Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-08-20
COMMUNITY LEAGUES
AID IN WAR ACTIVITIES
organization OF Cooperative Educa-
ton Association Is Proving
BiS Factor.

At the outbreak Of the war. leaders
tegan TO realize the necessity for ro
operation on the part of the people
even In the remotcst rural sections. ana
the call came from national and State
officials for some type OF community
organization that would bind the peo-
pie together and bring them TO united
! ~ support war emergency activities
Happily for Virginia. this work had
tcen going on for the past decade un-
Ger the direction Of the Cooperative
Education Association. and more than
| 1000 organized communities were
ready and willing 10 respond to the
lirst call that WAS made for war cmcr-
sency work. since that time these
community leagues have been respond
ing TO every cali that has been made
until they have made FOR themselves
great and lasting record.
The Cooperative Education ASCOT
alton Is really a co-ordinating orGani-
zation through which large number
Of state dcpartme nts are brought into
closer contact with each other and
thereby enabled to promote their work
more successfully in the rural com
mun!t!os. and the heads of these de-
partmcnts, along with number Of the
leading citizens of Richmond, compose
the executive committee and direct It's
work.
This association renders it's service
most effectively by organizing the peo-
pie of the school communities into u
community league, furnishes them Il
working program, grants them every
aid possible for the development OF
their work. brings them in touch with
the different State organizations and
then brings these workers together IN
an annual meeting in connection with
the State educational conference.
HAD PERFECTED THEIR
ORGANIZATION BEFORE WAR
Theae leagues had been doing such
work as school Improvement. road i'm
provemcnt, Improvement of sanitary
conditions. improvement OF social con-
Gitions for number OF years and.
therefore, had learned the lesson OF
working together for every phase or
school and community Improvement.
SO when the call came for organized
effort in support of war emergency ac-
tivities these leagues were ready I'M
niediatcly to respond. and they have
labored without ceasing to do their
utmost for the winning of the war.
Through these organizations, nun
drcds of rallies were arranged immed-
lately after the declaration OF war
to interest the people in increasing
productions and the leagues mad no
small part in helping the State 10
increase its production even under az
verse conditions. Because OF tneir ci-
fective work in that respect they were
next called on to aid in food con-
scrvation, and il is rather Significant
that in the communities where there
were well-organized leagues practical
ly every household was induced 10 sish
the food pledge cards. :,
They were again called on TO ana
in the Red Cross campaign, the LID
erty loan and war savings stamp cam
ton hn A
camp activities campaigns.
The annual reports that are being
received from these leagues indicate
shat during the past year they nave
raised thousands OF dollars for the sup
mort of the Red Cross and the \. NJ
c. 4. and were instrumental in selling
several hundred thousand dollars worth
of Liberty bonds. In their latest et-
fort they have .co-operated with the
war savings organization and been In
strumental in selling thousands of dol
lars worth of war savings stamps. In
one community the league was able to
have 400 food conservation cards sign
ed. contributed $773 to the Red Cross
fund, raised 1888 for the Y. NJ. c. a.
fund sold $4,000 worth Of war savings
stamps and to date has sold $4,000
worth of Liberty bonds. This gives In
most concrete way an Illustration OF
Just what these leagues throughput the
State are doing.
Had 1T not been for these leagues
there are hundreds OF communities