A little after 7 p.m. on a rainy evening in late fall, Stella Butterfield, president of the Enfield–Mascoma Lioness Club, rose from her folding chair, rang a small bell and brought the club meeting to order.
The women were seated at folding tables arranged to form a circle in the large open hall of the Enfield Community Center, where they meet on the fourth Thursday of the month. The Lionesses were there to go over club business and to hold a members-only silent auction, the proceeds of which would defray administrative costs.
At Butterfield’s nod, the 19 women stood as one, swiveled to face the American flag on a far wall, and, hands over hearts, recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
Butterfield then asked for a moment of silence for “all our deceased Lioness members,” and the women bowed their heads. The next order of business was singing the club’s signature song, written by late member Doris Finnigan.
“We raise our voices in song. We pledge to keep our club strong,” the women sang, to the tune of the old 1927 chestnut Side by Side. “We’re a group of community women working for what we believe in. We’re fearless and bold. We’re lionesses.”
An offshoot of the Enfield Lions Club, the Lioness club, with a current roster of 37, was founded in 1982.
Such organizations as the Lionesses and Eastern Stars, the Odd Fellows and the Masons, which for decades have been the social and philanthropic spine of smaller rural towns, have seen their memberships age without a corresponding influx of younger blood. Butterfield described it as the “graying of our club.”
That doesn’t stop the Enfield Lionesses, however, from going about the business of caring for their neighbors and community.
Today the Lionesses are sponsoring Frosty’s Craft World from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Enfield Village School and they are holding their annual and very popular Thanksgiving pie sale on Wednesday at the Mascoma Bank branch in Enfield, beginning at 9:30 a.m.
During the holidays, the Lionesses organize a Christmas lunch for local senior citizens, and activities continue throughout the year.
The Lions Club, familiar to many who live in or near small towns and cities, was founded in the U.S. in 1917 as a service organization for men, and now has chapters in 185 countries.
The Lionesses began in 1975 as an auxiliary for women, but by 1987, the Lions organization decided to bring women into the previously all-male clubs. In 1991, the Lions phased out the addition of new Lioness clubs. Existing Lioness clubs could choose to be folded into a Lions club, or remain separate and keep the name, as the Enfield club did.
The question now is how to add membership, and come up with events that attract younger people.
“We’re struggling to find new things to earn money,” said Paula Rowe, who grew up in town and works at the police department. A member for 25 years, Rowe helped organize the members-only silent auction.
A table at the side of the room was lined with gifts to be auctioned: baking sets from King Arthur Flour, candles, tea towels, bottles of wine and wine glasses, cookbooks, skin care products and one stuffed animal, a medium-sized gray squirrel.
Rowe’s concern is that the club has had to drop some events that used to be staples in the calendar, including an annual Harvest Supper, and a corned beef and cabbage dinner that was cancelled because, in order to pay for the cost of food, the club would have had to raise the entry fee from $8 to $10 up to $15, which would put it out of reach for some people in town.
There are a number of factors at play in the club’s smaller membership and the decreased number of townspeople who participate in club events, Rowe said.
The pace of life is faster; outside commitments have increased for families and children; parents, whether single or married, work; and the number of local and national organizations, as well as the online fundraisers, that ask for money seems to have increased, which can lead to donation fatigue.
Add to that the departure of some older town residents during the late fall and winter months, and the club faces societal shifts out of its control.
“We need to make a lot of changes to make us current,” Rowe said.
In the meantime, the Lionesses do what they have always done: consider the needs of the community.
Two Lionesses, unable to be present that evening, had recently had surgery, and the members agreed that they should offer to help them while they recuperated.
There was talk about organizing the Senior Holiday Lunch on Dec. 15. “They will be having roast beef, that is my understanding, as long as prices hold,” Butterfield said.
The women considered requests from the community for donations. A local Cub Scout troop asked for money to sponsor their activities; the New Hampshire Lions Multiple District 44, the umbrella organization for the state, was soliciting funds to help purchase a service dog for a sight- or hearing-impaired New Hampshire resident. The Enfield Lionesses voted to donate $100 to each cause.
The Lionesses gave out commendations for best attendance and participation records, and discussed the Thanksgiving pie sale. “On average we like every member to make two pies,” Butterfield said. There was talk, again, about whether they were charging enough for the pies: $10 for “soft” pies, $12 for fruit, mincemeat or pecan.
After the silent auction was over, Rowe tallied the proceeds: $123. It wasn’t what they’d been hoping for; maybe the hard rain had kept some people away, she said.
Not every woman at the meeting was in her 60s or 70s. Sadie Wells, a younger woman, moved back to Enfield three years ago for a job. To her the Lionesses seemed a logical organization to join.
“I wanted to get to know people, and I like to volunteer,” she said.
She is what the Lionesses call a “tail twister,” a person who organizes games and activities for members during the meetings. And, during the meeting, Butterfield singled her out for her contributions.
“I’d like to say thanks to Sadie, because she’s always helping out. I think you deserve a round of applause,” Butterfield said.
Nicola Smith can be reached at nsmith@vnews.com.