NORTH SHORE WOMEN'S CLUB HOLDS ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL FUNDRAISER
Founded in 1940, the North Shore Women's Club has been helping our local families through hard times for 76 years. Their original purpose, in 1940, was to raise enough money to hire nurses to visit our schools. Back then, children weren't educated on hygiene and cleanliness. Most people worked on farms all day, and children typically helped out after school; bad hygiene and hard, outdoor labor made for a deadly combination and disease spread like a wildfire, through schools and through homes. The club managed to raise enough money to afford traveling nurses that would stop in schools and educate families, as well as tend to the sick.
The Women's Club today, mostly focuses on families financial struggles locally, which can range from helping to pay for a child's glasses, adopting families at the holidays, offering high school scholarships, and many other various types of help/offerings. Their main source of income comes from donations, and from their annual charity auction/fundraiser held each year, on the third Wednesday of October. The event is constantly changing to keep in step with the times. Part of this progression has been the creation of the "Little Ladies Club", in which the daughters of some of the members are learning about giving back and how to help those in need in our community. The annual fundraiser began, 50 years ago, as a fashion show, and quickly evolved. Now held at the Milleridge Inn Cottage, over 230 people attend each year, with the numbers rising annually. The Milleridge Inn hosts a lovely dinner where the club auctions off beautiful, valuable baskets and holds many silent auctions. There are now 100+ baskets and about 20 silent auctions. These range from a 1-year family membership to the YMCA, a meet and greet with Regina Calcaterra, the author of Etched In Sand and co-author of Girl Unbroken, including signed copies of her books, gift certificates to many of the areas businesses & finest restaurants, gift items, and so much more! Aside from the dinner, the group of 40 members meets once a month to discuss upcoming plans, and useful ways to spend the money they raised. This can include choosing the recipients of the college scholarships for kids in our community, or how to help a local family in need. For 7 years Michelle Hagen has been president of the club and since, the club has held numerous successful events. This year's event not only provided 230 people with a great social atmosphere and an evening out for the ladies, stunning swag bags (gift certificates for manicures, gutter cleaning and gift cards to restaurants), but helped to raise $20,000 for the community. A job well-done ladies! 
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