The purpose of this organization shall be to encourage members to render charitable services which are beneficial to the general public, with particular emphasis on children; and to cooperate with other organizations performing similar services.
This organization is organized exclusively for charitable, educational, religious, or scientific purposes within the meaning of Section 501 (C)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Send us, O God, as Thy messengers to the hearts without a home, to lives without love, to the crowds without a guide. Send us to the children whom none have blessed, to the famished whom none have visited, to the fallen whom none have lifted, to the bereaved whom none have comforted.
Kindle Thy flame on the altars of our hearts, that others may be warmed thereby; cause Thy light to shine in our souls, that others may see the way; keep our sympathies and insight ready, our wills keen, our hands quick to help others in their need.
Grant us clear vision, true judgment, with great daring as we seek to right the wrong; and so endow us with cheerful love that we may minister to the suffering and forlorn even as Thou wouldst. May the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, rest upon us and upon all our work. May He give us light to guide us, courage to support us, and love to unite us now and forever more. Amen.
Each April, ladies of the Greenville Chapter nominate women from the community based on the following criteria--a minimum age of 25, resided in Greenville area for at least one year, and have a flexible schedule that would allow the lady to attend two-thirds of the meetings and work the various projects. A brief resume is submitted to verify qualifications. The slate of nominations is presented at the May meeting, and each lady must receive a majority of the votes to be selected into membership. The total number of ladies selected each year varies as the constitution states the membership total.
In presenting HISTORY, everyone immediately thinks BORING! But far from it in this case! You cannot imagine the way Junior Auxiliary really came about. Louise Crump was elected the first President of Junior Auxiliary in 1941.
She said, “The history of Greenville Junior Auxiliary can be traced to a flu germ. While treating me one day for this disease, Dr. Cameron Montgomery suggested the formation of an organization that would help local doctors to care for underprivileged children.” So the birth began. He told Mrs. Crump of the many patients that he treated free of charge, treated and retreated without benefit of care in the home. Together, Dr. Montgomery and Mrs. Crump worked out a list of ten women to form the charter group. This group met with the health officer, Dr. John Shackelford. The meeting was held in the home of Mrs. Crump’s grandmother, the same room where just a generation before the King’s Daughters Circle had been formed!
A survey of the town was made by this group of ten women and statistics were gathered. The original ten women soon discovered that the work they were planning to do was much more than could be accomplished by ten women that had their homes to keep and their own children to care for. They met again to draw up by-laws, a constitution and set out to double their number.
The summer following the organizational meeting, members visited Junior League Headquarters in all parts of the South seeking information on how to carry on their work. By Autumn all was in readiness and the first clinic was held in the Greenville City Hall. The results of this clinic were overwhelming. There were hundreds of children in need of special care and many more needing operations and dental attention. The doctors had met and one and all decided to work with the Junior Auxiliary. A meeting had been held with the board of the King’s Daughters Hospital and all room and operating room fees were to be taken care of by the hospital as part of their charity work. Druggist too had entered the picture by giving drugs at a reduced price.
However, even with these donations, the organization needed money to operate. So fund raising projects began. The money raising became one of the major efforts of the women. These fund raising projects varied from the presentation of a yearly Follies to horse shows and an advertising program.
On November 3, 1941, 100 enthusiastic women representing organizations from ten towns in Mississippi and Arkansas met in Greenville, MS. Their purpose was to unite these ten groups, each primarily interested in child welfare in its own area, into a national organization seeking strength and inspiration through their union. As previously stated, Mrs. Louise Crump of Greenville, MS, was elected president and all ten groups represented ratified the tentative constitution and on November 14, 1941, the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries came into being.
During its first year of life, NAJA met the full force of World War II so its emphasis was shifted for a time from care of children to home defense measures and war work. In the face of total war, the slogan of the Second Annual Convention in 1942 was “Children, The Last Line of Defense”.
During the second year of existence, they managed to add two new Chapters and secure the services of a Field Secretary. The bank balance reached the astronomical figure of $721.91 in 1943; and by pooling ration coupons, the Third Annual Convention was held in Laurel with the determined convention slogan “There Must Be No Idle Women”.
By the end of the war total membership had increased to 640 members. With renewed determination, the organization returned its energies and talents once more to work with children, selecting for the 1945 convention slogan “The Way Of Peace”. Clinics were established; handicapped children were given special care; nursery schools and hospital wards were supported, and children were fed and clothed.
The design for the NAJA pin was adopted in 1945. Its crown shape signifies a mark of honor for service rendered- a reward for achievement. The five points symbolize charity, youth, health, service, and leadership - the ideals behind the work of the JuniorAuxiliaries.
By 1946 there were 13 chapters, the growing organization was incorporated and the National Bylaws printed. As the Association continued to attract new Chapters and members, it became necessary to revise the old or adopt a new constitution. The original constitution, according to legend, had been accepted under the considerable stress when the unexpected appearance of a mouse catapulted the delegates into adopting the version under consideration at the time. Obviously, a new and more studied edition was required. The chairman of the committee, Mrs. Lucia Thompson, took great care that this new constitution was not written in purple ink, as she had grown weary of hearing of the “Purple Constitution.”
In 1948, the Leland Chapter presented the national gavel at the annual convention. Expansion Committees were working hard and by 1949, there were 26 Chapters: Active, Provisional and Petitioning. This year a great debate raged concerning changing the name of the Association, but no agreement was reached so the name remained as it is today. That year the slogan was “Give Every Child the Tools to Build his Future.”
In 1950, the official slogan, “Care Today-Character Tomorrow,” submitted by Mrs. Kenneth Martin of Warren, Arkansas, was adopted. The earning capacity of the Chapters was demonstrated by the $43,000 earned during that year.
There was no convention in 1952. It was during this time that NAJA first employed a full-time Executive Secretary, set up permanent files and published the first National Handbook.
The Crownlet, a quarterly newsletter sent to each Auxiliary member, was originated in 1953. NAJA continued to grow to such an extent that it became difficult for individual Chapters to serve as hostesses for Convention and the National Association took over this responsibility.
It was in 1954 at the Biloxi, Mississippi Convention that the Chapters were divided into Regions and Regional Directors were chosen for each geographically charted Region. Regional Meetings were held in the Fall of each year.
Also in 1954, an annual Bulletin, published subsequent to Convention, began incorporating material previously unavailable to members other than officers and committee chairmen.
The Twenty-first National Convention in 1962 brought several important changes. Among the changes was the establishment of the Louise Eskrigge Crump Award and that year was presented for the first time to the Chapter with the most outstanding welfare service to a child, family or group of children.
Also the highlight of 1962 was the approval of a National Scholarship Project. The far-reaching effect of the National Scholarship Program continues to grow. By 1997 it had funded the higher education and specialized training of 325 men and women at a cost of $516,000.
The 1977 Convention voted to establish a permanent Junior Auxiliary Headquarters in Greenville, MS. As of 2006, there are 102 chapters and a total of 13,602 members. Growth of the organization is on-going.
After 65 years of dedication to service, the Junior Auxiliary still continues further the ideas of those first ten women and continue to improve the lives of our children.