By GARRY L. CLARK

By GARRY L. CLARK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
Members of the Boardman-Poland Junior Women's League have Christmas on their minds just about all year long.
Why? Because as soon as the group's biggest fund-raiser, "A Williamsburg Christmas," closes each year, they begin planning the next one.
A juried craft show held the weekend before Thanksgiving at Stambaugh Auditorium, the event celebrates its 23rd year this year with the theme "Visions of Sugarplums."
Proceeds from the show go toward the club's many charitable endeavors.
History
BPJWL was founded in 1979 by six local women who were committed to doing volunteer work in the community. The Canfield and Warren junior women's leagues assisted the new organization that started out with 28 charter members.
The group is affiliated with the Ohio Federation of Women's Clubs and is dedicated to helping local charities.
In addition to the Williamsburg event, BPJWL also raises funds through fashion shows, garage sales and even a Las Vegas night several years ago, according to Kim Pillin, president of the group.
She also says that the group is considering the possibility of a golf outing as another fund-raiser. "We try to help the most needy ones," Pillin says. "Members submit particular charities or their favorite charities, then we like to get a financial report on those charities. We want to make sure that the money stays locally."
Among the charities that have benefited from the league's efforts are Challenger Baseball Team, Difference Makers, Beatitude House, Children of Chernobyl, Western Reserve Chapter of Compassionate Friends, On Angels' Wings, the Youngstown Symphony Chorale Group and the BPJWL Community Special Needs.
Pillin has been a member for four years and says she first learned about the group from a story several years ago in The Vindicator. Her desire to get more involved in the community led to her joining the group.
Another member, Diane Volosin, has been with the group for 16 years. She said that while the basic premise of the group has not changed, the way people can be involved has because of the increase in working mothers.
The group meets on the first Monday of each month from September through May, usually at The Glenellen in Boardman. In addition to their fund-raising endeavors, members host a birthday party for residents of The Glenellen who are 90 and above and volunteer twice a year at the St. John's Soup Kitchen.
Provisional classes for prospective members are held in September and January. Provisional members are required to complete at least 40 hours of club service during this time.
New group
New to the organization this year is the Juniorettes, a group for young women 12 to 18. Members will do miscellaneous projects throughout the year, choosing charities to benefit from their activities. Twelve girls are involved.
Pillin said that being president of the organization requires a three-year commitment, even though the term is only one year. The person first serves as president-elect, then has her actual term as president followed by a year serving in policy and future planning.
The president also chooses a special project. Pillin's project for this year is "Teddy Buddies." Members are hand-making teddy bears to be given to the Boardman Police Department. They, in turn, give the bears to children who have been subjected to or witnessed domestic violence, have been involved in a traffic accident or have been traumatized in any other way.
As to the benefits of being a BPJWL member, Volosin said that the main thing is "being able to help a larger group of people than you would as an individual. We have more power to raise money as a group to help others."
Pillin also said that her membership has been extremely rewarding. "When we receive a thank-you back and hear the story of how we've helped somebody, it makes it all worthwhile."
clark@vindy.com
XTo recommend your club for a feature, send a brief statement about the club and the name and telephone number of a group representative to: The Vindicator: Attn.: Barb Shaffer, Society Editor, P.O. Box 780, Youngstown, Ohio 44501.