The History of Wellesley Service League
The Wellesley Service League traces its roots back to the fall of 1927, when ten women of Wellesley decided to organize their efforts to provide volunteer service to the community. The Service League originally concentrated its efforts on supporting the many initiatives already in place at the Wellesley Friendly Aid Association. Within one year, the League's membership increased to forty, and Service encompassed two enduring themes: Youth and Education; and Seniors and HealthCare.
By 1929, the League was providing service through the Convalescent Home, including the provision of remedial reading services, and supporting the cost of an Occupational Therapist at the Convalescent Home. The League also paid a physician's salary at the Eye Clinic until 1945, when the Eye Clinic was transferred to the Newton Wellesley Hospital.
During the 1930s, the League began providing Thanksgiving and Christmas baskets to families in need, running a camp for tubercular children, and sponsoring the Edna Currier Noyes parties for disadvantaged children. In the early years of World War II, the League created a standing Red Cross Committee to serve at the Bloodmobiles. Then in 1947, services were expanded to include Newton-Wellesley Hospital, including ward work, clerical and newspaper services, and preparation of provisions for the Central Supply Room.
The Wellesley Service League continued to broaden the type of services it provided over the ensuing decades. In the 1960s, League members began working with special needs students in the Wellesley Public School system, and formalized work with clients with developmental and physical disabilities through the Charles River Center. Today our work has expanded to helping in Art therapy, Vocational Support and Bingo classes at the Charles River Center, which all provide impactful services within the community. The 1970s brought new opportunities to work on the Junior High School tutorial program, and the Well Child clinics through the Board of Health. Today, we assist with the annual Flu clinics under our Special Projects Committee, a committee which responds to special community needs. We also have a very popular monthly After School Club for the younger students of the Barton Road Community providing a healthy lunch and fun activities.
By 1980 we began to help staff the Meals-On-Wheels program for the seniors. Later, a new project was initiated with the Wellesley High School Planning and Placement Center, helping students to find information on colleges and job opportunities. In 1988, our work expanded to a new project assisting with book mending and circulation at the Wellesley Free Library, and today we provide shelving services there. Our services continued to expand in the 1990s with seasonal clothing drives, work with the Food Pantry, and Senior services. In conjunction with the Wellesley Friendly Aid, we currrently provide lunch and transportation for the weekly Friendship Circle program for senior women. We also run a monthly Men’s Group speaker seminar for the senior men in our community.
In the last 10 years we have added many service partners, including Wellesley Historical Society, Ellie Fund, MassBay Community College, Tolles Parsons Center, Elizabeth Seton Residences, and the Wellesley Symphony Orchestera.
We also encourage and reward our Wellesley youth for their commitment to Service. Our annual Centennial Youth Service Award is given to a student who is graduating from Wellesley High School, or is a Wellesley resident graduating from another high school, and has demostrated outstanding service as a volunteer. This link will take you to more information and the 2025 application for the Centennial Youth Service Award. This link will take you to a list of the distinguished recipients of past Centennial Youth Service Awards.
During the summer of 2012, the League moved its headquarters to the Wellesley Friendly Aid Association building at 219 Washington Street.
Wellesley Service League provides approximately 5,000 hours of service each year through the dedication and hard work of our members. The growth in our reach of service has been consistent with the founders' original charter to provide volunteer service to cultural, educational and other charitable organizations that serve the interest of the residents of the Town of Wellesley and surrounding communities. We are proud of our ongoing contribution to the local community and are committed to adapting to its ever-changing needs in the future. Click here to view our list of Past Presidents
WELLESLEY SERVICE LEAGUE
219 WASHINGTON STREET
WELLESLEY HILLS, MA 02481
ReachWSL@gmail.com
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