Around Town: Happy 90th anniversaries

Past and present leaders of the Toledo Hospital Auxiliary gather at the 90th anniversary celebration at Inverness Club.

Billie Johnson, who has been in the club 35 years, and Jan Shearer, who has been in the club 37 years, attend the Zonta's 90th anniversary celebration at the Toledo Club in Toledo, Ohio. Both are past presidents of Zonta Club of Toledo 1.

Zonta Club of Toledo 1 celebrated its 90th anniversary with a dinner Nov. 2 at the Toledo Club, complete with flowers and cake. Susan Dorfmeyer Strup, event co-chairman with Barb Kopp Miller, welcomed everyone. Jan Shearer, past president and member since 1974, led the Zonta Blessing before the program.

Guest speaker was Zonta International President Dianne Curtis, of Santa Clara, Calif., who chose Toledo as the one club in the United States that she would visit. There are four clubs celebrating their 90th year this year, including Cleveland. She commended the local chapter for its charitable and community projects, but reminded them to not to live on past accomplishments and take responsibility to preserve Zonta membership.

The club is an organization of executives and professionals supporting the status of women world-wide in all areas such as legal, political, economic, and educational.

A peek at the history of the chapter was provided by Emilie Owens, president, and Tricia Fugee, vice president. Zonta Club of Toledo 1 was organized by the Zonta Club of Detroit. The first Toledo president was Clara Millard of the probate court.

Aviation icon Ameila Earhart, a member of the New York Zonta, visited Toledo in 1933 and helped paint an arrow on the rooftop of the Hillcrest Hotel with the National Exchange Club, to guide pilots to nearby landing strips.

Past and present leaders of the Toledo Hospital Auxiliary gather at the 90th anniversary celebration at Inverness Club.

The Toledo chapter established many other chapters: Findlay, 1959; Defiance and Bombay, 1960; Sandusky, 1961; Elyria and Lorain, 1962; Maumee River Valley, 1969; Szeged, Hungary, 1995; and Bowling Green, 1999.

Among the women present at the celebration were Helen Dorfmyer, 55-year member; Billie Johnson, past president and a member since 1978, and Ruta Gulbis, past president and long-time member.

The club has 45 members from a variety of professions such as doctors, lawyers, accountants, engineers, teachers, and businesswomen including Collette Jacobs, Joyce Quinlivan, Kathryn Fell, Sally Davies, Margaret Danzinger, Linda Amos, Carol Falke, Sandra Frisch, Barbie Harrison, Claire Kirsner, Martha Kleinberg, Amira Gohara, Victoria Steiner, Margaret Lockhart, Lisa McDuffie, Linnie Willis, and Terri Lee.

For information go to www.zontatoledo1.org or the international office at 630-928-1400.

The Toledo Hospital Auxiliary also celebrated its 90th anniversary this fall. The event was a dinner at Inverness Club for about 90 guests. Toledo Hospital and Toledo Children's Hospital Foundation Chairmen Charlie Heid and Rita Mansour thanked the auxiliary for its steadfast dedication. Kevin Webb, president of both hospitals, offered his congratulations.

The auxiliary went from rolling bandages for patients to supporting the hospitals' mission to promote the health and welfare of the community and to provide resources to enhance patient care and comfort. It operates two gift shops, does holiday decorating, distributes baby blankets at the holidays, provides birthday gifts to pediatric patients, and awards personalized medals of bravery for children at their end-of-treatment parties. Not to mention the nearly $8 million it has contributed to technology, education, community service, patient and visitor services, hospital expansion, and more.

The current president of Auxiliary of ProMedica Toledo Hospital and Toledo Children's Hospital is Laura Robinson. The president-elect is Christine Happ, who will take over in May, 2013.