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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Altrusa dedicated to serving community

The local group of Altrusa, a long-time community service organization are, at left, front to back, Janet Brougher, Mildred Scheel, Mary Butler, on right, front to back, Karen Harwood, Patty Roddy, and Charlotte Mola. The group has created enough fun and friendship to keep it going for nearly a century.  (COLIN MULVANY/THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)
By Cindy Hval For The Spokesman-Review

The group of women gathered at Clark’s Fork restaurant last week, represents an organization with a long and storied history.

Altrusa International (originally Altrusa Institute) was founded in 1917 in Nashville, Tennessee, as a service organization for professional women. The organization welcomed men over a decade ago.

“Our local group was chartered in 1931,” said member Mildred Scheel, at the monthly board meeting. “The organization became international in 1935. Many of our current members have been with the club since the early 2000s or before.”

Scheel joined in 1972.

“I liked the idea of being with others and doing community service,” she said.

Altrusa is a network of clubs. Each club determines its own service projects and fundraising efforts tailored to local needs.

The Spokane group has supported myriad causes over the years, but their longest-running project was the New Citizen ceremonies. The project launched in 1967 when a member noticed the lack of celebration after new citizens were sworn in at the courthouse. The group began hosting receptions providing cake, punch and small American flags for the new citizens.

That tradition is what drew Carol Dunne to Altrusa in the 1990s. She said she helped with the receptions for many years until COVID ended the group’s participation.

Mary Butler got involved with the organization in 2001 when she worked at the YWCA.

“They asked me what they could do for the YWCA,” she said. “Nobody ever asks that! They listened to what we needed and then provided that.”

For several years, members cooked and served monthly dinners for children and families involved with the YWCA’s homeless program.

Those meals were how Patty Roddy became aware of Altrusa.

“I became good friends with one of the members because I ran the dishwasher after the meals,” she said. “I loved how much milk the kids went through.”

More recently, the Spokane club selected literacy as its focus.

Janet Brougher, a member since 1982, said, “Literacy is the key to everything.”

In 2007, the club set up a nonprofit foundation to raise funds to serve a wider variety of charitable groups. Two years later, they established an annual grant program.

“We’ve given over $71,000,” club president Karen Harwood said. “We plan to give another $6,000 in the next few weeks.”

Many of those grants have gone to area public schools and have provided thousands of books and materials.

Altrusa members not only raise funds for the grants, but they also volunteer their time.

When Lidgerwood Elementary launched Fit 5, a learning system for kindergartners that combines activity with learning, the club awarded them a grant, and then several members showed up each week to work with the kids.

“We did that for eight years,” Brougher said.

The group is also a longtime supporter of Our Place Community Outreach. Located in the West Central Neighborhood, Our Place provides emergency resources such as food, clothing, hygiene, utility assistance, and bus passes.

Altrusa has hosted a wide range of activities to fund the grants – from style shows to Santa breakfasts to multifamily garage sales.

“While Altrusa has community service as its primary component, our local group has created enough fun and friendship to keep the group going for nearly a century,” Scheel said.

“Most of us join for the service but then stay for the friendship,” Harwood said.

That said, like many civic clubs, this group’s membership is declining, and members are eager to have new participants join them. They meet for dinner monthly, either at restaurants or for potlucks in members’ homes.

Charlotte Mola found a warm welcome in the group when she moved to Spokane.

“I didn’t really know anybody,” she said. “The camaraderie is so nice.”

Enjoying that connection while enriching the community is what keeps members involved.

“A lot of us are trying to figure out how to make the world a better place,” Brougher said. “At 80-something years old, this is what I can do.”

For more information about Altrusa, visit districttwelve.altrusa.org/spokane/or call Karen Harwood at 509-928-4099.