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The Student Wives Club was a club for the spouses of students at the University of Waterloo.
The club was established in 1962 by Mickey Hackney, Agnes Olive, and Colleen Grierson, who shared an interest in connecting with other wives in the campus community. Numerous students and spouses encountered a considerable financial challenge when attending university, as households often relied on a single income. As a result, students and their spouses frequently found that they could not participate in social activities like dining out or attending the theatre. The club primarily arranged social events for spouses to connect and share their experiences that aligned with their availability and budget.
Initially, the club was primarily composed of the wives of engineering students however, members hoped to recruit more wives in the arts and sciences as well as post-graduate students. Members handed out pamphlets at registration day and placed advertisements in the student handbooks.
Examples of social events held by the club include makeup demonstrations, wiener roasts, card parties as well as tutorials in millinery design and how to make inexpensive Christmas decorations.[1] Occasionally, the club invited guest speakers to talk to members about various topics such as when Dixie Guldner, family counsellor at the university, was invited to discuss sexuality in the home in 1973.[2]
In 1964, Pat Belyea was the Club President. Members were charged $1.00 in annual dues.[3] Some members of the club created a cookbook which is now held by Special Collections & Archives.
Following the fire at the School of Optometry (located in the old Waterloo post office) in 1969, the club donated $200.00 worth of children’s furniture and toys to the new waiting room for the school.[4]
The Student Wives Club was hosting events until at least 1973.[5] It is uncertain if the club remained active after that time.
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Created by NM in 2024.
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Sources
[1] Hersen, Eleanor. “Club Eases Strain of Scrimping.” Kitchener-Waterloo Record, Wednesday, September 23, 1964, p.57.
[2] “UW Billboard.” Kitchener-Waterloo Record, Saturday, September 22, 1973, p. 11. ; Dixie Ann (Milne) Guldner obituary.
[3] Hersen, Eleanor. “Club Eases Strain of Scrimping.” Kitchener-Waterloo Record, Wednesday, September 23, 1964, p.57.
[4] Kitchener-Waterloo Record, Tuesday, May 6, 1969, p. 32.
[5] “UW Billboard.” Kitchener-Waterloo Record, Saturday, September 22, 1973, p. 11.