Valparaiso Woman's Association

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Valparaiso, IN
Valparaiso Woman's Association

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Organization founded in 1895
In our Historic Location since 1925! The Valparaiso Woman’s Club began in 1895 as the Harriet Beecher Stowe Reading Circle.

Our mission is to promote, support, and advance educational, social welfare, and charitable causes for women while maintaining stewardship of a historic Valparaiso landmark. Women interested in educating themselves met together in their living rooms to discuss literature and review writing. Within a few years membership in the group skyrocketed. Departments were added concerning everything from gardening to civic causes. By 1906 the group had so many members and was involved in so much in the community that it began looking for a club home. The house at 102 North Washington Street, was built in 1906 as the home and office of Dr. D.J. Loring. In 1925, the club purchased this beautiful house with its distinctive red clay tile roof. It was listed on the National Historical Register in 1984. Generations of club women and their families have decorated and cared for this building over the years. Today, the house contains eight sleeping rooms and one apartment that the club rents to single women referred to us from several social services agencies. The rent is kept as affordable as possible. The clubhouse also contains an office space that is rented out and an apartment for the caretaker/manager. Our beautiful club room is available for rent to other small groups for meetings, wedding or baby showers, and piano recitals. In addition to the shelter we provide, the club is an active organization that provides several college scholarships to graduating seniors. The club also sponsors a yearly short story contest, poetry contest and art contest for Porter County students. The club holds three major fundraisers every year: the annual Porch Sale held the Thursday and Friday before Memorial Day, the “Popcorn Fest” Lunch on the Veranda, and the “Holly Days” Bake Sale. The Woman’s Club underwent reorganization and the Internal Revenue Service recognizes us as a 501(c)(3) organization under the new name of Valparaiso Woman’s Association, Inc. Association meetings are held on the second Tuesday (and occasionally the fourth Tuesday) of each month from September through May. Each meeting is a luncheon (at noon) or a dessert (at 12:30) and a guest speaker and/or program is provided. A short business meeting follows. Recently, the association began adding evening meetings for working members. If you are passionate about education, the arts, and historical preservation, and want to improve the quality of life for women in our county, please join us for a meeting.

10/21/2026

🩵💙 Woman’s Club Wednesday 💙🩵
Our history was written by women who believed in education, community, and connection. Today, you can help us continue that legacy!

Mrs. Charles Gromley (1971-1972) served one year as president as the club came into alignment with state and national terms of office.

Profits from a Literature Department Sidewalk Day Luncheon enabled the club to purchase sixteen new card tables and three members, Mrs. Donald Zeller, Mrs. Harry Deu and Mrs. Robert Shedd and their husbands repaired and recovered all the folding chairs.

A magnificent gift to the club was an antique breakfront with appropriate plaque given by Mrs. Avery Weaver in memory of her mother, Mrs. Ira Tilton, and her great aunt, Mrs. Ira Howerth, both past presidents of the club.

The President's Reception in September was special as attending were Mrs. James Dean, State President; Mrs. Myrick Crampton, District President; Mrs. C. Forest Wells, County President; and Mrs. Vernon Childs, past IFC President and an honorary member of the Valparaiso Woman's Club.

The success of the Progressive Department's September Art Fair resulted in an increase to $200 for the Art Scholarship.

In October the club, with the Junior Woman's Club and the Jaycees, sponsored a dinner honoring Dr. James Turpin, founder of Project Concern. The State President's Special Project was the medical/dental clinic being established by Project Concern at Bisti, New Mexico, for the Navajo Indians. Mrs. Paul Vietzke was State Chairman of the project.

Porter County was hostess for the Tenth District Convention at the Valparaiso University Student Union and the club provided decorations in the violet theme of the president, Mrs. Myrick Crampton.

Suzanne Esserman, a high school junior, was sponsored on the World Affairs Study Tour to Washington, D.C., and the United Nations.

At State Convention the club received a citation and $50 check as Fifth Place Award in the state Community Improvement contest.
Among the four members lost to death was Mrs. Fred Lansdown, club president 1947-1949.

10/20/2026

We are so grateful for the Porter County Museum and especially for Hannah Sliekers!

