Reading trail

By Pam Windsor

Spring Hill resident Vicki Bechet grew up in a family that set a strong example of "giving back," so it's something that has always come naturally to her. Even as a child, she remembers setting up a lemonade stand to raise money for the American Cancer Society. While helping others has always come with its own reward, Bechet was especially honored to get national recognition during the annual convention of the General Federation of Women's Clubs in June. 

She received the group's Jennie Award, as members from across the United States and worldwide gathered in Chicago. 

"It's very gratifying to be recognized for your hard work and enthusiasm when it comes to being a community service volunteer," Bechet says. "It was a wonderful recognition of my 40 years with this organization."

Handed out every two years, the award is named for the organization's founder, Jane Cunningham Croly, who wrote for national newspapers under the pseudonym "Jennie June." It celebrates extraordinary club women who epitomized Croly's spirit of independence, courage, and persistence in their roles as volunteers in every aspect of their lives.

Bechet is a fourth-generation member of the GFWC and founder of the GFWC's Spring Station Woman's Club. A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Bechet is a nationally certified (retired) RN who has stayed actively involved with the GFWC throughout much of her life. 

The organization has been around since 1890 when Croly, who created a women's group in New York, decided to try to pull similar clubs together to form a federation, and got a charter from Congress to do so. 

Working together, those groups have had a considerable impact on their communities, as well as their country.  

"Since we started, women's clubs are credited with starting 75 percent of all libraries in America through the 1930's," Bechet explains. "We were instrumental in getting the first Pure Food & Drug Act passed, the first child labor laws passed, and the formation of the National Park Service. And during World War II, we raised enough money to buy hundreds of warplanes."

In fact, the GFWC's "Buy a Bomber" campaign raised $101,671,750 to purchase planes for the Air Force. Translated into today's dollars, that's approximately $1,520,266,385. 

There are currently GFWC chapters in every state with the current membership at around 60,000. Local groups work on a wide range of projects and fundraisers. Bechet's largest GFCW project was the state-wide initiative to replace the thousands of elementary school library books destroyed in the August 2021 flash flood in her hometown of Waverly, TN.

"Some of our projects are big, some are small, but we have a lot of fun, we really do. Things like the Waverly book project can take several months. We also do smaller projects that can be accomplished in a 45-minute session, such as when we pack up toiletries to give to ShowerUp, a local organization that provides hot showers for the unhoused." 

The Spring Station Woman's Club meets one night a month, usually the first Monday from 6-8pm in the basement of the Winchester Community Facility on Maury Hill Street. 

"I can't think of another organization for women in this country that has the breadth and depth of service opportunities, gives women an outlet for their creative juices, and encourages them to have fun while working together and gaining incredible friendships," Bechet says. 

New members are welcome, with dues set at $50 per year. For information, visit their Facebook page or email gfwcspringstation@gmail.com