AAUW 105 year anniversary

The American Association of University Women (AAUW) has advanced equity for women  and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy, and research since its 1881 founding.  AAUW is a non-profit and non-partisan network active at national, state, and local levels. It  

has 100,000 members in 1,000 branches. Membership is open to women and men holding an  associate, bachelor, or advanced degree from an accredited institution of higher learning. At  AAUW of Wisconsin state convention held in Madison, April 23-24, AAUW Wausau Branch,  

founded in 1921, was recognized for its 105-year history. Left to right: State President  Deborah Thiel, former Wausau branch president Nancy L. Schulz, and current branch vice  president Carla Salamone. 

AAUW Wausau Branch held its first meeting in 1921 at the Wausau Club. (In a sign of the  times, members were listed as "Mrs." followed by husband's first and last names (1921- 1960’s). Over the years, many outstanding local women have served, most notably branch  founding member Dr. Lois Rosenberry (1873-1958), who co-wrote the first fifty-year history of the national organization. Highlights of AAUW Wausau Branch accomplishments: 

• Fundraising: began holding annual “Society Day” at Hotel Wausau (1927), and  “Biennial Spring Style Show” at Wausau Club (1936) and later at Wausau Country  Club (1968-1990’s). Held annual used book sales (1958-2005), staffed both Community  Recycling Center (1984-1988) and Marathon County Fair gate (2002-2006), and  organized Eleanor Roosevelt Fund walks (2002-2015).  
• Scholarships and Gifting: awarded prestigious scholarships to 29 local senior high  school girls between 1924-1951; voted money for reconstruction work for university  women in Europe at end of WWII (1945); awarded its first international study grant  (1948); successfully nominated three local women for scholarships to attend AAUW’s  

National Conference for College Women Student Leaders (NCCWSL) (late  2010’s-2021). 

• Advocacy, Programs, and Public Policy: advocated to secure funds for state  educational radio and television (1940’s-1953); influential in establishing Wausau’s first childcare center - Jack and Jill Cooperative Nursery (1952); local Head Start (1966),  Family Planning Health Services (1973, now Healthfirst), and The Women's  Community (1978); after U.S. Congressional passage and Wisconsin ratification of  Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) (1972) continued advocating by holding a local ERA  March (1978); successfully advocated for Women’s Study programs at UW system two

year campuses (1970-2000’s); held candidate forums; participated in Women’s March  in Madison (2017); helped organize the 19th Amendment Rally and March in  downtown Wausau celebrating 100th anniversary of US women winning the right to  vote (2020). 

• Community Service: to introduce senior girls to AAUW, began holding popular and  stylish annual teas at the high school library (1926); collected used books for free  distribution to rural areas during Great Depression (1930’s); helped with voter  registration (1940’s-2022); held arts and crafts workshops; members began study of  Status of Women (1954) and served on mayor’s commission (1971); held annual  Wisconsin/Nicaragua Partnership backpack project (1999-2010's). 
• Study and Book Groups: members met in each other’s homes to educate themselves  on various topics: international relations and current affairs (1928-1941); problems of  aging, mass media, geography of Russia (1950’s); role of women in society, children,  poverty, cultural minorities, growing gap between rich and poor nations, preserving  natural resources (1960’s, out of this decade grew many of the branch’s future  

advocacy and community service successes: ERA, family planning, educational  television); “Revolution in Modern China” AAUW World Problem’s study group  advocated recognition of modern China (1972); groundwater and comparable worth  (1980’s); Retired Congressman David Obey speaks on his 2007 memoir “Raising Hell  for Justice” (2009), book group continues to this day.  

AAUW Wausau Branch has a proud history fulfilling it’s mission in the Wausau area. It has  played, and continues to play, a vital role. Especially today when hard earned progress in  women’s rights faces being reversed. Let us learn from our past and take actions too insure  that the motto of our fine city: “Welcome Home to Wausau...It’s where you belong,” includes  and celebrates the contributions of all, including women and girls.