1939-1940

• Premature Nursery donated to Saginaw General Hospital, supporting infant care and advance health care in the community.
• Hosted the 2nd Annual Art Exhibit, displaying the realistic school of Americal Paining along with some examples of the Colonial Era.
• The Children’s Theatre hit the road with its first traveling production, The Indian Captive, bringing live performances to a wider youth audience.
• An Advisory Council was organized for the Children’s Theatre to clarify the aims of this project, gain public support, and receive and address feedback and criticisms.
• Relocated the Thrift Shop to 307 Court St. after a fire, ensuring uninterrupted service and continued community support.
• A Thanksgiving Ball was held at the Masonic Temple.
• The Garden Club donated 50 flowering crab trees to the city to be planted on Ojibway Island.

1940-1941

• Host the 3rd Annual Art Exhibit, focused on children as the central theme, with scheduled viewings for all students from 5th grade through high school.
• The Children’s Theatre toured its 2nd trouping production, The Stay-at-Home Rebel, to approximately 6,000 students in grades 3–6.
• Successfully transitioned the Handley School project to community leadership, ensuring its sustainability.
• Relocated the Thrift Shop to a new home on the East Side at 221 Federal Street, maintaining a vital source of community support.
• Hosted a Community Toy Shop at the Chase Building, where parents from families in need could personally choose new Christmas gifts for their children.  The initiative provided toys for over 600 children.
• Annual Thanksgiving Ball was held at the Masonic Temple.

1941-1942

• Presented the 4th Annual Art Exhibit, continuing the League’s mission of promoting the arts.
• The Children’s Theatre launched its 3rd trouping production, Yankee Doodle’s Guests.
• Investigated the need for a Central Volunteer Bureau to support community agencies.
• Introduced a Reorientation Course to help members adapt to the new needs of their evolving roles.
• Thanksgiving Ball held at the Masonic Temple, remaining a social highlight.
• Launched a Social Welfare and Education Program in collaboration with the Association of Junior Leagues of America and the Council of Social Agencies.  This program offered members and interested volunteers lectures and discussion sessions focused on:
  • Training in social welfare work,
  • Insight into the roles and functions of local agencies,
  • Role-specific volunteer preparation.

1942-1943

• Hosted the 5th Annual Art Exhibit, attended by over 2,600 schoolchildren in the first 10 days!
• The Children’s Theatre presented its 4th trouping production, The Cupboard is Bare.
• Embracing new media, launched the 1st Children’s Radio Series, Up and Down the Scales, which was transcribed for wider distribution.
• Established a Community Radio Service to broaden educational outreach through the airwaves.
• Contributed to the continued support of the First Ward Community Center.
• Enrolled all members in the U.S. Citizens Service Corps and U.S. Citizens Defense Corps, as advised by the Association of Junior Leagues of America (AJLA) to offer volunteer service in war agencies and supporting essential community services.
• Voted to cancel the annual Thanksgiving Ball to focus fully on wartime service efforts.

1943-1944

• Presented the 6th Annual Art Exhibit, Art of the Armed Forces, at the Garber-Buick showroom showcasing nearly 100 oil paintings, water colors and drawings submitted to a Life Magazine contest open to service men.
• The Children’s Theatre staged its 5th trouping production, The Mournful Bear, bringing live performances into the community.
• Launched the 2nd Children’s Radio Series, The Adventures of Young Douglas, performed live.
• The Thrift Shop relocated to a new site at Jarvis Yawkey Court.
• Established the Junior League Prize for the Annual Woman’s Club Art Exhibit, supporting and recognizing local artistic talent.

1944-1945

• Presented the 7th Annual Art Exhibit, American Painting of Today, circulated by the American Federation of the Arts, showcasing contemporary American artwork.
  • Included a special feature: What is Modern Painting, a color slide series from by the Museum of Modern Art, introducing students and the general public to modern painting styles, including realism, impressionism, romanticism and fantasy.
  • Additionally, League representatives joined the Children’s Committee of Saginaw Radio Council, collaborating with local organizations including Pit and Balcony, the City and Country Parent-Teacher Councils, the Parochial Schools and the YWCA to develop an American Painters of Today series – 5 dramatizations on the lives and works of 5 artists whose works were featured in the art exhibit.
• Circulated educational art exhibits in local schools:
  • An exhibit featuring Modern Architecture and Eight Paintings for Children, both provided by the Museum of Modern Art.
• The Children’s Theatre produced its 6th trouping production, Ben and Me, in partnership with Arthur Hill High School dramatic classes, performed for 1st through 4th grade students across city schools.  A special performance of The Adventures of Johnny Appleseed, a narrative ballet featured Edwin Strawbridge and his troupe.
• The 3rd Children’s Radio Series expanded radio programming with two series broadcasted over WSAM during the Saginaw Radio Council’s Adventures for Youth hour:
  • Books Bring Adventures, broadcast by transcription, and
  • A live adaptation of The Yearling.
• Donated a children’s oxygen tent to Saginaw General Hospital, enhancing pediatric care.
• Made a contribution to the First Ward Community Service for construction of a new center, using two repurposed NYA dormitories.
• Hosted the first Tri-City Junior League Conference, bringing together League members from across the region.
• Celebrated the 10-year Anniversary of the League’s founding.

