The history of the AWCA is amazing and interesting.  The women that decided to put this club together probably didn't realize the wonderful things they would do and the impact they would have for women here today.

The Late 1920s: Our Founders

In 1927,two young American women in Amsterdam, Helena Goldschmidt and Carolyn Korthals Altes, decided with three of their friends, Florence Hartog, Mama Klatte and Muriel Hamers, to form a club. After some discussion, they asked four others to join them: Edna Perk, Dorothy Beenhouwer, Mrs. Hulswit and Mrs. Barjones (the Portuguese consul's wife).

They chose the name of "Current Events Club," set an initiation fee of 85 cents, annual dues of Dfl.2,50 and created an American home away from home. Florence Hartog was the first president. During their informal biweekly teas at members' homes, they discussed current events, exchanged English books and magazines and took turns giving ten-minute talks on art, travel and music. The Club flourished and expanded. In 1928 Mrs. Charles Hoover, wife of the first U.S. Consul General, became the first honorary president. That year saw the drafting of a constitution and by-laws. The Current Events Club of the middle 1930s was, as at its beginning, a group of unusually capable and talented women who directed their energy toward well-balanced social, intellectual and cultural pursuits. At this time, the idea of culture shock was not a public concept, but it certainly must have been a fact of life to the early American settlers here. In 1937, the Club had its first member whose husband was also American, giving her fewer ties to Holland. In addition to regulars, the Club was augmented temporarily by American guests staying at the Amstel Hotel and by a number of refugee women of American nationality who were waiting in the hotel for papers.

The War Years:  1940s

1940 brought the beginning of a black period for all of Western Europe. Since the invasion of Poland in 1939, American wives had been faced with a dilemma: to stay abroad where war was certain to come, or to return to the United States, leaving a Dutch husband behind.

Those who stayed could not have envisioned what was ahead. In the early days of the occupation, the first concern of the Club was for those most vulnerable,the Jewish members. Husbands were being imprisoned, sons were sent to work in Germany and children went out on dangerous missions to deliver underground newspapers. Those who were not detained as prisoners or hostages lived in fear, so that every home had a hiding place for its men. People left windows and skylights open so that fugitives could escape, either from or to their homes.

Hardship and uncertainty had come for everyone. In addition to fear and worry, physical discomfort became excruciating. There were increasing scarcities of food, fuel, electricity and transportation; no private telephones or radios; at the worst, even water was rationed to two buckets a day. People were reduced to eating flower bulbs. At night, clandestine excursions were made to chop down trees for fuel. Going to bed at sundown was a common way of keeping warm and among those who braved the cold to stay up, one of the group pedaled a stationary bicycle in the living room to provide light from its dynamo. Women cut up old tablecloths for diapers and nightgowns for children. A patient was taken to the hospital by sled because there were no taxis.

This picture of the anxieties and hardships of the war years comes from our own early members. It is their story. What they don't talk about is their own courage and endurance which kept them going. During these years, some twenty members attended meetings and the Club was a veritable lifeline which they maintained with difficulty and risk. In 1943, an American B-17 with a crew of ten crashed near the village of Opijnen. The eight who died were buried by the villagers, who have been taking care of their graves ever since. AWCA members Virginia Delgado and Betty van Maanen were instrumental in organizing annual memorial services for the eight American airmen. When liberation finally came, it was bittersweet for those whose families who would never return. By 1945, the Netherlands was devastated, and even five years after the end of the war, the development of Western Europe was a quarter of a century behind that of the United States. In the difficult postwar period, Club members continued to hold meetings now at the home of the Consul General.

The 1950s and 1960s

In the Club year 1957-'58, the meetings regularly included programs presented by guest speakers and occasionally by members. Books, which had always been close to the hearts of AWCA members, were increasingly available, and donations swelled the library. By 1960, mimeographed sheets (the beginning of The Bulletin) were being sent to members to acquaint them with the Club agenda, and informal coffee get-togethers, which were now occurring quite regularly in the Haarlem and 't Gooi areas. To state that membership had reached 206 in 1972 leaves much unsaid. There was considerable physical work to be accomplished: publishing the Bulletin, transporting all the library books which were now being privately housed and brought to and from meetings by the Library Chairman, and organizing the cumbersome collection of office supplies. After a thorough search, Onze Kamer was acquired in Buitenverldert. For Dfl.800 per year we had a ground floor room, hall and toilet. Onze Kamer provided a much-needed shelter for our possessions.

The 1970s 1980s and 1990s

By 1973, the duties of the Executive and Governing Board members had become so numerous that a Job Description Committee was called into being. In 1974, the first Parliamentarian was installed with Robert's Rules of Order instituted at meetings.  Baby-sitting was being provided at General Meetings. In 1977, the first college scholarship was awarded by the Club to the son of one of its members.   In November 1985, as a tribute to Carolyn Korthals Altes, the scholarship was renamed the Carolyn Korthals Altes Scholarship/Achievement Award. 1978 saw the beginning of the Amstelveen area. Established members met to discuss ideas for social programs which led to flourishing activities in that area. In the same year, Associate members were given the right to vote, to hold certain offices and to continue beyond the former three-year limit. The American Women's Club of Amsterdam has celebrated its Golden Anniversary, the United States Bicentennial and 200 years of Dutch-American diplomatic friendship. It has grown from an intimate group of friends into an institution of over 500 women with a Dutch charter, governed by parliamentary procedure and associated with an International Federation. Its first simple walking tour of Leiden has been succeeded by many more throughout Holland, extending to a wide range of travel throughout Europe, to the Near and Far East, Africa and America. Philanthropy has expanded from individual aid and modest contributions to substantial donations for scholarship, support of a foster child, UNICEF, Associations for the Handicapped and Music 200, among others.  Educational and adjustment classes have been expanded, and the spectrum of the Club's social activities stretches with the years. The character of the Club has changed from an almost permanent membership to one which is in greater part transient. But with all the complexities of Club government and amplification of its activities, the character and needs of its people has not changed.& They continue to value the purpose for which the Club was formed: to show great support for one another, to take full advantage of the opportunity of being in the Netherlands, and to live comfortably and happily with our neighbors.