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THE STANWOOD WOMEN’S CLUB

       Women have always been interested in the development and improvement of their homes and community. Also, many women feel the need of self-improvement. The women of Stanwood are no exception. On October 26, 1921 eight women met at the Charles Rigby home to organize a “self-improvement society”. They were Mrs. Carl Westphal, Mrs. John Boling, Mrs. C. W. Cleveland, Mrs. Will G. Smith, Mrs. Frank Horr, Mrs. H. C. Baade, Mrs. Christian Haupt, and Mrs. Charles Rigby.

       The first meetings were used to discuss plans for the future. The original group was soon enlarged. The first president was Mrs. Rigby. A constitution and by-laws were drawn up and on January 4, 1922 the constitution was signed by 24 women. Since the aim of the club was primarily “culture,” the annual dues were only 75 cents at first. It was agreed that the club would not participate in fund-raising projects, but through the years the Federation has urged more civic participation and to do that more funds were needed. The following are some of the methods used to raise money: Bake sales, donkey ball games, silent auctions, boxed-candy sales, style shows, waffle supper, bazaar, and contributions.

       During the early years an annual banquet was held with husbands as guests. By 1950 these affairs were usually held in a tea room or hotel, where a special program was presented and refreshments served. More recently the club has dropped some of the earlier functions and concentrated on projects directed to the community. A senior-citizen party is held each spring, men and women, at which time old friends, old times, and entertainment are enjoyed.

       The library was started by the Junior Women’s Club (now Laetitian). The group installed a rest room in the library building and will continue to give special attention to the library each year, as part of its civic contribution.

       A petition circulated to secure a widow’s pension for a local woman.

       Interest shown in local P. T. A.

       First County Convention entertained by Stanwood Women’s Club.

       Answered pleas for clothing, sent to Europe.

       Assisted with immunization and eye tests at school.

       Prepared several plays, in particular a gerontology play, “The Room Upstairs,” which was presented at Iowa City and at the Jones and Cedar County Convention.

       Sponsored women candidates for school board.

       Assisted with story hour at the library.

       Emphasized conservation of natural resources.

       Celebrated our 45th anniversary.

       Our present membership is sixteen; two of our charter members are still living.

       The history of the Stanwood Women’s Club has been a story of Federation projects, plus community and individual improvement, everything done with faith and fun and hope for fulfillment.

       The summer swimming project has been planned for many years by the Club, with Red Cross aid. Many children have been thus benefited. The Federation projects have been sponsored in every way by contributions and by better informed members. We have been particularly interested in legislative measures. In 1922, a protest was sent to Will Hayes of New York against Roscoe (Fatty) Arbuckle’s return to the screen. The importance of voting is always stressed by the group.

       Our members have for many years participated in “The Adventures in Reading” project of the Iowa Federation of Woman’s Clubs. Beginning with only one reader, we have attained 100% of our membership reporting reading. Even in our early years, when fewer of the members read, we had the highest percentage of readers in Cedar County.

       A glance through the minutes that have been carefully kept since 1921 gives among many, many other projects the following:

THE LAETITIAN CLUB

        “Laetitian “ comes from a Greek word meaning joy. While it is true that many of the club’s activities have been solely for the entertainment of its members, it is no less accurate to state that the real joy of membership has always been in contributing to the growth and development of the Stanwood community.

       Sponsored by the Stanwood Women’s Club, the group was organized in the summer of 1947 as The Stanwood Junior Women’s Club. Public spirited from the start, the members soon decided that Stanwood needed a library. It was a large project for so small a group, but with the unbeatable combination of youthful enthusiasm and the cooperation of the community, the library became a reality.

       From small beginnings in temporary quarters with donated books, the Stanwood Public Library is now housed in a building owned by the Library Board. The library offers the community a wide selection of titles from its own shelves and gives readers access to the services of the State Traveling Library and the Seven Rivers Library System.

       The library is financed largely by public funds now, but the Laetitian Club continues to contribute to the budget the proceeds of an annual Easter Bake Sale, and has had at least one member on the Library Board every year since its organization. In this centennial year, there are three members of The Laetitian Club serving on the Library Board.

       There is a myriad of smaller projects for which The Laetitian Club members can take credit. In 1951 a boys club was organized under the club’s sponsorship. Three Stanwood boys were sent to Camp Wapsie in 1955. In 1965 The Laetitian Club helped to organize and finance Brownie and Girl Scout troops. The members petitioned the Town Council for garbage collection, and this service was begun in 1959.

       The club has sponsored the Christmas Seal drive since 1956 and fund-raising for Mentally Retarded Children since 1964. Members help to organize the Red Cross Swimming Program each year for Stanwood area children.

       It was in 1961 that the Stanwood Junior Women’s Club reorganized as The Laetitian Club. Though the name was changed, the club continued its affiliation with the Federation of Women’s Clubs and retained its dedication to community improvement.

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       The Laetitian Club’s most recent contribution to the Stanwood community is the Public Park. It is in the club’s annual report of the 1951-52 club year that one finds for the first time the idea of the park project. At that time, the members were dreaming of providing picnic tables, playground equipment and fireplaces for the as yet undeveloped park site. When the members began to examine the recreational needs of the community, they agreed upon a multi-purpose blacktop area for a park. With imagination, hard work and persistence these dedicated young women succeeded in raising hundreds of dollars to finance the project.

       While the members waited patiently for the proposed park site to be filled and developed, they added to their “Park Fund” the proceeds from bazaars, bake sales and a fashion show.

       It was in 1966 that the club began to act upon a new premise. It was decided that what the Town of Stanwood needed more than the idea of a tennis court-skating rink was a piece of land that could become a park. A Park Committee was appointed to investigate the possibilities, and in the spring of 1965 The Laetitian Club purchased and deeded to The Town of Stanwood the five lots known as the St. John property.

       The land was cleared of old buildings and debris, graded and seeded, and The Laetitian Club paid the bill. But it was hoped that the whole community might now be enlisted to help in the development of the park. All the service clubs were invited to send representatives to a meeting at which Margherita Tarr, Extension Landscape Architect from Iowa State University, presented a plan for the planting of trees and shrubs and the placement of equipment.

       The Town Council agreed to allocate funds for the use of The Park Board in developing this new property, and in 1967 a member of The Laetitian Club was elected to serve on the Park Board.

       As The Laetitian Club members had hoped, once supplied with raw material for a park, the whole town buzzed with interest and activity. In this centennial year of 1969, the Stanwood Public Park is green with trees, shrubs and grass, and boasts running water, a security light, picnic tables, a grill, colorful playground equipment and an enclosed shelter with a woodburning fireplace.

       The Laetitian Club is justly proud of its 22 years of service to this community, but prouder still of the Stanwood people who have responded with generosity and vitality to convert our dreams into reality.