The Evolution of the Junior League of Charlotte: A Queen Is Born

by Anna-Bryce Hobson

The year is 1926, and the role of women in society is changing at unparalleled speed. World War I has forced many women to dramatically reinvent themselves and shift their roles within the household unit, from homemaker and caregiver to primary breadwinner. Having gained the right to vote only six years prior, many women feel liberated and invigorated with the prospect of making a name for themselves in their communities, in the workplace and in the news. The amount of working women in the United States increases to nearly 20% of the overall workforce. Gone are the days of corsets and long skirts. Women’s new positions push fashion trends towards clothes that can accommodate women’s more active lifestyles. And, of course, it is in this year that the now larger-than-life Queen Elizabeth II is born. But she isn’t the only “royal” making her grand appearance. The city of Charlotte, the “Queen City,” is making a big statement in the textile industry. North Charlotte is filled with massive mills and rows of mill houses; you can feel the dust and lint floating through the air and hear the deafening sound of the steam-powered machinery echoing through the growing city. A city that had a population of roughly 20,000 at the start of the century is now rapidly approaching a population count of nearly 80,000 people. It is in this same year that a group of 30 women in Charlotte decide to form an organization in their community where they can provide support to local families in need, advocate for education, and promote the arts. They are trailblazers, yes, but they are also a product of their generation – of a movement and a new vision for what women could do. Due to the resolve and passion of these women, the Junior League of Charlotte, Inc. (JLC) is born.

A Noble Cause

Throughout the last 95 years, the League has evolved as the city it calls home has grown, welcomed new businesses and sports teams, and become one of the most sought-after cities to live in throughout the United States. The League has contributed more than $13.7 million to the city of Charlotte and another 1.6 million volunteer hours. It has served the needs of a city that has fought many battles over the years. In the 1960’s, Charlotte’s downtown area went through an “urban renewal” effort, replacing low-income housing with skyscrapers, some of which still comprise Charlotte’s Uptown skyline today. Interestingly, part of this renewal effort resulted in Charlotte’s City Council officially declaring that downtown Charlotte would formally be referred to as “Uptown” going forward. In the past 20 years, Charlotte has become a major player on the world-finance stage, calling itself “home base” for the likes of Bank of America and Truist. Business professionals have flocked to the city and paid the hefty price tag to live in Charlotte’s Uptown, NoDa, and Plaza Midwood districts. This urban sprawl has all but consumed traditionally lower-income neighborhoods – displacing families who have lived in these areas for generations. Gentrification in the areas surrounding Uptown started in the mid-1990s and many now admit that Charlotte faces a housing crisis for those families in lower income brackets. These changes have also impacted the cultural, healthcare, and educational opportunities afforded to children of lower-income families in recent years. The Junior League of Charlotte, recognizing the struggles created by growth, helped create, fund and support places like The Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, Discovery Place, and The Charlotte Nature Museum. Likewise, JLC members have volunteered thousands of hours with organizations like The Council for Children’s Rights, Charlotte Speech and Hearing, Thompson Child Development Center, and Levine Children’s Hospital Family Resource Center. The JLC was founded by women with a keen understanding of how they could use their position within Charlotte for good. Over the years, JLC members have continued to dedicate themselves to helping the less fortunate, level the playing field for all children, and offer services to the underserved so that they may know and appreciate all that Charlotte has to offer. The changing landscape of the city has impacted the ways in which the League serves the community, and it is this change that has inspired innovation and investment into the lives of so many young people.

