New categories have been added to this year's Women's Institute Handcrafts and Arts Show at the upcoming Provincial Exhibition. The W.I. display, organized and run by volunteers, will be open to the public August 11-16. The exhibit is located on the second floor of the Charlottetown Civic Centre during Provincial Exhibition and Old Home Week set for August 8-16.
This year's Prince Edward Island Women's Institute show features a range of new categories. Additions include Norwegian thread work, ladies or men's two-piece suits, nursery or child's room rugs, special event rugs, group rugs and shaded, hooked rugs. Other new categories include light and dark fruit cake without icing; strawberry and apple jelly, table stock potatoes and wild flower baskets arranged by youth up to 14 years.
The Women's Institute receives about 1,300 entries each year for its Provincial Exhibition Handcrafts and Arts Show. Entries are received from the public for various sections ranging from quilting, knitting, sewing and rug hooking to photography, art, food, vegetables and flower arranging. Entry deadline was July 18.
This year's new categories resulted from a review of last year's show. Each fall, following the Provincial Exhibition, W.I. volunteers analyse the volume of entries received for each show category. Categories may be dropped or new ones added in response to entrants' interests. The changes are reflected by W.I. volunteers who update the prize-list booklet before its distribution each December to 140 Island branches. The volunteers also spend time to secure prize sponsorships from individuals and companies.
Changes to W.I.'s prize-list booklet is accompanied by revisions to score and judge's sheets. As each Provincial Exhibition show draws closer, W.I. preparations increase to include such activities as medal ordering, arranging show judges, daily demonstrations and securing volunteers to supervise the event.
The Handcraft and Arts Show is just one of many activities of the provincial Women's Institute. Approximately 2,000 W.I. members in 18 Island districts are involved in local community activities. In addition to its local branches, W.I. boasts an 18-member provincial board which oversees projects affecting the Island. Province-wide projects such as the annual Roadside Clean-up help make the Island's roadways more attractive for Islanders and tourists.
Buy ... PEI, another provincial W.I. project, involves year-round, in-store demonstrations of Island primary-resource products. The W.I. project includes Buy ... PEI stickers and channel strips for product identification and promotion in Island gift baskets. Retail stores involved in Buy ... PEI campaign include Sobeys, IGA, Save-Easy, Co-op and Atlantic Superstore.
One of W.I.'s latest provincial projects involve raising money for a stereotactic mammography machine. In just a few months, more than $126,000 has been raised for the unit which will be located at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown. The range of province-wide and local community projects demonstrate the dedication of W.I. members. Indeed, Prince Edward Island has one of the largest W.I. memberships in Canada, ranking second only to Ontario. Possible reasons for the large membership are Islander's heightened sense of community values combined with an awareness of helping others. Distances on Prince Edward Island are also shorter -- a big organizational advantage for holding meetings and other events.
In addition to its Island presence, W.I. has branches located in every Canadian province. Women's Institute is also a member of the Associated Country Women of the World with a total membership of 9-million people in 70 countries. In England, alone, more than 9,000 branches currently operate.
Women's Institute was founded in 1897 by Adelaide Hunter Hoodless at Stoney Creek, Ontario. The organization recently celebrated its first 100 years of operation at a convention in Hamilton, Ontario with women attending from around the world. The theme of the convention was "Indebted to the Past, Committed to the Future."