Woodland Women Wishers Clue #4

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Social Time is a WI Time
“Breaking news from WWW on your radio dial 1991.”
“Joining us from Woodland Women Wishers (WWW) is Patsy Kelly who just returned, very excited, from the fourth Women’s Institute (WI) Scavenger Hunt. This province wide WI Scavenger Hunt is to commemorate the Women’s Institute’s 125th anniversary since the first WI was formed. The previous three scavenger hunts included a look at the past accomplishments of WI branches, the WI goals, and an educational theme selected by the team members. For this fourth scavenger hunt, Patsy, and her team, selected Homestead Golf course to meet and chat while having a beverage. Patsy’s task was to locate a patron that would be willing to participate, offer to purchase her a beverage, accept the WI Bookmark, and allow Patsy to talk about the WI program.”
“Patsy, why did you decide to select the Homestead Golf Course?”
“Last time I was at the Homestead Golf Course restaurant it was packed, so I assumed there would be a selection of ladies to speak with and it would be easy to find someone to participate in the Women’s Institute (WI) Scavenger Hunt. Imagine our surprise when we walked into an empty dining room. The waitress promised to sit the next group near our table. Our team enjoyed our beverage and catching up on the news since our last meeting. Unfortunately, one and a half hours later still no patrons. Some golfers had come into the beverage area but left with their beverage and did not remain in the dining area.”
“How was a patron located?”
“I saw someone purchase a drink and leave the dining room. The first person I followed hopped on a golf cart and left. Luckily the 2nd golfer exited the dining room, and I located her sitting at a table outside on the patio. There were three ladies and a gentleman at this table. I approached one of the ladies and asked if I could interrupt. I asked if she would be willing to participate in a province wide WI Scavenger Hunt. She introduced herself as Brenda and willingly accepted the challenge. She declined the offer of a beverage since she was just having the one beverage which she was finishing however she was interested in hearing about the WI Scavenger Hunt.”
“Had she ever heard of the Women’s Institute?”
“Brenda was familiar with the WI. She thought the local area branch had disbanded but there could possibly be one near her location. She seemed interested to learn about the WI therefore I offered her the WI bookmark which she gladly accepted. I then discussed the points on the bookmark specifically, WI’s goal is to empower and inspire women to make a difference. The other two ladies also seemed interested to hear about the information on the WI Bookmark.
“Were there any projects that your Women’s Institute have been involved with that you shared with her?”
“Our branch’s main project is our participation in the local community highly attended Maplefest which is organized by the local Egremont Optimist Club during the maple syrup season. Brenda mentioned in previous years, she had attended Maplefest. At this event our name tags promoted the WI and provided member identification while we worked together and had fun making tea biscuits that were baked in a wood fired oven in the Tea Biscuit House where our large WI banner was secured. This year Covid-19 protocols were followed. Tea biscuits topped with dandelion jelly were available for tasting. The income from the jars of dandelion jelly is our major fund-raising activity which provides the funds for the local community programs and organizations which we support. The WI presence in the community was noted and encouraged many queries.”
“How did you end the conversation?”
“I asked if she would be interested in a photo accepting the bookmark and meeting my team. After her consent, Brenda was presented with a jar of dandelion jelly as a thank you for participating. She was excited to be part of the WI Scavenger Hunt, and even happier that she was familiar with one of the teammates. In the front row, from left to right, are Marg Mitchell, and the participating guest Brenda. In the back row, starting on the left, are Patsy Kelly, Myrna Penney, and Maxine Innes Holbrough. After the photo was taken, one of the other ladies at the table, expressed an interest in the WI. She was presented with a WI Bookmark for herself. In addition, she was presented with the hot off the press, Woodland Springs WI Bookmark, which included some photos of our main activities, synopsis of our projects, meeting and contact information.”
“Thank you, Patsy, for sharing your scavenger hunt adventure. You played and paid forward the WI goals while making friends. Patsy Kelly certainly located an exceptional participant for this WI Scavenger Hunt. Thanks for joining our station WWW on your radio station 1991. Remember kindness finds friendship and membership in the future.”

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