In April, I completed a two-year term as president of the Pacific Palisades Woman’s Club and the successful restoration of the 5,000-square-foot clubhouse. I am looking back with gentle pride and a feeling of achievement at what had seemed an impossibility two years earlier: The “Grand Old Dame” built in 1950 needed a serious face lift aesthetically, and the main ballroom had to be stripped down to the studs and rafters for health and safety reasons.
Lighting and engineering choices had to be made and ultimately the décor such as color and lighting fixture needed decisions. The costs seemed prohibitive and the Capital Campaign fundraising had not met expectations.
As true Palisadians, the powerful women of the PPWC let their opinions be known and they were not always in agreement. But all were committed toward one goal: to save the clubhouse in support of the community.
A little known fact is that over 1,000 people from various service, charitable and self-help organizations use the facility weekly (some confidentially), most of them with no other affordable place to go. The impact of the PPWC Clubhouse on the lives of Palisadians is enormous!
Contractors reduced their cost or donated time or material, Sue Beazley took over financial management, a construction committee steered the final efforts of ceiling and lighting decisions, and President Elect Cathi Ruddy ultimately solved the lighting problem and purchase decisions. It truly took a village to come together, coordinate, cooperate and “make it happen!”
Cathi took over as president on April 1 and is lending a calm and gentle hand to the continued leadership of the Woman’s Club, with a truly successful charitable Home Tour and Boutique event this year, netting almost $40,000 to be given away via Grant Fund Request to over 20 local organizations, and an additional $12,000 allocated toward continued clubhouse improvements.
2018 is looking bright. I will enjoy visiting the Woman’s Club for fun events, watching smiling renters come and go; many of them will be unaware of the struggles to keep the clubhouse alive, and that is the way we want it to be.
I have also made a commitment to start a self-help group for caregivers in Pacific Palisades as I have found others who have gone through the same struggles at home and lack of information as I have. We will meet at the Woman’s Club. The circle closes mysteriously.
Haldis Toppel | Past President PPWC
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
