Description
During the final years of the Great Depression, a group of women first came together in 1934 to provide assistance to nine underprivileged families in the Kansas City area. Their first service project of making layettes for the children of these families was completed under the organization name of The Service League of Kansas City, Kansas. The group was not merely a social organization but one driven by the desire to help those in need around them.
From the early years, The Service League of Kansas City, Kansas established a community outreach presence by helping children with special needs, providing hundreds of books to libraries, encouraging leadership among women and providing live theater productions to school children through Children's Theater. Now in its 64 th year, Children's Theater continues to give many children the opportunity to live vicariously, if only for a moment, through the characters they see on stage - to laugh, dream and realize that their greatest wishes can come true.
In 1949, recognized for its service to the community, The Service League of Kansas City, Kansas was admitted into The Association of Junior Leagues International, Inc. and officially became the Junior League of Kansas City, Kansas. To signify the organization's broader outreach in the community, it became the Junior League of Wyandotte and Johnson Counties in Kansas (JLWJC) in 1990.
Throughout the past 75 years, the JLWJC has provided more than 1.3 million hours of service to its communities and invested more than $2.6 million to support projects benefiting woman, children and families. The organization is dedicated to continuing its support to the community and helping others prepare for lifelong service and community involvement. This year, we celebrate the organization for making a difference in so many lives. But, more importantly, we celebrate the future with hopeful and willing hearts as we continue "serving the needs of our community".
