1928 - Annual Convention

              44 A L B E R T A W O M E N ' S I N S T I T U T ES
The Department of Health has taken over all the health and nursing
lectures and short courses. Any applications for this work coming to this
branch are forwarded to Miss Clark, Superintendent of Nurses. Every effort
is made to co- operate with other departments and thus avoid overlapping.
It is hoped that i n the future the branch may be able, along w i t h pro­v
i n c i a l organizations, to stimulate an interest m Canadian handicrafts— that
is, in articles made i n Canada from material grown and prepared here, i. e., a
knitted shawl, the wool sheared from Canadian sheep, cleaned, carded, spun
and knitted in a Canadian home would constitute a Canadian handicraft
shawl. Flax grown i n Canada and prepared and woven into l i n e n would be
handicraft linen. If you want to go further and dye this linen, you would
grow the plants to give you the colour you need and have the natural dyes.
1 understand that fancy work in the ordinary accepted sense would not
constitute a handicraft article according to a section of the Guild constitu­tion,
which says: " A branch of the Guild must not sell anything but hand­work
made m Canada at its shop or exhibition."
Loan Collection, etc.
The woik of the l i b r a r y goes on steadily, continuing the service it has
always rendered and widening its scope. During 1927, 3,244 reference
books and folders were sent out and 75 libraries weie in circulation. The
demand is on the increase for plays, information and entertainments and
suggestions for community and social life development. In some districts
you will find local talent well developed and improving each year.
Last year at your convention leaflets on " L i n k s of E m p i r e " were dis­tributed.
A few days ago Lady Apsley made a further appeal for the
formation of more links. In the interest of this movement a radio address
was given by a member of our staff; this addiess was printed m f u l l m the
Empire Record. Recently Mrs. Bowling has wntten asking for the ' teen
age correspondents, as boys and girls i n A u s t r a l i a want to exchange letters
with boys and girls m Canada.
Committee on Immigration
The work of welcoming the newcomer has been carried out in A l b e r t a,
m some cases through a c e n t i a l committee, m othei cases by one organization
or person. The provincial committee feels deeply grateful to organizations
and individuals who have given of their time and contributed so l i b e r a l ly
m work and personal service Those who have been helped and welcomed
appreciate your assistance, and in a good many cases show their gratitude
by helping m the work once they have got settled themselves.
The Departments of Health and A g r i c u l t u r e offeied to provide t r a i n i ng
for emergency home helpeis at one of the schools of a g r i c u l t u i e i f a suffi­cient
number of suitable applicants came forward for this training. The
number applying did not j u s t i f y the putting on of this course.
As you a l l know, the branch takes a new name and hopes to develop on a
wider basis after the 1st of July. The services of the A l b e r t a Women's
Bureau will be available to organizations on a non- sectarian and non­partisan
basis. It is hoped that distucts whose residents are interested in
the work done by our branch, and who wish to receive help w i l l form
bureau committees, these committees to be composed of members or organiz­ations
wanting short course work, this central committee being the means
of communication w i t h the Department.
There is an organization which you sometimes see referred to in the
press. It is called " Toe H"— that was the name given by the A r m y Signallers
to Talbot House during the war. This organization does not compete with
existing institutions, but seeks to provide them with workers. The Women's
Home Bureau Service branch is l i k e this great society, non- partisan and non-sectarian.
It has endeavored to give service to those asking for assistance,
and we can honestly say that the spirit animating the work has been good.
I thmk we can claim, at least i n part, to have kept the pledge so b e a u t i f u l ly
expressed m the " Toe H " , " F o u r points of the compass," which pledges its
members " to think f a i r l y , love widely, b u i l d bravely and spread the gospel
without preaching i t ."