Junior League: Not Just For Old Southern Ladies
I’ve mentioned a time or two (or ten) how hard it’s been attempting to make good friends in Denver. I’ve even mentioned how much harder it is to make good, close girlfriends.
The girls I’ve met since I’ve moved here have fallen in to one of three categories, a) they think I’m nice, and they’ll be super friendly when we see each other, but aside from an occasional planned group meeting never call, text, or email. Their lifestyles are about 10 years ahead of mine. b) they think I’m cool, and they think I’m an okay person, but I’ve learned that some girls just can’t or won’t invite other girls into their group easily. It’s hard to win their trust and it’s even harder to keep it as they might find any slight reason to send you packing. c) they think I’m nice and cool, they’re usually transplants themselves figuring it all out. Without a core group already formed it’s really easy to make those in-roads and forge a good, strong friendship.
Feeling a little down on myself and needing a strong support group of women, I finally took my mom’s advice and checked out the Junior League of Denver. My mom had been in Junior League while I was growing up and my time spent in National Charity League (Cotillion) was very similar. JLD is a group of women whose goals are to support volunteerism and leadership within the community. This national organization is an amazing networking tool, educational resource, and growth opportunity for its members. Because Junior League can be found in every major American city (and a lot of non-majors) it’s an organization that you can stay in, even if your job transfers you across the country.
Now I will admit that I was very skeptical at first. I’m already a member of a club of women that are all older, married, and many have kids. I didn’t want to be in a group where my basic lifestyle removed me from most conversations. After attending an information session I was pleasantly surprised to see many girls my age, many of them single, and most of them new to Denver. Score 1, Junior League. At the same time I was scoping out the Denver chapter, my sister was attempting to get in to the Tulsa chapter. I thought it would be kind of fun to go through our provisional year together so I bit the bullet and applied.
Now the Denver Junior League is much easier to join than say, the Houston one. Because the organization is still growing provisional members don’t need to be sponsored by multiple active members. The requirements are also less than if I was joining the Houston chapter. And bonus, if I ever move back home transfers in good standing are almost always accepted in to the new league.
Last weekend we had our Provisional Retreat. Here we met our advisers and our groups for the year. I was very happy to find that my group consisted of 9 young women, most in their mid- to late-twenties, and many of them were single. Also with one exception they were all transplants. My formula for finding good girl friends paid off with my grouping. Not to mention they were a complete blast to hang out with. We spend the weekend getting to know each other, sharing stories, learning about the League, and laughing. There was a lot of laughing. By the end of the retreat I knew I’d made a great decision and that I was finally going to be able to get a strong support group, something I’ve been craving for the last two years.
It’s still early on in the season, I haven’t done too much with my requirements yet, but I’m working fast, knowing that ski season will keep me occupied many weekends this winter. I’ve volunteered at our Second Time Shop, a resale boutique we run, and I’m signed up for a Read2Kids event next weekend where I get to help kids pick out books and do activities! Coming up later this month we have a Provisional Social and an event called Frosting which is a cocktail party/fundraiser. I’m really looking forward to getting involved with the Junior League, making new friends and getting to keep busy (even more than I already am). I have a feeling this is the start of something good.
