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SOROSIS of Orlando Sorosis - Latin soror: sister |
THE COLLECT
Keep us, O God, from pettiness;
let us be large in thought, in word, in deed.
Let us be done with fault-finding
and leave off self-seeking.
May we put away all pretense
and meet each other face to face,
without self-pity and without prejudice.
May we never be hasty in judgment
and always generous.
Let us take time for all things;
make us grow calm, serene, gentle.
Teach us to put into action our better impulses, straight forward and unafraid.
Grant that we may realize it is the little things that create differences;
that in the big things of life we are at one.
And may we strive to touch and to know the great, common woman’s heart of us all, and, O Lord God, let us forget not to be kind.
-- Miss Mary Stewart
The collect was written as a personal prayer by Mary Stewart in 1904. She was just out of college and was entering her first job as a high school principal.
The first printing was in an obscure paragraph in Delineator magazine. A printer in Longmont, Colorado later made copies for a local federated club.
The first organization to use the Collect or to print it in its yearbook was the General Federation of Women's Clubs. It has since been reprinted in many forms, in many lands. The Collect has also been set to music.
Mary Stewart said she offered the prayer for publication as a club woman's Collect because she felt "women working together for large ends was something new,"
The Collect was not intended to be a creed. Every line of it is a petition, a prayer that is, a Collect.
A detailed history of Mary Stewart and the Collect is available from the General Federation of Women's Clubs Headquarters, 1734 N Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20036.
| President | Susan Barco |
| 1st Vice President |
Judy O'Neill |
| 2nd Vice President |
Jan Stout |
| Secretary |
Ethel Foshee |
| Treasurer | Linda Erd |
| Assistant Treasurer |
Lorita Portis |
| Ways and Means |
Peggy Kreps |
| National Organization Sorosis of Orlando is a member of the The General Federation of Women's Clubs (GFWC), an international women's organization dedicated to community improvement by enhancing the lives of others through volunteer service.
In all 50 states and more than a dozen countries, GFWC members work locally to create global change.
GFWC's roots can be traced back to 1868 when Jane Cunningham Croly
(1829-1901), a professional New York journalist who wrote under the pen
name of Jennie June, attempted to attend a dinner at an all-male press
club honoring British novelist Charles Dickens. Croly was denied
admittance based upon her gender, and, in response, she formed a club
for women. She chose the name Sorosis, a Greek word meaning "an
aggregation; a sweet flavor of many fruits."
Here is a link to GFWC website. |
| State Organization GFWC is organized onto State Federations. We are in District 7. With over 100 years of service to the communities of Florida, GFWC Florida holds a cherished position in the history of the state. Women of Florida have cared for the sick; hugged the lonely; fed the hungry; read to the children; built playgrounds; saved beaches; cleaned up landscapes; planted trees; built libraries; dressed up in costumes; built libraries; made bears; informed the public of WHALE; learned of health issues; encourage one another all the while having a great time and feeling good about being of service. Here is a link to GFWC Florida website. |