Fonds 0117 - Alberta Women's Institute, South Peace Constituency fonds

The Alberta Women’s Institute is aligned with the Federated Women’s Institutes of Canada, which is in turn a member of the Associated Country Women of the World. The Alberta W.I. is divided into five districts. District 1 is the Peace River District, which is made up of three Constituencies: South Peace, North Peace and High Prairie. Member clubs in the South Peace Constituency were Beaverlodge, Cherry Point, Crooked Creek, East Peoria, Elmworth, Grande Prairie, Kleskun Hill, Lymburn, Millarston, Rio Grande, Sexsmith, Spirit Valley and Valhalla.
The Women’s Institute is strictly non-partisan, non-sectarian, and non-racial in every aspect of its work. It is an educational organization which seeks to provide women with the opportunity to participate in national and international interests. Individual clubs support the ideals of the W.I. by working to improve services for women and children in their own communities. As such, the W.I. was often the organization behind maternity hospitals, waiting rooms, health clinics, libraries, school programs, girls’ clubs, and other social programs.
Constituency conferences were held yearly to provide a unifying social and educational forum for their members. Representatives from individual clubs reported on the activities they had been involved in over the past year. As well, there were reports from standing committees on social and educational issues. These committees changed over the years, but during the 1930s and 1940s, they included Public Health and Welfare, Legislation and League of Nations, Home Economics, Education and Better Schools, Canadianization and Colonization, and Care Industries.
Women’s Institute organizations are still active in Alberta, although many of the smaller clubs have folded.