St. Helena 20-30 Club Builds Bus Stops 1965

I’ve seen photos and articles of several clubs building shelters. Clubs like Napa, Santa Rosa, Coronado, and here is one from St Helena in 1965. Have you participated in building shelters, or know if your club did this type of project in the past?

20-30 Club to Build Bus Stop Shelters

As school begins the members of the Active 20-30 are busily constructing as many bus stop shelters as the club treasury will allow, before the rainy season begins. Due to the overwhelming response of parents requesting shelters, there are many more needed.

The club’s motto is “Youth to serve must be served.” In an effort to serve all the youth of the school district, if possible, the club will give away an R.C.A. Color T.V. Oct. 29 at Carpy Field during the half-time of the St. Helena vs. Willits football game, profits going toward additional shelters. “Help us to help your children,” by obtaining your tickets for the television at any of the home games or from any 20-30 member. Anyone requesting a shelter may write to St. Helena Active 20-30, P.O. Box 65, St. Helena.

“20-30 Club to Build Bus Stop”, The St. Helena Star, 16 September 1965, p 2, Newspapers.com. Accessed 25 August 2021.

Photo Caption: St. Helena Active 20-30 Club is engaged in the project of rebuilding or in some case renovating the old school bus shelters once provided by the earlier club. A color TV will be awarded as a prize this fall. Shown above in Taylor Electric is Marshall Sears buying the first ticket from John Mathis, treasurer of the 20-30 Club with Ralph Turnidge looking on. Proceeds will go to help finance the shelter project.
The other pictures show a shelter which can be salvaged, and one which is simply done for. Working on the project when the pictures were taken were Ray Torres, Ernies Butala, Bob Stemler, Don Martin, Leroy Cox and Ralph Duer. In the bottom picture Ralph Turnidge’s sons help spray the new type shelter the club is building. Since the project started the club has had many requests for shelters, and has to raise money by awarding the color TV set.

20-30 Women & Fashion

The women auxiliary clubs and some current clubs have held fashion shows through the years. They have offered these shows as part of the women’s events during conventions, or as part of fundraising events that the men’s clubs were hosting, or as their own events.

“Balcony Scene at Brookdale lodge yesterday during the 20-30 Anns’ fashion show-luncheon features Mrs. William Martine modeling a pink and white checked tissue gingham frock from Rittenhouse’s. Interested spectators are (l-r) Mesdames Dolly Thornton of the Albuquerque, N. Mex., “Thunderbirds,” Dina Madison, Nancy Arno and Opel Napolitano of the Coronado “Beachcombers.” Nearly 100 of the 20-30 convention delegates’ wives attended the mid-day event, arranged for their entertainment by the Santa Cruz 20-30 Anns headed by Mrs. Dick Hackbarth. Miss Susan Bronson, reigning Miss California, was a special guest, accompanied by her mother, Mrs. Ray Bronson of San Lorenzo. Tomorrow the 20-30 wives are invited on a sightseeing bus tour and in the evening will return to Brookdale lodge with their husbands for the closing installation of officers and dinner-dance beginning at 7 o’clock.”

“20-30 Anns Looks At Fashion”. Santa Cruz Sentinel, 23 June 1960, Newspapers.com. Accessed 21 July 2021.

Snooping Into Active 20-30’s Past?

I LOVE history, especially when I can find a more personal connection to it. Knowing that my grandparents and parents were members of Sacramento #1, made me curious to learn more about this organization’s past.

Here are two articles that I found had some interesting information, the first is an article the day after the very first official meeting of the 20-30 club and the second one mentions the 50th anniversary celebration where there was an explanation of the hourglass symbol (interesting to note that things haven’t changed much with a social hour, followed by a dinner where likely there were speeches and announcements, followed by dancing).  I might be the only one that’s jumping for joy at this find but it is exciting to be able to solve mysteries of the past and learn how things came about and what happened. Enjoy!

Organization of 20-30 Club is Completed

Final organization of the 20-30 Club, composed of men between the ages of 20 and 30 years engaged in all lines of work, yesterday was completed at a meeting held at the chamber of commerce, when officers were elected and constitution and by-laws were approved.

The officers of the club are: Paul Claiborne, president; A.B. Frank, vice president; Carroll Couture, second vice president; C.J. McBride, secretary; Joe Rohl, treasurer, Jack Foale, sergeant at arms; directors, E. Casey, R. Cohen, Homer Dunn, R.Kirby, and Clarence Breuner.

The next meeting of the club will be held December 28th at 8 p.m. at the chamber of commerce.

A feature of the program yesterday was the appearance of Verne Vernill, female impersonator, who sang several songs.

 Sacramento Union, 20 Dec. 1922:  22.

20-30 Club Was Born In Sacramento

“Twenty-Thirty is Fifty” is the theme of a dinner dance which will be held Saturday in the Woodlake Inn in observance of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the 20-30 club.

More than 500 members and former members and their wives will be in attendance at the affair, which will start with a 6 p.m. social hour followed by dinner and dancing.

Toasts and messages of welcome will be offered by David K. Murphy, president of the club; J. Edward Cain, president in 1927, and Robert Baumgart, who held the office in 1953.

Gene Pendergast is chairman of arrangements.

It was in 1922 that 20-30 Club, long an international organization, had its beginnings. The late Paul Claiborne conceived the idea of forming a service club with a membership that would consist only of young men and with goals directed toward helping the youth of the community – two needs that were not being filled at the time by senior service clubs in the Sacramento area.

Along with Earle G. Casey, Alfred B Franke, Charles G McBride and Marshall A Page, Claiborne took his idea to Mitchel Nathan, then president of the Sacramento Chamber of Commerce.

The first meeting was held Dec. 19 and the hourglass, a symbol of the passage of youth, was adopted as the emblem.

Soon after the Sacramento club had established itself, 20-30 began to expand into new areas. Clubs were formed in San Bernardino, San Francisco, Hayward, Tracy, and Oakland.

By 1941 charters were granted to clubs from California to Indiana, from Washington to New Mexico. In 1946, with the chartering of a club in Juarez, Mexico, 20-30 became an international organization and at a “victory” Convention, the official name of the association of 20-30 Clubs was changed to 20-30 International and the age limit advanced to 35.

In the years to follow, expansion began in the far west and Southwest. Clubs also spread through Mexico and into all the Central American countries and parts of South America.

Nineteen Twenty-Two was also the birth date of another service club. Some 700 miles of Sacramento, in Aberdeen, Wash., another group of young men had hit upon Claibornes’ idea and formed an organization which they named “Active”. Throughout the years of expansion both 20-30 and Active were drawn along similar paths. In 1959 President Norm Morrison of 20-30 International and President Ken Helling of Active International proposed that the two almost-identical clubs should merge. On August 1, 1960, Active and 20-30 became known as Active 20-30 International.

Throughout its fifty years of service to the community and country, 20-30 members (or more recently Active 20-30 members) have provided aid and service to youth and provided a training ground for young businessmen.

Sacramento Bee, 26 Nov. 1972:  W-1+.