The Follies of 1927

Keep Calm and Put Your Crown On

Just as the League has grown with Charlotte and the community’s needs, the League has also adapted its volunteer and leadership opportunities to accommodate and recruit the “working woman,” the “new resident,” the “millennial,” and most recently, the “working-from-home” woman. The JLC now has 1,600 members that range in age from 23 to 100. JLC women are grandmothers, “dog-moms,” teachers, graduate students, working professionals, community leaders, stay-athome moms, remote-workers, and many are transplants from all over the country. They come from different socio-economic classes, hold different religious and philosophical beliefs, and are of different races. In many ways, the JLC’s membership mimics the ever-increasing diversity of the Queen City. A League that was started on the precipice of a new age for women has continued to propel women in their careers and in their personal lives – allowing them to stay members of the League through the stages of their lives. Take for instance, Jessica Jowers Walker, who moved to Charlotte in 2007 and joined the JLC as a single woman working in international banking. Over the next 13 years, Jessica would contribute her time and leadership skills to the Thompson Child Development Center and Chameleon’s Journey placements and serve as the Transfer Committee Chair, Nominating Committee Chair, and Human Resources Council Manager. Her roles within the League changed as did her life outside the League. Jessica got married, had three wonderful children, and ultimately chose to stay home and raise her kids. But as Jessica puts it, the women of the League were always there to support her when she felt life pulling her in one direction and her obligations within the League pulling her in another. For example, when Jessica served as HRC Manager she was pregnant and had her third child. She didn’t have as much daytime availability as others, but team members stepped up to the plate and helped her along the way. Jessica’s experiences that year within the League taught her a lot about giving others grace and showing herself a little as well! Now a Sustainer, the JLC continues to provide an outlet for Jessica to stay connected through programs like the Sustainer book club. According to Jessica, one of the biggest changes she has seen in the League during her nearly 15-year tenure is the flexibility the League now offers to its members in terms of volunteer opportunities. She is also so proud of the strong, independent women she says she has interacted with as the League has continued to evolve. Cate Sittig is just one example of the unique, independent, and talented women who recently joined the JLC. Cate, a Senior Clinical Validation Auditor, has worked full-time for Change Healthcare since moving to Charlotte in 2016. She and her husband, Taylor, live in Matthews. When they first relocated from Texas to North Carolina, Cate found it difficult to feel connected to her new city. Cate’s job has always been 100% remote so she “joined the League to feel like a part of the Charlotte community and meet other like-minded women.” Unlike most of the women who originally joined the League in its earlier years, Cate is not native to the region and found the League to be an opportunity to volunteer, meet new friends, and get acquainted with Charlotte. With an estimated 60 to 100 people moving to Charlotte every day, it is women like Cate who are coming into this city and whom the JLC strives to recruit. Indeed, the philanthropic spirit found in so many League members does not only cater to homegrown women. In many instances, women that are new to a city find refuge in supporting a common good. They learn more about the strengths of their new home by recognizing the inequities that surround them and working to improve them. The JLC has also evolved to recognize and address the needs of the “working woman.” One must look no further than immediate past-president Tricia Magee to see how far the JLC

has come in representing every type of woman. A licensed attorney by trade, over her time in the League, Tricia has given her time and energies to the League as Editor of The CRIER, Communications Council Manager and the 2019-2020 JLC President. She held these roles all while raising two children and maintaining a full-time job as the permanent law clerk for a Judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. During her time in the League, Tricia has seen the League take steps to help those members who may not have the same availability as, say, a stay-at-home mom or a retiree. When she first joined the JLC, Tricia says the “volunteer opportunities often took place on weekdays and during business hours.” Now, the majority of placements offer weekend and evening time slots or larger chunks of time for volunteer hours so that JLC members can make the most of their time away from work. Tricia also noted that the internal processes of the JLC have changed, due in part to technology and the time constraints of its members. The JLC now uses a program called Digital Cheetah to allow for better planning for use of the JLC building and “on-the-go accessibility of important membership information.” In 2019, the JLC held its first live virtual General Membership Meeting, allowing more people to join in the fun from their offices or from their mobile devices while on the go. Likewise, the placement selection process used to take place via paper submission forms so placement assignments took a considerable amount of time. Now, members fill out an online survey and the placement process is far more streamlined and efficient. In all, Tricia thinks the JLC’s mission is emboldened by all of its members – those who work, those who stay at home, those who are retired, and those who have yet to begin their careers. The key is that the JLC continues to answer the needs of its membership and the “queens” that they are in their everyday lives.

Prominent Mills in Charlotte

Source: Landmark Commision

Long May She Reign

The 95th year of The Junior League of Charlotte is by far one of the most challenging years for the League and its membership. A global pandemic has swept through countries around the world, and many businesses have asked employees to work from home. Women, who now comprise nearly 50% of the United States workforce, are once again “staying home” to work, but the demands of their full-time jobs are no different. The challenges they face in feeling heard and equal remain the same. Many women are juggling children, family-life, job losses, sickness, and the stress that accompanies the unknown. Women who have chosen to stay-at-home now have an entirely new set of challenges; they have more obligations inside the home than ever before. They are not only mothers and spouses, but coworkers and teachers. The women who comprise the Junior League of Charlotte membership, much like their 1926 counterparts, are trailblazers in their own right – balancing the unexpected demands of this year and answering the call within our community. Members are volunteering, donating, giving of their time and planning for the future. They are not bowing down, but rising to the challenge. Despite the changes to Charlotte, the JLC has remained steadfast. Despite the many hats women now wear in society, the JLC’s members remain focused on philanthropy. Because, in the end, Queen Elizabeth II said it best: “It has been women who have breathed gentleness and care into the progress of humankind.”