Our History
The Junior League of Memphis has always been an organization that isn't afraid to roll up its sleeves and get things done.
Consider the very first meeting of the organization. In 1922, 17 young women gathered at the home of Mrs. McKay Van Vleet. Their chief objective was to elect the first officers of the Junior League of Memphis. But they saved that task for last. After all, there were community needs to be addressed: $100 to Cheerfield Farm; $25 to the blind; $15 to a local orphanage. All motions carried.
The last order of business was the election of the first officers of a local branch of The Association of Junior Leagues of America, an organization that had been founded just one year earlier. That motion also carried and a long legacy began--a legacy of women reaching their full potential by giving millions of dollars and just as much of their time to improve the quality of lives of Memphians.
Since that eventful day, the Junior League of Memphis has started, coordinated, or contributed to many of Memphis' most worthwhile organizations. These include Volunteer Mid-South, WKNO, Memphis in May, Church Health Center, Hope House, Children's Museum of Memphis, The Salvation Army, Memphis Pink Palace Museum, Memphis Arts Council, The Memphis Symphony, Friends of the Orpheum, Emmanuel Episcopal Center, the Memphis Alcohol and Drug Council, and the list goes on.
As our past is rich with devotion and commitment, our future will be even richer with our continued focus to benefit and serve organizations and individuals throughout the greater Memphis area.
We are dreamers, but more importantly, we are doers.
Getting down to business
The sheer number of community projects the Junior League of Memphis has been involved in over the years totals in the hundreds. We support a variety of needs, primarily those that benefit women and children.
The Memphis Speech and Hearing Center is one such project. The Junior League of Memphis was instrumental in organizing this center in 1947. The next three years saw more than 13,000 children with communication disorders being given hearing tests by Junior League of Memphis volunteers. Today the program includes services for children and adults with hearing, speech and language disorders and provides clinical training for University of Memphis graduate students.
Another project is Hope House. Founded in 1995, Hope House provides daycare, respite care, and 24-hour emergency care for children infected or affected by HIV/ AIDS. The program continues to grow, including the addition of a school readiness and life skills program.
Volunteer Mid-South (previously The Volunteer Center) was co-founded by the Junior League of Memphis in 1975 to establish, finance and staff volunteer programs. Today, thousands of volunteers are referred to nonprofit organizations through Volunteer Memphis. The Center promotes voluntarism within corporations, works in schools to expand educational opportunities and improve student achievement in reading, and hosts one of the largest volunteer recognition events in the nation each year.
The Junior League of Memphis co-founded WKNO when television was still in its infancy. Everything from raising the money for the salary of a children's programming director, to working the reception desk, to making scenery--Junior League of Memphis volunteers pitched in and a popular local public television station was born. In the 1970s, the Junior League of Memphis helped found the Memphis Alcohol and Drug Council, which today still provides assistance to those fighting addictions.
The Junior League of Memphis was also instrumental in starting the Sunset Symphony, the Visitors Center and Memphis Arts Council. Not a day goes by when we are not sharing our time and concerns to help organizations and individuals throughout Shelby County.
Efforts that require as much money as time
None of the worthwhile organizations we helped start would be in existence without funds. We have an Annual Fund and produce a holiday shopper's paradise at our Merry Marketplace. The Repeat Boutique sells gently worn clothing and home furnishings with all proceeds furthering the efforts of the Junior League of Memphis. We publish cookbooks, including award-winning Heart & Soul and our "best of" A Sterling Collection. All proceeds benefit the Junior League of Memphis and our programs.
Whether we are raising funds or raising roofs, we truly care about our community and will continue to do so now and in the future.
