RWC meets on the first Thursday of the month, from September through June, except January. Most meetings are held in the community building of the Ballard Green apartment complex on Gilbert Street. Meetings include social time, a guest speaker or activity, and club business. We have evening meetings in September, October, November, April, and May. Meetings in December, February, March, and June are held during the day to accommodate our members’ varying schedules. In December and June, we hold our holiday and spring club luncheons.

Members can get involved with any project, activity, or committee that interests them. Committee focus areas include: Arts & Crafts, Education, Gardening & Conservation, International Outreach, Public Issues, and more! Each committee is also responsible for “hosting” one meeting per year by finding a relevant speaker and providing refreshments.

Members make small pillows for members of the surrounding community facing surgery for cancer. What started as a project specifically for women with breast cancer has now expanded to include both women and men. Participants start by sewing the pillows at home. Then the club gathers for a “stuffing party” to finish the project together. Pillows are donated to the Praxair Cancer Center at Danbury Hospital. Often, the club receives letters of gratitude from recipients.

We host two parties each year for the residents of Ballard Green to thank them for use of their community building for our meetings. Residents enjoy social interaction, a seasonal craft, and refreshments donated and prepared by club members. Usually held in fall and spring, the events are a great way for us to connect with members of our community!

RWC members share their talents to help beautify Ridgefield. Activities include seasonal gardening and planting for Ballard Green and Adopt-a-Road to clean up litter from roadsides in town.

Every year, RWC awards a college scholarship to an RHS senior who shows a commitment to academics and community service. RHS seniors submit applications for our Education Committee to review and choose the recipient.

At RWC, community connections are important! That’s why we started the Are You OK program. Also known as RUOK?, committee members place daily calls to elderly or shut-in Ridgefielders who sign up for the service as a way to check in and see if they need anything. If a resident can’t be reached, emergency services are contacted for a wellness check.

To support the tiniest members of the New York region, RWC members knit or crochet blankets to cover the isolettes in the NICU at a New York City’s Montefiore hospital. The blankets help shield the babies’ eyes from the bright lights. When the babies go home, parents take the blankets as a gift.

RWC members volunteer with Laundry Love, a national organization dedicated to providing “love, dignity, and detergent” for people in need. Our members volunteer for shifts at the White Street Wash in Danbury, where they provide pre-paid laundry cards, detergent, and camaraderie for low/no-income families. Laundry Love reminds us all how something as simple as clean laundry can brighten someone’s day.

RWC is committed to helping members of our community through donations of needed supplies. Among other things, we regularly hold collections for the Ballard Green Food Pantry and RVNA’s program for new mothers.

RWC participates in several seasonal drives, including the annual Evelyn C. Peeler Children’s Holiday Gift Fund. This project helps ensure that Ridgefield children in need experience the joy of opening gifts during the holidays. Club members also contribute to holiday drives at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility to benefit the children of incarcerated mothers.

In appreciation of the dedication of our police officers and fire/rescue workers, members of the club provide food and treats to the Ridgefield Police and Fire Departments every month. It’s a small thing we enjoy doing to say thank you for their hard work in keeping our community safe.

RWC members love supporting Ridgefield and our surrounding communities. Some of our other recent service projects include making chutney for the Keeler Tavern’s annual chutney sale at Thanksgiving; packing food donations at Filling in the Blanks, a Norwalk non-profit dedicated to fighting children’s food insecurity; knitting squares for Warm Up America to be made into blankets for the homeless; and writing holiday cards and letters to residents at the Veterans Home and Hospital in Rocky Hill, CT.

RWC has a range of social activities for members to be involved in, including a monthly book club, luncheons, and trips to local areas of interest. The club recently toured The Hickories Farm in Ridgefield to learn about their efforts to help repopulate our area with indigenous plants. We’re always looking for new places to explore!

The club has a few traditional celebrations every year, including a fall craft meeting where we make holiday crafts; a holiday luncheon in December; a year-end luncheon in June; and initiation ceremonies for all new members throughout the year.