About the Bryn Mawr Club of Washington, D.C.

Why a Bryn Mawr Alumnae Club? According to early College records, the purpose was to keep the College in the minds of alumnae "in dispersion", and to increase academic endowment. Approximately 15 years after the first Bryn Mawr commencement in 1890, an informal organization of alumnae developed in Washington, D.C. which led to the subsequent founding in 1907 of the Bryn Mawr Club of Washington.

Because it is the seat of the U.S. Government with its wealth of job opportunities, and perhaps because of its proximity to the Bryn Mawr campus just west of Philadelphia, the Washington area has had a relatively large share of alumnae (presently over 1000). Its club has been among the most active.

In the early decades of the century most of the Washington alumnae were teachers, although one graduate landed a job in the chemistry lab and petrographical department of the U.S. Geologic Survey. The Club was concerned with such subjects as the suffrage movement and children's health issues. Its first recorded effort to raise funds for the College was the sale of autographed books-a precursor of the present day Lantern Bookshop in Georgetown. In time, gala benefits, many of which continued into the 1960s, grew to encompass scholarship as well as endowment funds, and included an annual art auction, theater productions, movies, and subscription lectures. For many years scholarship students were interviewed and selected by the Club's scholarship chair and her committee, and an elaborate luncheon or tea was held in the students' honor. (This tradition is no longer observed, since the College itself now picks area scholars.)

The 1970s brought dramatic change and growth to the Club. The aforementioned Lantern Bookshop, specializing in used and antiquarian book donations proved a tremendous success. With the proceeds from the shop, staffed entirely by volunteers, plus an annual financial aid appeal letter, the Club was suddenly able to send much more money to the College. It was decided to drop the earlier, less cost-effective benefits. The Club was changing in other ways, too. Perhaps most importantly, it experienced spectacular growth-from 65 to 225 members in the two years between 1971 and 1973 alone. Today membership stands at approximately 400.

During this same period of the seventies the old Club constitution was revised to ensure that scholarship fund contributions were tax deductible, and new by-laws were adopted to reflect the many new positions in the Club. A newsletter editor and an attendant mailing chair were charged with keeping members in touch with each other and informed of upcoming events. A program chair was responsible for developing and producing attractive meetings and excursions, while a junior vice-president did the same for recent graduates and encouraged them to become active. A formal nominating committee chair and her committee, plus a membership chair to keep names and addresses current were also added. Over the years other voting members were included on the Board of Directors: representatives from the career network and a book discussion club, an archivist, a senior advocate, a bed and breakfast chair plus Lantern Bookshop and website representatives. At this writing, the Board has grown to a whopping 23!

Club programs have been many and varied-from lectures and tours of art museums to swimming and yoga classes-usually given by knowledgeable alumnae. The most popular is the Boiled Owl Dinner, an annual fall potluck, which will celebrate its gala 30th anniversary this year. Other favorites are an annual meeting cum picnic supper at the beautiful Great Falls country home of a Club member, and a midwinter luncheon talk by a distinguished Bryn Mawrtyr at the historic Washington Club. In between are talks by Bryn Mawr presidents, administrative staff and professors on everything from the state of the College to tattoos to ancient Roman cuisine. Outings and excursions have led us to Wolf Trap, Ladew Topiary Gardens, Mystics basketball games, and Hagerstown's Maryland Symphony, currently conducted by a Bryn Mawr alumna. Other alumnae have taken us on special tours of Annapolis, Richmond and Baltimore. We have been to the West Wing, the Kreeger Gallery, and behind the scenes at the Smithsonian. We have gone swimming, ice skating, white water rafting, hiking and biking. There have been talks by alumnae authors and experts in every field from economics and local politics to landscape architecture and art history. One of our most successful ventures in recent years has been a senior May Day, fast becoming a Club tradition, in which older alumnae, aged 85 and up receive May Day flower baskets, arranged and delivered by younger members.

This history has been prepared in the summer of 2001. The Bryn Mawr Club is now officially 94 years old and our oldest member is 101. We are currently welcoming new graduates from the Class of 2001. As the strength of our organization has always been the interplay of ideas and interests among the generations, we hope that area Mawrtyrs of all ages will want to join us.

Ruth Atkiss '36
Judy Catlin '55
Mike Niccolls '39
Cathya Stephenson '59