Women’s Club celebrates 55th anniversary with capital campaign
With the 55th anniversary of the Fort Myers Beach Woman’s Club occurring in 2019, a capital campaign is in the beginning stages to restore the historic clubhouse.
Fort Myers Beach Women’s Club Treasurer Ellen Vaughn said meetings will be conducted this week to finalize their plans.
“For the past 54 years, the Woman’s Club has been home to small meetings and local bridge gatherings. In January 2019, it will be 55 years and we are going to have a big party to celebrate and launch a Capital Improvement Campaign because the building and property need updating,” Club President Beverley Milligan said in a prepared statement. “We decided it was the perfect time to resurrect the purpose of this club, as well as, restore the historic beach clubhouse for the community of Fort Myers Beach. We have opened the membership up to anyone interested in revitalizing this historic community center.”
The renovation will include a new state-of-the-art kitchen, updated meeting space and beautified grounds and decks.
“We hope to be the main source of information for both residents and visitors regarding events in our area. We also plan to support our non-profits by providing a venue which can be reserved on our online calendar,” Milligan said in a prepared statement. “We have many dedicated people on this island that are excited to rebuild the historic clubhouse for everyone to enjoy.”
Vaughan said the club was founded in 1963 with a mission of being a home for cultural events on the island. She said there were grand plans of what they would do, including hosting a number of different kinds of events over the years.
“It’s a venue for people in the community to come together for civic minded purposes,” Vaughn said.
One thing that stuck, and continues to be a driving force, is bridge.
Unfortunately membership began dwindling two years ago with a total of 17 people, all of whom were bridge players.
She said to be a viable institution on the island, it was decided that a membership campaign should be conducted. That campaign grew the membership to more than 70 members.
“We have become a very energized group,” Vaughan said of the 10 members on the board. “Everyone has a finger in doing something.”
Individuals who would like to become a member can visit www.fmb-wc.org. She said the membership fees have a teetered fee structure depending on when they join in the calendar year.
With the increase in membership, Vaughan said they are in the process of determining what kind of activities the island shows an interest in, which began an alliance with other organizations.
“The Women’s Club building can be a venue for lots of different organizations hosting events,” Vaughan said.
The Fort Myers Beach Alliance for Nonprofits formed last June,” she said, adding that a meeting will be held today, Sept. 26.
She said they put together a roster of all the not-for-profit organizations they could find and sent out a notification of the meeting. She encourages those who they missed to reach out to the club because they want to be as inclusive as possible.
“As we looked to the future, we knew that our community needed to come together and create a welcome setting for everyone to use. Fort Myers Beach has not had an active Community Center for years, a place where non-profits can hold fundraisers and meetings at little or no cost; a community meeting place to support cultural and other events, like weddings and corporate meetings. The new and improved Fort Myers Beach Clubhouse will offer a private gathering space, as well as a commercial kitchen for events,” Chairperson of the Events Committee Mari Torgerson said in a prepared statement.