Bergen Ladies Aid in Alberta is 110 years old and still active raising money for a variety of charitable organizations
For generations rural women walked, rode horses and drove to a monthly meeting for companionship and respite from farm work, children and husbands.
The Bergen Ladies Aid is 110 years old and is unique in its longevity when so many rural women’s groups have folded.
Since 1908, about two dozen women have gathered at one another’s homes in the Bergen community in west-central Alberta to share stories, make friends and carry out charitable work by quilting, knitting, sewing and cooking.
“It was kind of a community outing for the women. It was a reason to get out and you could do some good,” said Lynn Whittle, a member since 1974 and long-time president.
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A non-denominational group, the women gathered once a month to select charities they might support. For fundraising, the women mainly turned to the hand-made quilts that were sold at a special event during a school picnic.
Today, an evening auction is held in November to raise money for about 15 causes, such as STARS, Ronald McDonald House, the Evangelical Alliance Mission and local charities. They have moved beyond quilts and offer a wide variety of home crafts for a country social where as many as 100 people stop by.
At the turn of the century, the members were homesteaders and many were immigrants from Norway.
They would meet in one another’s homes to wash and card wool, to make a backing, then piece together quilts, often with donated fabric.
These days quilts are still hand-stitched, keeping alive a form of folk art that pioneer women started. The wool comes from a local custom mill and they have added fibre fill to some of the work.
Phyllis Cormack has been a member since 1980 following her mother and grandmother.
Her grandmother arrived from Norway in 1910 and joined the group soon after. She had immigrated with a large family and left everything behind in Norway to homestead in rough back country with no running water, electricity or services. The nearest town was Didsbury, a two-day round trip.
Times were hard but the women continued working through two world wars and a depression. They knitted for the war effort and during rationing each member was asked to bring two teaspoons of coffee and sugar to the meeting.
They have taken on other charitable work by restoring a local cemetery. Nearly 60 years ago members put iron crosses on unmarked graves. They continued the work in 1988 and bought 40 marble headstones with funds from the families and a grant from the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation. They added a wrought iron sign for the Bergen Cemetery and make sure the site is maintained and kept tidy.
Some members are third or fourth generation but like many volunteer groups, membership is slowing and the average age is older as younger women have children and careers.
“Most young people are so busy they can’t do it. We used to get 20 to 22 people a meeting and now we get 12,” said Whittle.
“Once we are unable to do it, that will probably be it. There are no new ones coming up.”
