The Welcome Wagon Club of Racine was first organized in 1958 and it is open to all women who are new to Racine or who have had a change in their lifestyle due to marriage, divorce, childbirth or something similar. Since that time it has been very successful in providing its members with the opportunity to meet new friends and to learn about the varied resources of their new surroundings.

Most meetings are held at St. Michael’s Church, 4701 Erie Street, but several - such as the Christmas and Installation dinners - are held at area restaurants. Some of the themes for upcoming meetings include perennial favorites like September's Salad and Dessert Potluck and February's Soup and Bingo Night as well as presentations about community volunteering, food preparation, financial planning and holiday floral demonstrations. Annual dues are $15 and include a subscription to our newsletter.

In addition to the regular meetings, there are quite a number of activities that are available to members. Following is a listing of the current activity groups in our club. If, at any time, there is interest in starting up another activity, please notify the Activities Chairman and we will try to initiate another group if there are enough people interested.

BOOK CLUB: This group meets on the fourth Thursday of the month at 1:00pm at a different member’s home each month. The books to be discussed are chosen by the group at the August meeting. The discussion is fairly informal and light refreshments are served

BRIDGE: The bridge group meets the first and third Tuesday of the month at an area restaurant where bridge play follows lunch. At present there are two tables of players and substitutes are always needed. If there is enough interest, another group could be formed to play at a different time.

BRING YOUR OWN PROJECT: This group offers a wonderful opportunity to work on all those projects that have been started but never finished. Members meet at St. Michael’s Church on the first Thursday of the month at 10:00am and have a chance not only to work on a variety of personal projects but also to socialize with one another. Participants can bring bag lunches.

COFFEE, TEA AND THEE: Each Friday (except the third Friday) members of this group meet for coffee (or whatever) at 9:00am at a different area coffee shop. This is a purely social group and everyone is free to drop in whenever they wish.

CRAFTS: This group gets together to make seasonal crafts or to do a special project under the direction of a member/instructor. It currently meets on the third Friday of the month at 10:00am.

LUNCH BUNCH: The members of this group meet once a month at a member's home to share lunch and recipes. Each month there is a different theme and each person is to bring a dish that fits in with that theme. The recipe is also brought and all of the recipes for that meal are distributed to the participants at the next month's gathering.

MAH JONGG: This is a fun game that involves the use of Chinese tiles which are to be combined to make different patterns. We meet on the third Thursday of the month at a member’s home from 12:30 until 4:00 pm. We are a very informal group - there are always beginners present and you do not have to commit to playing every time, but please notify the hostess if you do plan to attend.

MOMS AND TOTS: All Moms and their preschoolers are more than welcome to join this group which is in the process of forming. Members will get together to decide on the activities and frequency of the meetings. This is a great opportunity for Moms and their children to get together and socialize.

OUT AND ABOUT: Exploring different places of interest is the goal of this group. We go to destinations such as Chicago, Milwaukee, Delafield, Kohler, or Lake Geneva to see what each has to offer. We visit points of interest, eat, shop or whatever. What we do on each trip depends on the wishes of the participants.

OUT TO LUNCH:This group gets together to have lunch at a different restaurant each month - for the most part in Racine , but sometimes farther afield. On the second Wednesday of the month we get together to sample the area cuisine, take time out to visit with one another and in general, have an enjoyable time.

SOCIAL:This also is a group that can include spouses - or not. Activities can include anything from a murder mystery dinner or family social at the zoo to just bowling and pizza. Input from members is encouraged.

In addition, the club has always had as one of its primary goals the "promotion and support of community, civic and service projects". (Welcome Wagon Bylaws) In recent years we have given donations to the Racine Zoo, Toys for Tots, the Racine Emergency Shelter Taskforce, San Juan Diego Middle School, and the Cerebral Palsy Association.

A monthly newsletter is distributed to let members know of upcoming events and notifications of club activities appear in the Community section of The Racine Journal Times. If you are interested in knowing more about our club and would like to receive a newsletter please let us know.

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