Preserving Porter County’s history is a community effort!

PoCo Muse Collections Manager Hannah Sliekers recently spoke at the September meeting of the Valparaiso Woman's Association, sharing best practices in archival stewardship and guidance for the association’s new digitization project.

For more than a century, the VWA has documented women’s civic, cultural, and leadership contributions to our community. Now, a Heritage Support Grant from the Indiana Historical Society, made possible by Lilly Endowment, Inc., will help the association organize, scan, and catalog its historic documents, photographs, and artwork.

We’re proud of Hannah’s work supporting this project and glad to help the VWA preserve these important pieces of Porter County’s history for future generations.

Interested in volunteering with the project? Contact Amy Parsons at [email protected].

10/19/2026

Thank you so much to everyone who attended, donated to, and participated in our 4th Annual Masquerade Gala. We had a magical royal evening at the Haunted Castle! 💜👑

Special thank you to the downtown businesses who donated food to support our cause! The food was outstanding!!
• Albanos | handmade tortellini and meat balls
• Radius | southwest chicken egg rolls and bruschetta
• Meditrina | hummus and pita
• Jeanne Strunk | charcuterie table
• Roots | vegan cupcakes
• Bao's Pastry | cream puffs
• KupKates | cupcakes

We were wowed by the talents of our Magician and Dj! Thank you for supporting the Valparaiso Woman's Association, we'd love to see you for our next Masquerade in October of 2027!

10/19/2026

10/17/2026

We have MASKS! Don’t let that stop you from joining in on the fun - you can purchase last minute tickets and pick up a free mask of your choice at check in!

10/16/2026

It’s not too late to get your tickets to join us this Saturday for the Royal Masquerade Ball!

06/10/2026

🩵💙 Woman’s Club Wednesday 💙🩵
Join us monthly in learning about the history of the Valparaiso Woman’s Association through information from the 100th Anniversary book of the club compiled in 1995!

In the spring of 1965, Mrs. Carroll Sievers was installed as president, the first daughter of a past president (Mrs. George Harrison) to be so honored. Bus trips to Chicago and special events such as the flower show in Chicago and Brown County in the fall, etc, were begun in 1965. With substantial help from Mrs. Hattie Pierce, the Woman's Club sent a high school student, Carol Reuter, on the Students Affairs Tour to the United Nations and Washington, DC. Two new silver coffee pots were acquired with trading stamps, the kitchen drastically remodeled, and a new automatic gas furnace installed. If any one accomplishment of the year 1966-67 can be singled out, it would be the newly organized Community Improvement Committee with Mrs. Paul Johnson as chairman. This committee met many times with leaders from other organizations to plan for a better community. The first tangible evidence of its work was the beautification of the strip along West Lincolnway. The Woman's Club donated $100 to this along with other personal donations from members. More ideas have been presented and will be followed closely.
The Memorial Opera House was completely remodeled and the Woman's Club gave $100 towards the purchase of new seats. Mrs. Grover Hinkle was made a fifty-year honorary member at the Anniversary in 1966 and Mrs. Lorenzo Smith in 1967.
Mrs. Bruce Zimmerman and Mrs. Alice Clifton cleaned the paintings and rehung them and Mrs. Hinkle compiled the history and other information relative to them and this was put in plastic holders on the back of the paintings.
The ghosts of many years (and the dust) were thoroughly disturbed when Mrs. Herman Hesse, house chairman, and Mrs. Sievers cleaned the attic. A truck load of junk was hauled away.
New carpeting was laid in the upstairs hall. A new kitchen stove was purchased with profits from the bus trips. Mrs. Sievers donated good dining room furniture to the club. Mrs. E. G. Osborne, a fifty-year member, and six other valued members were lost by death.

06/09/2026

Don’t forget the
Women Take the Field event
June 15th 5:00-8:30
Sign up by Thursday!

06/01/2026

Please support this sale held at our beautiful clubhouse!

Plant Sale - Saturday, June 6th - 9am to 1pm at 102 Washington St

Address

102 Washington Street
Valparaiso, IN
46383

Telephone

(219) 462-3876

Website

http://www.valpowa.org/

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