Ellis Domestic Science Club celebrates 100 year anniversary

Saturday, September 26, 2015
Submitted photo The Ellis Domestic Science Club held its' 100th celebration Sunday at the community room at Moore-Few Care Center. Members pictured are front row, from the left: Janet Birkestand, Carolyn Thornton, Dora McWherter, Jeannie Shafer, Mary Ann Hendrix, and Frieda Pettibon. Back row, from left: Shelly Hetrick, Carol Jean Janes, Shirley Garnet, Jenny Thornton, Hazel Nell Wilson, Marilyn Thomas, Maxine Halcomb, Harva Miller, Jenese Wallrapp, and Mona McDowell.

Nevada Daily Mail

The date was Sept. 22, 1915. President Woodrow Wilson was in his third year in office; the average price for a gallon of gas was 15 cents; Babe Ruth hit his first career home run; and a group of women met for the first time to start a club for rural women. One hundred years, 16 presidents, and countless gas hikes later, one thing still remains the same -- the Ellis Domestic Science Club continues to meet every first Wednesday of the month.

The Ellis Domestic Science Club was founded by Mrs. Gist, Mrs. Gray, Mrs. Horn, Mrs. Isabel, Mrs. Fleta Voss, Mrs. Gotshall, Mrs. Braun, Mrs. Walworth, Mrs. Starkey, and Elizabeth Thornton (with Mrs. A.B. Halcomb joining later) on Sept. 22, 1915. The first set of officers elected were Pearl Gray as president and Mrs. Gotshall as secretary. The meetings originally had programs from the University Extension. Now, each meeting consists of a program made by club members including roll call, where each woman has the opportunity to give her answer to a question.

The group would meet in the Ellis area since most members would have to walk, giving the club its namesake. Whether serving lunches at farm sales, or renovating the Ellis church, the ladies of the club have been active in serving the community throughout the years. The club currently consists of 16 members, and has had as many as 40 members over the years.

The current members of the Ellis Domestic Science Club gathered at the Moore-Few community room on Sunday, Sept. 20, to celebrate their 100-year anniversary. The women showed up in their own cars -- a far cry from the horse and buggy of the original meetings. It was a sea of ladies in purple in the meeting room, the members having made shirts to commemorate the big day. Members had set up a table with pictures and programs from years gone by. Guests and members alike were greeted warmly and asked to sign a guest book before finding a seat. The refreshment table was set up beautifully with punch and a large cake with the club's name and "100 years" written in icing.

Speaking with member Carolyn Gray Thornton, the writer of the Nevada Daily Mail's Senior page columns and Middle Age Plus column, about the anniversary she said, "I would've been here even if I were sick. I wasn't going to miss this." Thornton's mother, Pearl Gray, was one of the founding members 100 years ago and Thornton has continued the tradition by being a member herself.

The program included roll call, reminiscing of years past, telling of funny incidents, the club's history, and future plans. Visiting among the ladies of the club, it became readily apparent how the group had sustained such longevity -- the bonds between the rural women were solid and cherished. Lifelong friendships were born through the club and, to an outsider, it seems as though you are witnessing something sacred -- a sisterhood. With each generation comes a new set of daughters and granddaughters who, hopefully, will carry on the club's traditions for many more years to come. Perhaps 100 years from now a group of like-minded women will sit down to celebrate 200 years of comradery, and share stories of the women who came before them.

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