AWI President's Newsletters

              A g r i c u l t u r e was asked i f a Women's I n s t i t u t e C o n v e n t i o n c o u l d be a r r a n g e d?
In March 1915 o v e r 100 women g a t h e r e d i n O l d s f o r t h e f i r s t P r o v i n c i al
C o n v e n t i o n . By M a r c h 1 s t , 1916 t h e C o n v e n t i o n had a membership of 107
b r a n c h e s w i t h 250 women i n a t t e n d a n c e . The c o n v e n t i o n a d j o u r n e d to
a t t e n d the s i t t i n g of t h e L e g i s l a t u r e at w h i c h the E q u a l F r a n c h i s e B i l l
was g i v e n . T h i s B i l l gave e q u a l r i g h t s to women i n t h e G o v e r n m e n t , govern­ment
o f m u n i c i p a l i t i e s , and s c h o o l d i s t r i c t s or e v e r y p l a c e a man has a
r i g h t to v o t e.
A t the 3 e d PROVINCIAL C o n v e n t i o n i n 1917, C o n s t i t u e n c i e s w e r e formed
to a s s i s t the D i s t r i c t D i r e c t o r . The C l u b C r e e d was a d o p t e d to be read
at a l l I n s t i t u t e m e e t i n g s . Later i n t h e f a l l the f i r s t D i s t r i c t C o n f e r e n c es
were h e l d at C l a r e s h o l m , O l d s and V e r m i l i o n .
By 1918 m e m b e r s h i p had i n c r e a s e d t o 9,000 w i t h 212 b r a n c h e s . P a t r i o t ic
f u n d s were s u p p o r t e d i n t h a t year to o v e r $ 30,000. Some 32,242 a- r- t4- e- a- l s / p
made f o r t h e R e d C r o s s , 829 C h r i s t m a s boxes sent to o u r s o l d i e r s o v e r s e as
and many more to a d o p t e d p r i s o n e r s - o f - w a r.
A t the 1919 C o n v e n t i o n r e s o l u t i o n s p a s s e d was one a s k i n g f o r s u p e r ­v
i s i o n of s c h o o l grounds d u r i n g noon and r e c e s s p e r i o d s . A s k i n g f o r f r e e
c a r e of t u b e r c u l a r p a t i e n t s to h e l p p r e v e n t the s p r e a d of the d i s e a s e
as w e l l as c a r e of t h e a f f e c t e d .
I t was r e p o r t e d t h a t Women's I n s t i t u t e s had s p r e a d t h r o u g h E n g l a n d and
W h a l e s w i t h 800 b r a n c h e s and 40,000 members o r g a n i z e d t h r o u g h the e f f o r t s
of Mrs. A l f r e d W a t t , a C a n a d i a n.
The F e d e r a t e d Women's I n s t i t u t e s of C a n a d a was o r g a n i z e d w i t h M r s . A.
M u r p h y , Edmonton as i t s f i r s t P r e s i d e n t.
F i f t e e n G i r l s C l u b s o r g a n i z e d . Government G r a n t s r a i s e d $ 10.00 to
I n s t i t u t e s and $ 5.00 to e a c h G i r l s C l u b.
The M i n i s t e r of A g r i c u l t u r e c a l l e d an emergency m e e t i n g w i t h A l b e r ta
Women's I n s t i t u t e e x e c u t i v e to c o n s i d e r what c o u l d be done to a l l e v i a t e
t h e s u f f e r i n g of t h o s e s i t u a t e d i n t h e d r o u g h t s t r i c k e n area i n s o u t h e rn
A l b e r t a .
D i s t r i c t 4 C o n f e r e n c e h e l d a n n u a l y s i n c e 1920.
F e d e r a t e d Women's I n s t i t u t e s second c o n v e n t i o n h e l d i n Edmonton i n
1921 w i t h d e l e g a t e s from B. C., S a s k a t c h e w a n , M a n i t o b a , O n t a r i o , Quebec,
and N. B. i n a t t e n d a n c e . Never b e f o r e had the d e l e g a t e s met and l i v ed
t o - g e t h e r f o r a happy, e n t h u s i a s t i c and n e v e r - t o - b e - f o r g o t t e n week.
In 1922 t h e A l b e r t a Women's I n s t i t u t e A c t was ammended and t h e
Women's I n s t i t u t e as a b r a n c h of t h e D e p a r t m e n t of A g r i c u l t u r e was no more.
The A l b e r t a Women's I n s t i t u t e d r a f t e d a c o n s t i t u t i o n w h i c h was i n c o n f o r m ­i
t y w i t h the amended Women's I n s t i t u t e A c t and p r e s e n t e d i t t o t h e 1923
C o n v e n t i o n and a c c e p t e d at t h e 1924 C o n v e n t i o n.
A t r i b u t e i s due to t h a t government w h i c h w h i l e they c u t t h e A l b e r t a
Women's I n s t i t u t e a d r i f t , d i d so i n so g r a d u a l a manner t h a t i t was p o s s i b le
to c a r r y on. A t the 1924 s e s s i o n o f t h e l e g i s l a t u r e the g r a n t s were cut o f f .
Gone was t h e i r p r e s t i g e as t h e o n l y medium t h r o u g h w h i c h s h o r t c o u r s e s,
d e m o n s t r a t i o n s and l e c t u r e s from the D e p a r t m e n t of A g r i c u l t u r e were
a v a i l a b l e and w h i c h they had been r e s p o n s i b l e f o r p r o v i d i n g a m e e t i ng
p l a c e and i n s u r i n g a w o r t h w h i l e a u d i e n c e.
To the 1925 c o n v e n t i o n M r s . D a v i d W a t t , P r e s i d e n t of t h e F e d e r a t e d
Women's I n s t i t u t e of C a n a d a p a i d an o f f i c i a l v i s i t.
Page2.