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England is as close as Magnolia's Daughters of the British Empire.
Vimy Ridge Chapter raises funds for retirement homes and local charities
Vimy Ridge was the site of a major battle in World War I. Although the name Vimy Ridge recalls a time of
conflict, that same moniker is borne proudly by a group of women who work together to help others -- the Magnolia chapter of the Daughters of the British Empire.
The D.B.E., as they call themselves, are
women of British or Commonwealth birth or ancestry, or who have married men of British or Commonwealth birth or ancestry.
Bertie Kvinge, the Vimy Ridge chapter's regent talks about the objective's of
the D.B.E. in the distinctive accent of a Londoner, even though she arrived in the United States in 1961.
D.B.E, members are constantly fundraising, she said, to support residential retirement homes, one in
each of the D.B.E.'s four districts, and to contribute to local charities such as organizations that work with battered women. "Is there anything we do that isn't a fundraiser?" Kvinge asked
Bea Manley, the Vimy Ridge chapter's vice regent, during an interview with the news.
The D.B.E. also provides a bit of' England for homesick members. "You never entirely get over it; you love
your first home," Manley said.
Marriage brought Kvinge and Manley from England to the United States. Kvinge accompanied her first husband, an Englishman raised on Bainbridge Island, who died six years after
retuning to the states. Kvinge lost her second husband, a Norwegian, two years ago. Her son lives in England with her two grandchildren.
When Manley was volunteering at a hospital in her hometown of Bristol
during World War II, she met the American who is still her husband. She arrived in the United States in 1946.
While the pair said there are many similarities between England and Seattle the climate, the
gardens - and they feel comfortable here, there are times when nothing will do but companionship with people from the same background. Kvinge and Manley agree, for example, that the British and Americans
diverge significantly when it comes to their sense of humor. "If we fell down, we probably could laugh," Manley said. "The one who fell down would laugh because she felt stupid, and the one who
was watching would laugh because it was funny. "We laugh in adversity is what I think we do. It keeps us going. It's something more than being optimistic."
Over time, the camaraderie in the D.B.E. develops into stalwart friendships.
"The members are really around when you need help," Kvinge said. She disputes any notion that the D.B.E. is
elitist. "We are anything but snooty, Kvinge said."We've 80 people from all walks of life."
Each chapter has fundraisers such as garden party lunches, an evening of theater preceded by
cocktails and followed by dessert, or concerts where the performers donate their time. Food seems to be a critical element in D.B.E. activities. "We certainly wouldn't have an event
without tea and something," Kvinge said. The "something" can be as simple as trifle or as extravagant as a Ploughman's lunch with pork pies, cheese, bread, sausage rolls, and bangers and
mash.
Kvinge points out that, because D.B.E. members contribute everything for their fundraisers, all of the money raised goes directly to their causes. Chapter members even write to or visit an
"adopted" resident of the residential retirement home in their district. In the case of Vimy Ridge, the home is a series of small cottages in Sierra Madre, Calif.
The D.B.E. was initially
established in the United States in 1909 to help support British\Americans, usually women, who were without means. Shortly, afterward, in 1911, the Magnolia chapter was organized as Washington State's first
chapter. Kvinge has been president of the national and state organizations.
The Magnolia chapter was first named for Julia W. Henshaw, a member of the Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire in
Canada. In 1918, the chapter's designation became Vimy Ridge to conform to a change in the D.B.E. bylaws requiring that all chapters have a historical name.
There are 17 chapters in Washington
State. Kvinge and Manley said new members are always welcome.
For more information about Vimy Ridge Chapter or the DBE click here.
By Maggie Larrick
Queen Anne/Magnolia News, August 8, 2001
used with permission
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