Readers Forum celebrates 75 years

By Elizabeth Butler

March 28, 2008 03:42 pm

— VALDOSTA — Amid music from the ’30s, four dresses of sheer lawn linen and cotton trimmed in delicate lace and ribbons from around that era, and the original scrapbook when Readers Forum was begun 75 years ago, the book club members celebrated three-quarters of a century of enriching their lives through reading and reviewing books.
Member Rose V. Ware was the featured speaker Tuesday as she traced the history of Readers Forum for members and guests at the Valdosta Country Club.
“Mrs. C.R. Hawk, our founder, having served her term as president of the Wymodausis Club, gathered her former board members in the parlor of the Valdes Hotel in October 1933 to see if they were interested in starting a literary club,” she said.
“Besides Mrs. Hawk, the 12 charter members present were Mrs. T.H. McKey, Mrs. T.C. Ashley, Mrs. J.Y. Blitch, Mrs. W.G. Eager, Mrs. Ned Thigpen, Mrs. George Feagle, Mrs. Harry Stump, Mrs. Henry Rhodes, Miss Annie Powe Hopper, Mrs. George Shelton, Mrs. Frank Bird and Mrs. T. M. Cook Jr.”
Some accounts say the number increased to 30, others say to 24, at the first meeting, but few rules were made, Ware discovered in her research.
“One of the first requirements was that each member review a book at a monthly luncheon meeting. After the reviews, there were open forums and discussions with as many as possible taking part. Sometimes, a short quiz was given — questions asked and discussions encouraged — often proving most worthwhile.
“Once a year, an open meeting was held in May at which time guests were invited. Sometimes, the open meeting was held at night so the men could share this occasion.”
Among the authors and celebrities who were often asked to review were Mildred Seydell of Atlanta and Brussels (a syndicated columnist for the Hearst Newspapers), Caroline Miller (“Lamb in my Bosom”), and Pulitizer-Prize-Winning author Marjorie Kennan Rawlings. More recently, Celestine Sibley, Eugenia Price and Joyce Blackburn as well as members of the academic world: Louise Sawyer, a Valdosta State College faculty member and charter member of Readers Forum, frequently gave readings of plays, and it is she for whom Sawyer Theater at Valdosta State University is named, Ware said.
“Many best-sellers have been reviewed throughout our 75 years. For example, when ‘The Grapes of Wrath’ was reviewed in 1939, Mrs. Harry Stump, the Readers Forum member responsible for the review, wrote to the then-governor of the State of California and requested information concerning the working and living conditions of the migrant workers in that state to help her research her review.
“I could find no written records of what happened at the 15th or 25th celebrations of Readers Forum, but when Betty Montague was president during the 35th anniversary, ‘a gathering’ was held down at Ocean Pond Clubhouse in November of 1968 where seven of the original members each spoke of her memories of the Forum’s early days.
“Because of the parking problem, Readers Forum was no longer meeting at the Ashley Oaks Restaurant when my family and I moved to Valdosta in 1971. The location had changed to the Valdosta Country Club. My mother-in-law, Runa Ware, was asked to review her ‘spoof’ of women’s clubs, ‘All Those in Favor, Say Something!’ and I was invited as a guest of the club. Kathy Smith, Mrs. Fred Smith, was president ...
“Some of you may remember Runa. She had a wonderful sense of humor. At the very front of her little book is an epitaph, oddly enough, that my father-in-law found somewhere. It was written, apparently by a husband who was unsympathetic to his wife’s involvement with her clubs. It reads, ‘Here lies my wife, Mary Beth — slowly, but surely, clubbed to death!’
Eileen Trantham arranged a fashion show which featured fashions from the ’30s and ended with the ’90s when Readers Forum celebrated its 60th year in 1993 at the Valdosta Country Club.
“When Readers Forum attempted to construct a constitution and by-laws, I wrote to Betty Montague, asking her what memories she had of the club and what rules needed to be observed. She replied that in the beginning, Readers Forum was primarily a ‘social club.’ Dues were $1 and the lunch around $1.25.
“When I became a member in 1973, the dues were $2, and, years later, I remember how upset some of the members were when the dues became $3.
“Betty also wrote in her letter that if you were asked to belong, you had to agree to review a book selected by Mrs. Hawk. Mrs. Hawk selected the books she wanted the ladies to read and put them on ‘Reserve’ at the library, and each member had to sign for the book of the month and read it. The reviewer had a copy to prepare her review. Mrs. Hawk checked the list and if you hadn’t read the book, she gave you a call as to why not! After the review, each member had a slip of paper with a question on it for the reviewer to answer so the reviewer had to be prepared.
“As far as Betty could remember, there were never any by-laws, only the following:
— Agree to review a book or books
— Serve as a chairman every so often
— Serve on a committee once a year
— Pay your dues
— Be sure the ladies had a chance to meet the person you were sponsoring and —
— Always call your chairman of the month to cancel any reservations — which (Betty Montague stated emphatically) will never happen in this lifetime.
“Thirty-two presidents and countless board members have served this organization. We have all benefited from their vision and dedication, and, today, our membership stands at 77 active members. I’m sure Mrs. Hawk would be very proud.”
Readers’ Forum current officers and board include President Catherine Daughtery, Treasurer Jean Fowler, Recording Secretary Sharon Coleman, Marian Belanger, Sheri Gravett, Emily Newbern, Mary Gooding and Jane Hearn.
Committee chairperson for the 75th celebration was Jeannie Grow; review chairperson was Emily Newbern, and her committee included Lilla Kate Hart, Jane Hearn, Carolyn Eager, Sue Nelle Scruggs, Diane Corker, Sister Force and Jane Greene. Table arrangements of white roses were done by member Sue Cox.
Donald Davis of the Lowndes County Historical Museum accompanied four dresses from the museum which decorated the wall behind the podium. They included a green dress donated to the Lowndes County Historical Society by Eleanor Morgan, who wore it to the May Court in 1940, and a blue dress worn by Ruth Sherman in the 1941 May Court. Others were a 1930s pink cotton lace and ribbon dress, sleeveless with a shawl collar and a ruffle at the waistline as well as a summer dress of lawn linen and lace which featured a skirt with an inverted “V” with lace netting and pin tucks.
Among the guests was Liza Newsom, retired director of the South Georgia Regional Library.

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