BROOKINGS A womans deep dive into her familys Brookings area history inspired not only a novel but also a website and a movement.
Kristine Jensen is author of Wednesday Club a fictional account of an actual local womens group that ran from 1927-95.
It was a group of farm women who wanted to find a way to support one another and the community they lived in, Jensen said. That was a big part of it for them. It wasnt just a social club.
She said 15-25 women assembled weekly for meticulously planned gatherings.
They ran their meetings by strict parliamentary procedure, Jensen said. Theyd recite the motto, theyd have a roll call and a topic, theyd approve the minutes from the previous meeting, and they would have a program.
Jensen eventually inherited those fastidiously kept records.
When my grandmother Adele Davis passed away in 1995, I found the box, Jensen said. Just looking through it, I was like my gosh this is fascinating.
The clubs carefully preserved proceedings tell the story of rural women making connections.
Farm life can be isolating, Jensen said. But they also from the very beginning were looking for ways to give back. They would raise money to help out a local charity. If there was a woman in the community who was hospitalized, they would bring her hotdishes.
The records provide a glimpse into changing times on the prairie.
Theyd talk about current affairs, Jensen said. An example is what do you think about the civil rights movement? Or more minor things like what do you think of the new national ZIP codes?
She was surprised by some things they failed to mention.
When you wouldve thought the depression was hitting hard, I did not find that in the minutes, Jensen said. There was one example in the 30s where the women didnt have enough money in their treasury to pay a bill. They purchased flowers for someone in the hospital but didnt have quite enough to cover the cost. They were able to wait until the next month though and pay it in full then.
Jensen a marketing writer by trade hoped to turn the records into a non-fiction book.
But the minutes were missing (from some decades), and also they were pretty dry, Jensen said. So I thought it would be interesting to create a fictional story about the Wednesday club. Its set in Prairie View, South Dakota. All of the characters are fictional; and I just thought, wouldnt it be interesting to see how an outsider would view this.
Set in 1963-64, Jensens fictional account centers on a 16-year-old city girl forced to live on her grandparents farm. The girls grandmother convinces her to become the Wednesday clubs secretary, recording the groups minutes.
I liked the idea that you could have these intergenerational friendships, Jensen said. Younger women have things to learn from older women, and older women can support younger women.
While writing the book, Jensen said she learned a lot about the prairie values of 1927-95.
It was this overwhelming sense of community, of selflessness, of giving back, she said. It was being a good person, supporting your neighbors and finding common ground. Politics were very much in the background, right? People found common ground more easily.
Shes hoping to inspire women to find common ground through similar clubs today.
I became really interested in this idea of how do women form friendships and how do women find a sense of belonging? Jensen said. Similar to the women who were isolated on farms, a lot of times today women are isolated in our digital world.
To reach that digital world, Jensen created the website www.wednesday-club.com, where shes leading a movement to re-establish such clubs.
I have a whole blog on my website about setting up your own club, Jensen said. They definitely dont need to be called Wednesday clubs, meet on Wednesdays or be run by strict parliamentary procedure. But I do believe we need to create places and spaces for women.
She writes about how to make todays clubs easier to host.
For the original Wednesday club, it was a big deal, Jensen said. Everybody had to clean their houses and make these amazing foods. It was a big to-do. My advice today meet outside the home, so you dont have to worry about whether your house is clean. Maybe you meet at a coffee shop or a park?
She said its the spirit thats important.
I have a page on my website about the heart and soul of prairie life, Jensen said. This notion of helping your neighbors I really feel thats a prairie value. There is a difference here of however I can help you, I will. That is uniquely South Dakota.
Jensens novel is available in paperback or eBook through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org.
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