The Black Forest Womenís Club held their last meeting Jan. 14, ending a 100-year run. Carol Cadle, public relations representative for the club, reminisced about the clubís history.With about 10 members, the group began in 1921 as a sewing club, they started out making quilts and working on individual projects. In 1926, they purchased a pressure cooker, which they rented out for 50 cents (apparently, pressure cookers were scarce in that era). In 1927, they held a fundraiser that netted them $33.60, prompting them to open a checking account. They decided to become an official club, beginning their long history of supporting a variety of organizations in the Forest.In 1943, Buster Rusk, son of Virginia Rusk (a member of the club), donated a gavel he made in shop class; it has been used at meetings ever since.The group assisted the Black Forest Community Club in 1947 with a donation drive to purchase an electric pump for the well and a Skelgas stove.In 1954, some of the members helped open an immunization clinic, which was officially sanctioned by the El Paso County Health Department (now El Paso County Public Health) as a Well Baby Clinic. The club continued to sponsor the clinic until it closed in 1980.Cadle said in 1959, they decided to create yearly scrapbooks for historical purposes; one has been created every year since. The club also held a fundraiser that year to help pay for a resuscitator for the Black Forest Fire and Rescue Department.They often entered floats in the Black Forest Festival ó and won first place three years in a row. The themes were ìHappy Dames Western Bandî in 1963, ìGood Old Days in Black Forestî in 1964 and a float depicting the women drinking moonshine and being detained by the sheriff in 1965. They also rented booth space at the festivals and sold aprons, cookbooks, food and more.In November 1998, the womenís club started submitting a monthly column to the ìBlack Forest News,î they called it ìThe Spinning Wheel.î Cindy Winford, a longtime member of the club and creator of the column, wrote many of the articles.The club went through several name changes: Black Forest Extension Club in 1924, Black Forest Demonstration Club in 1955, Black Forest Homemakerís Club in 1990 and Black Forest Womenís Club in 2013.The club is known for their many contributions to the community, including Mill Dog Rescue, local Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts of America troops, Old Log School, Black Forest Cares, Salvation Army, Black Forest Fire and Rescue Department, Black Forest Educational Opportunity Fund, Pikes Peak Therapeutic Riding Center and Wild Blue Cat Rescue. They also donated phone cards for adopt-a-soldier, cleaned up and placed crosses at the Eastonville Cemetery in Elbert; and provided yearly gift cards at Christmas to children in need at Edith Wolford Elementary School.The group met monthly at the Black Forest Lutheran Church; the meetings included a program and brunch. Programs throughout the years included how to make jelly, bread, cakes and candy, as well as hats, dresses and items from flour or sugar sacks; how to do Brazilian and silk embroidery and make porcelain dolls. They learned how to can, how to use ice-less refrigerators and how to convert a kerosene lamp to electric. The group worked on American Red Cross projects such as making quilts and baking cookies by the dozens for the USO.In early 2013, they focused on arson, wild fires and fire safety ó 2013 was the year of the Black Forest fire. Programs also included Meteorologist Ron Brown discussing weather patterns in the Black Forest area; Carol Lanning and her experiences as a pilot and as a member of the Ninety-Nines (an organization for women pilots); and Sue Fletcher, Black Forest resident, and her career as a former Miami policewoman. Many local authors discussed their books and recent works like Maggie Mae Sharp, poet; Nancy Atherton, author of the Aunt Dimity mystery novel series; Phyllis Didleau and ìThe Little Manger Mouse,î and Carol Winford, historical fiction writer.Cadle said they had 26 members at the end of their run. ìA lot of our members were elderly; they had been members for years, and had passed away or moved to be near family,î she said.The presiding members voted to dissolve the club at their last meeting because of a lack of membership and the inability to meet or hold fundraisers during 2020 because of COVID-19. The club gifted the gavel to Terry Hartle, the longest tenured member in the club (61 years) with the most presidential terms. The members voted to disperse the club money among Destinationís Equine Therapy, The Old Log School, Black Forest Cares and the Edith Wolford Elementary School for Christmas gift cards.ìWe are proud the club was active for 100 years; there is so much history here,î she said. ìThe object of the club was the up-building of the Black Forest Community and the promotion of friendliness of its people; that objective never changed.î
