WHITINGHAM- “There shall be no evil speaking at the meetings of this society. Our motto shall be malice toward none and charity for all.”

The Deerfield Valley is home to dozens of charitable organizations serving local residents and people far away. But few organizations can boast a history of community service as long as the Whitingham Ladies Benevolent Society. This year, the society celebrated 150 years of uninterrupted service to the Deerfield Valley. For a century and a half, the society has provided fellowship for Whitingham women, raised money for people in need, and provided comfort for the bereaved.

“I think one of the biggest things about it is that it has never stopped, not even during wartime,” says longtime member Sherry Adams. “Everything at one time or another fades or goes downhill, but the LBS hasn’t. The organization has stayed steady and has never slowed, and I think that is to be rewarded.”

And it has been rewarded. In September, Vermont Secretary of State Deb Markowitz recognized the Whitingham Ladies Benevolent Society and 25 other nonprofit organizations in the state with a Vermont Centennial Nonprofit Award. The secretary of state’s program honors any Vermont nonprofit that has operated continuously for 100 years or more.

The award was presented in a ceremony in Montpelier by the secretary of state and Governor Jim Douglas. Current LBS president Linda Corse and members Joanne Brown, Donna Roy, and Grace Betit traveled to the capital to receive the honor. “It was interesting to see that there were five or six other groups there that were older than us,” Corse notes.

In 1858, the society began as part of the Baptist Church, but soon split off and became nondenominational. “It was started by women in town who got together trying to help other people,” Adams says. “They started meeting in homes, but in later years they moved into the (Jacksonville Community Church), but they remained nondenominational.”

The society’s influence reaches overseas, where they send medical supplies, school supplies, clothing, and money. Locally, the society gives to the Guy Hawkins cancer fund, the food pantry, the Gathering Place, the food bank, and to local families in need. Adams says the society has given money or fuel to people having trouble heating their homes through the winter, made mortgage payments, and paid for funerals. It was the ladies benevolent society that offered a $1,000 reward for information regarding vandalism at the school a few years ago and, Adams notes, the crime was promptly solved.

Corse says the society recently reached out to help a local family struggling with cancer treatments by providing a gas card to pay for trips to the hospital. “A lot of the things we do, we do quietly, or anonymously,” Adams says. “There’s no fanfare. People can be embarrassed to accept help.”

Adams says the society has stayed successful in its fundraising with a variety of strategies: rummage sales, Christmas bazaars, community suppers, and even by catering wedding receptions. The society also raises money by providing lunch at Whitingham Town Meeting. Members are also encouraged to pay dues, but the expected amount is hardly prohibitive. “In 1879 it was 5 cents,” Adams notes. “It went up to 25 cents in 1981, and that’s where it’s at today.”

The money they raise goes not only to their charitable giving, but also to fund family “fellowships” after funerals, one of their unique traditions. “If there’s a death in the Deerfield Valley, we call and ask if you need food or need a place to meet after the funeral,” Adams says. “It gives people a place to go and be with relatives. That’s important.”

The society has maintained its membership throughout its 150 years without any bold recruitment efforts, but there have been periods when membership dwindled perilously. “For a couple years there were only three of us, Hazel Dodge, Elsie Russell, and me, but we still did our fundraising and fellowships.

Adams says her grandmother and mother were LBS members, but she didn’t become a member until about 35 years ago, when Joanne Brown suggested she join. Brown is still a member. Corse has been a member for about 24 years. She says she was “roped into” the LBS when they sent out letters looking for new members. She says she has stayed because of the friendship and sense of community. “The meetings themselves are a nice time of friendship and fellowship,” she says. “We have some laughs and get some work done.”

Membership is open to anyone in the Deerfield Valley. Corse even says “Men are always welcome, although I don’t think we’re going to change our name if any show up.” Meetings are tentatively scheduled for the second and fourth Mondays of the month, but Adams says the schedule is adjusted depending on what needs to be accomplished, and the availability of members. For more information about joining or helping the society call Corse at (802) 368-7192.