdale, a math teacher at Wahconah Regional High School in Dalton, is astounded by the volunteers commitment.
"They have a full plate, yet always say 'yes' to help the community and they know how to do it," said Walton a seven-year member.
Despite the infusion of new blood in recent years, the Junior League, like many local volunteer outfits, are struggling to enlist and keep active members.
"We've gone from 50 active members to 25 since I came seven years ago," said Novitsky. "We had a lot of (General Electric) people who transferred or left."
Overall, the Junior League has nearly 90 members, but they may get a boost from a few former volunteers, inspired by the anniversary event, saying they may rejoin.
Even the men behind the women are lending a hand.
"I've noticed the past five years huge support from a group of men: Husbands, boyfriends, fathers," said Walton. "They can't join, but they help watch the kids and do other things so we can volunteer."
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