1945-1946

• Hosted the 8th annual art exhibit featuring:
  • 25 Contemporary Watercolors from the Whitney Museum of Modern Arts,
  • 27 Oils from the Pennsylvania Academy’s 140th annual exhibition (circulated by the American Federation of Fine Arts),
  • Painters of American, 1670-1945, a slide series from the Museum of Modern Arts which was also shown in public elementary and high schools throughout the city.
  • Again, the Adventures for Youth hour featured 5 dramatizations on the lives and works of 5 artists whose works were featured in the art exhibit.
• The Children’s Theatre produced its first puppet trouping production, The Story of Mrs. Tubbs Presented to 4,2000 school children during 50 performances at 23 schools!
• The 4th Children’s Radio Series Books Bring Adventure, based on well-known children’s books, was presented for the Adventures for Youth hour.
• Presented plans to the Board of Education to start a permanent Kodachrome slide collection, with plans to establish an ongoing art library purchasing colored slides annually from renowned museums.
• Provided equipment and materials for the handicapped class at Handley School.
• Gave a significant contribution to the Emergency Food Collection, to assist in addressing community needs

1946-1947

• Hosted the 9th annual art exhibit featuring 3 sets of prints – animals, seascapes, and portraits, from the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art, embracing a wide variety of periods and techniques for the cultural benefit of the community.
• Donated Kodachrome slides and a projector to County Schools, with members delivering presentations in both City and County classrooms.
• The Children’s Theatre continued to thrive with the puppet production of The Golden Apple Tree, which delighted young audiences,
• The 5th Children’s Radio Series presented Up and Down the Scales for the Adventure for Youth hour.
• Significant financial contributions were made to support the Saginaw Museum, the Saginaw General Hospital Library and improvements to City Hospital.
• The Garden Club resumed its activities after a wartime hiatus, having been temporarily discontinued while League members focused on volunteer service projects in support of the war effort.

1947-1948

• Participated in the grand opening of the Saginaw Art Museum, offering both volunteer support and funding.
• The Children’s Theatre produced a puppet production of The Fox and the Little Red Hen which was toured local schools, reaching approximately 10,000 children.
• Fundraising took center stage with the highly successful production of The Follies of 1947.  Proceeds supported the Cancer Detection Clinic and helped fund improvements at City Hospital. The League also contributed to the Children’s Center and Hartley Nature Camp, furthering its commitment to youth and wellness initiatives.
• The League also continued with its commitment to donating Kodachrome slides to the Board of Education for its permanent slide collection, enhancing visual learning in local schools.
• Inaugurated radio series of Kids Quiz a Saturday morning program designed to spark children’s interest in reading and educational broadcasting. Questions were prepared by children themselves after reading books selected by the director of the Saginaw Libraries Children’s Department, making it both interactive and enriching.
  • To improve access to educational broadcasts, the League donated 2 radios to Saginaw Public Libraries.  Additionally, a new collection of Kodachrome slides was donated to the Board of Education, further supporting visual learning in local schools.

1948-1949

• Sponsored the Centennial Exhibit of Thomas Eakins, courtesy of the Philadelphia, Chicago, and Cleveland Art Museums, at the Saginaw Art Museum.  The League also helped enhance the Children’s art classes by contributing toward the purchase of benches.
• The Children’s Theatre presented the puppet production The Story of Mrs. Tubbs, which toured 30 city and rural schools with 60 performances reaching 8,300 children.
• Brought the Tatterman Marionettes to the Michigan Theatre for performances of The Glowing Bird.
• The League’s community support extended to local organizations, including:
  • Girl Scout Site Fund
  • Saginaw County Health Center
  • Guadalupe Venter Clinic
• The Kids Quiz radio series returned for another season, continuing to promote reading and learning.  Educational transcriptions of Lest We Forget These Great Americans and Stories to Remember were also aired, sharing history and storytelling with listeners. And 2 live Christmas broadcasts were presented, adding festive programming to the airwaves.
• This year also marked a time of transition, as the League vacated its longtime clubrooms in the Chase Building, making way for future growth and embracing new opportunities ahead.