Delta Women's Institute

The first Womens Institute group was formed in Ontario in 1897 under the auspices of the Farmers Institute. Womens Institutes first started in British Columbia in 1909, but the initial start of a Women's Institute in Delta in 1909 did not flourish. In the late 1920s a new group of farmers, largely from the Prairies, settled on small acreages in Delta Manor near Ladner. Among this group the Delta Womens Institute was initiated in 1933 and grew under the leadership of Elsa Henrietta Sauerberg. She remained active in the organization until 1949. The Delta Womens Institute, part of the Douglas District of British Columbia Womens Institutes, gradually declined in membership until the Delta group disbanded in 1971. The purpose of Womens Institutes is to act as an educational influence for rural women. Membership is open to all women interested in the promotion of better living for rural families, and consists of persons who as members pay an annual subscription. The Delta Womens Institute group of the 1960s, even as it was less active in the affairs of the community, continued to promote home arts, entering articles in the Pacific National Exhibition Home Arts and Horticulture competition; to provide support for women by holding regular social gatherings and meetings; and to contribute to charitable works.