By Rachel Ann Johnson
The Ruskin Women’s Club boasts a history of sponsoring local charitable causes. From raising funds for the Special Olympics to supporting the public libraries in South Hillsborough County, members have served the club’s mission of maximizing the potential of the community through the development of educational, cultural, and social opportunities. Recently, the focus has been on schools and scholarships with special interest in volunteering at local schools, establishing scholarship programs, and lobbying for public school funding.
The club’s annual fundraising venture, which is open to the community, will be held on Saturday, March 22 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. The themed event, Denim and Diamonds, is meant to encourage participants to “dress up their denim,” said the event chairperson, Elise Aubourg. Tickets to the event cost $25, and the evening includes a barbecue dinner, live music supplied by Ruskin-based band Zebron and James, a silent auction, and several drawings throughout the night for various door prizes. The proceeds from the event benefit members of the community. Aubourg said the club was able to provide numerous college scholarships this year because of the fund raising efforts of its members. “At our annual meeting, we presented 10 or 12 girls with scholarships for college,” she said. This kind of generosity is the primary purpose for the Ruskin Women’s Club, which is a chapter of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs. The international organization promotes the improvement of individual communities through volunteer service, a concept that Aubourg and the members of the Ruskin Women’s Club continue to honor.
Tickets may be purchased in advance or at the door of the event which will be held at 3920 33rd St. SE in Ruskin. Although the event is not necessarily intended to be a membership drive, Aubourg said she hopes that people will get to see just what the club does and what they are all about. Women who are interested in joining may attend a general membership meeting on the first Wednesday of the month at 2 p.m. For more information on the Club, please visit /theruskinwomansclub.org. To purchase tickets to the event, please call 645-5598.
