“As I drove away from the Thursday Club today, I felt blessed by the drive thru reception – the gifts of the lovingly-made pink camellia masks, the beautiful homemade cookies, the bubbly – all of it tied in precious pink bows. Most of all, I was delighted seeing all of your sweet faces. I missed the connectivity with everyone!”

These were the words of Thursday Club member Lee Johnson as she left the historic La Cañada Thursday Club on Sunday, Sept. 27. Johnson was one of several Club members who took part in a drive thru reception that allowed members to interact while observing social distancing.

The event was the dream of board member Jody Platisa. It came to life with the help of fellow board members who wanted to connect Thursday Club members during COVID-19. Platisa had a dream for members to safely be in touch with each other and the response to the drive thru reception was enthusiastic and exciting.

Club members, including the board, will continue to meet via Zoom until further notice and until the Club can be reopened for in-person events. But the drive thru reception provided a magical pause to the pandemic and Club members expressed great satisfaction.

The La Cañada Thursday Club has been in La Cañada since 1912 and has a rich history of combining old and new, maintaining traditions while adding new ideas, like connecting to members via Zoom. Julie Milbrodt, a 1987 debutante, attended the drive thru reception as a Thursday Club member and a debutante mom to her daughter Jenna who will be a 2021 debutante. Milbrodt brings new energy to the Club as do many debutante moms. In fact, the current board has four mothers of debutantes from the 2018 debutante class.

The Thursday Club has shown that, come rain or shine, a national pandemic or not, the Club will connect with its members now and for the next 100 years ahead. Young debutantes will return with their daughters – a wonderful tradition that in some ways is truly magical.

For interest in the Thursday Club, or to rent the parking lot for an event during COVID-19 or beyond, log onto the website www.lacanadathursdayClub.org.

Submitted by
Susan RENDINA

  Susan RENDINA