OUR HISTORY – CFUW North Vancouver formed in 1980 when the CFUW West Vancouver Club outgrew available meeting space. From the original 20 members the club grew to over 100 in the 1990s, with 15 + Interest Groups, with young moms and tots to elderly members. Membership is about 45 today with 9 Interest Groups.
Monthly speakers covering a wide range of topics have always been a strong attraction to both bring in the community and keep members and others up-to-date. With a strong focus on education and equality for women, CFUW NV’s many community outreach forums reach wide, educating and advocating for a healthy, fair and caring community. For instance, a preventing violence against women Forum in 1992 became the 10-year North Shore-wide Together Against Violence campaign each November. The club supports financial academic awards programs at all North Vancouver Secondary Schools through gaming grants, and endowments at Cap University, SFU, BCIT and UBC.
CFUW as a national organization was formed in 1919 as was the international organization, then known as the International Federation of University Women (IFUW), now Graduate Women International (GWI). You can find out more about our club history here, about the history of CFUW National here, and about GWI (IFUW) here.
For a deeper look at the history of CFUW you might want to read “Our 100 Years” by Dianne Dodds.
Partnerships
West Vancouver – CFUW North Vancouver has a close and collegial relationship with CFUW West Vancouver that dates back to 1980 when the North Vancouver club was formed because West Vancouver became too large to fit in most available local meeting spaces. Several members from West Van were among the founding members of the North Vancouver club and to this day there are always several members who belong to both clubs. The clubs also share 3 joint interest groups: Creative Reflective Memoir Writing, International Studies and Community Issues. The two clubs have also collaborated on various events such as hosting the CFUW BC Council AGM in 2014 and a number of public forums. Both clubs routinely invite each other to hear their speakers and with the use of online platforms for meetings this has become even easier to do.