AWI President's Newsletters

              The 1947 C o n v e n t i o n c e l e b r a t e d t h e 5 0 t h A n n i v e r s a r y of t h e f i r s t
I n s t i t u t e m e e t i n g at S t o n e y C r e e k , O n t a r i o . The Emergency War Fund was
c l o s e d i n 1946 and a t t h i s c o n v e n t i o n d e l e g a t e s d e c i d e d to back cancer
r e s e a r c h work and e s t a b l i s h e d a C a n c e r Fund as a P r o v i n c i a l o b j e c t i v e.
The d e d i c a t i o n o f t h e " Book of Rememberance" of A l b e r t a Women's I n s t i t u t es
t o o k p l a c e at t h e 1949 C o n v e n t i o n . This book may be v i e w e d at t h e
A r c h i v e s at the P r o v i n c i a l L i b r a r y , Edmonton. Rules f o r a d d i t i o n a l
names was d r a f t e d .
In 1951 D i s t r i c t 3 was d i v i d e d i n t o two d i s t r i c t s ( 3 and 5 ) , w i th
e i g h t c o n s t i t u e n c i e s i n e a c h . D e c i d e d to g i v e the h i g h e s t honor of
A l b e r t a Women's I n s t i t u t e s a v a i l a b l e w i t h " L i f e M e m b e r s h i p s " and
M e m b e r s - a t - 1 a r g e be p e r m i t t e d.
In 1952 t h e C a n c e r Fund was c l o s e d and w i t h $ 3,700, H e a l t h I n s t ­i
t u t e s c h o o l s were s e t up at t h e U n i v e r s i t y , Edmonton and B a n f f School
o f F i n e A r t s . Over 300 I n s t i t u t e members l e a r n e d of t h e t r e a t m e n t s of
C a n c e r and t h e n e e d o f e a r l y d i a g n o s i s . T h i s was t h e f i r s t s c h o o l of
i t s k i n d i n C a n a d a . Many l e c t u r e s were s e t up to e d u c a t e e u r a l women
about C a n c e r and t h e h e a l t h s e r v i c e s g i v e n i n t h e p r o v i n c e of A l b e r t a .
F o r the f i r s t time i n 1953, t h e c o n f e r e n c e of the A s s o c i a t e d
C o u n t r y Women of t h e W o r l d was h e l d on C a n a d i a n s o i l where t he
o r g a n i z a t i o n was b o r n i n 1897. T h r e e o f t h e f i v e C h a r t e r Members of
t h e f i r s t Women's I n s t i t u t e g r e e t e d over 1,000 d e l e g a t e s from 26 c o u n t r i e s .
M r s . W. R. F o r d , C o u t t s , was the f i r s t P r o v i n c i a l O f f i c e r to r e p r e ­s
e n t the o r g a n i z a t i o n a t any m e e t i n g of n a t i v e women. The o c c a s i on
was the f i r s t W e s t e r n R e g i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e of I n d i a n Homemakers h e l d at
t h e B l a c k f o o t R e s e r v e , G l e i c h e n , A u g u s t 18- 20, 1953. F o r t h e n e x t s i x
y e a r s Mrs. Ford s e r v e d on t h i s board and s p o k e at many of t h e i r m e e t i n g s.
A t the g r a s s r o o t s l e v e l H i l l s v i e w I n s t i t u t e i n v i t e d the Home Dem­o
n s t r a t i o n C l u b of Wh i t1 a s h, Mo n t a n a to a t t e n d a m o n t h l y m e e t i n g . At t h is
m e e t i n g both o r g a n i z a t i o n s r e a l i z e d they were C o n s t i t u e n t S o c i e t i e s of
A s s o c i a t e d C o u n t r y Women o f t h e W o r l d . S i n c e then t h r e e W o r l d P r e s i d e n ts
h a v e a d d r e s s e d both S o c i e t i e s i n L e t h b r i d g e a l o n g w i t h A r e a V i c - P r e s i d e nt
f o r Canada. These n e i g h b o r i n g b r a n c h e s s t i l l share common i n t e r e s t s , the
l a t e s t b e i n g C o u t t s W i l d Rose I n s t i t u t e r e c e i v i n g a new name, C o u t ts
I n t e r n a t i o n a l W i l d Rose I n s t i t u t e i n 1985 w i t h o u t l o o s i n g C h a r t e r s t a t us
t o a c k n o w l e d g e s i s t e r members a c r o s s the U. S. A. b o a r d e r . What b e t t er
way for women o f two c o u n t r i e s to w o r k t o - g e t h e r f o r t h e b e t t e r m e n t of
r u r a l l i f e i n a s m a l l s o u t h e r n A l b e r t a community d i v i d e d by t h e 4 9 th
p a r a 1 l e i ?
By 1962 we had r e p r e s e n t e t i v e s on t h e A l b e r t a S a f e t y C o u n c i l , C a n a d i an
Red C r o s s S o c i e t y , C a n c e r S o c i e t y , B o a r d of A l b e r t a V o c a t i o n a l C o l l e g e,
A l b e r t a M e n t a l H e a l t h A s s o c i a t i o n and t h e n e w l y o r g a n i z e d B o a r d of
T e c h n i c i a n s . Mrs. M a r t h a B i e l i s h c h a i r m a n of E d u c a t i o n r e p r e s e n t e d us
at the C a n a d i a n C o n f e r e n c e on E d u c a t i o n in M o n t r e a l , March 2, 1962.
The Department of A g r i c u l t u r e t u r n e d to us to h e l p w i t h the M a s t er
Farm F a m i l y C o m p e t i o n s . In t u r n we a s k e d f o r t h e Home E c o n o m i s t s to c o n t i n ue
h o l d i n g s h o r t c o u r s e s and j u d g e h a n d i c r a f t s a t C o n f e r e n c e s and C o n v e n t i o n s.
P r o v i n c i a l Workshops became a r e a l i t y . These Workshops a r e f or
C o n s t i t u e n c e C o n v e n o r s and C o m m i t t e e C h a i r m a n s who meet w i t h C o u n c i l i n
e f f e c t i v e s e s s i o n s on l e a d e r s h i p and e d u c a t i o n a l t o p i c s.
We a p p r o a c h e d the Government a s k i n g i f M r s . Vera M a c D o n a l d c o u ld
a t t e n d the F e d e r a t e d C o n v e n t i o n i n N o v a S c o t i a , i n o r d e r to l e a r n f i r st
hand what the members a c r o s s Canada were d o i n g p a r t i c u l a r y i n H a n d i c r a f t s .
Page 4