The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1919-12-06
MARTHA PRATT HoNoRED
Organized Clubs in Norfolk During
Year With 500 Members.

. OISdnlLGQ SiuDS IN NOTTOik DuFlnQ
Year With 500 Members.
An article, supplemented by pic.
ture OF Miss Martha Pratt, was re-
Gently printed in a Norfolk newspap-
er commenting on the remarkable
work accomplished by Miss Pratt dur
ing her stay in the south last year.
In the Office where the paper is print
ed in which the story appeared,
works former resident of Benning-
ton and at one time an employee OF
The Banner Office. Mrs. Harry Smith
adele Smith Mrs. Smith sent
clipping of the article to a friend in
Bennington. 1t reads as follows.
4 When Miss Martha Pratt, of Ben
nington, Vermont came to Norfolk in
September of last year, there were
only three girls clubs in the city with
an average attendance of about five
or six girls each Today there are
fourteen clubs of Girl Reserves hay
ing an aggregate membership of more
than 500 girls and an average at
tendance of between $50 and 400
girls at the weekly meetings. The
Girl Reserve organization is the first
of its kind ever attempted in the city
and as far as can be learned there
we're practically no organizations for
girls save Sunday school classes
The organization Is somewhat like
that of Girl Scouts and Camp Fire
girls but more simple and easily or
ganized.
Miss Pratt first organized her
IA rnhnA1u
George Washington school in Berk-
ley being the first. The club OF that
school has been most enthusiastic
and has numbered about a hundred
girls since its organization While
the programs are arranged to in
clude different types of study and
entertainment for the development
of mind and character, a great deal
of emphasis is placed on the recrea-
tional work The girls love hikes.
camping out dancing, swimming and
organized play of most every kind.
The first club was an experiment,
established for the purpose of learn
ing if the Girl Reserve organization
really appealed to the girl and was
the thing she wanted The first club
soon became so popular that groups
of girls of nearly all the schools
asked for an organization of the
kind. Each club is self governing,
has a leader and a group of officers.
A council meeting of all the leaders
is held each month with the Girls
Work secretary. Miss Pratt has
called a meeting of the leaders for
o'clock this afternoon in the Recre-
alton hall in the New Monroe build
ing. The officers of the various
clubs will meet with this council of
leaders at 4 o'clock.
/ Miss Pratt predicts that there viii
be 1000 Girl Reserves in Norfolk
by Christmas. The clubs or corps
of Girl Reserves are; Red Wing
Blue Bird. John Marshall, Lafayette
Blue Triangle, El Canine Real Vir-
ginia Dare, Minnehaha Wise Corps
Liberty Corps Joan of Arc. George
Washington Patrick Henry, Edith
Cavel and the Miller, Rhoads and
Swartz corps.
Although the organization is for
school girls. it necessarily interlaps
somewhat with the industrial work
DttduSt vi lllt carly dSC at NulNI
many girls begin work
Miss Pratt left Y. w, C. A. work
/ to go back to her home in Bennng
on. Vermont, where she will enter
town and county community work
The Bennington community organiza
ton is far famed, and has been
copied by many cities and has been
written of in many of the leadinf
magazines. The organization began
with public playground organized
by several college girls one of then
being Miss Pratt. The work has
grown from year to year until nov
the community is considered the mos
completely organized in the country
Several handsome gifts have beer
given and the last is donation OF
$50 600 for community center =
successor to Miss Pratt will arrive
here to take up the work next month