BRISTOL, Tenn. – The Junior League of Bristol, Tennessee/Virginia, recently celebrated its 75th anniversary with a fundraiser at the Abingdon Vineyards.

The fundraiser on April 27 celebrated the founding of a local group that later applied to the Association of Junior Leagues.

Jan Detrick, a member of the local chapter highlighted that the Junior League got its start in Bristol back in 1980 when a group of 45 ladies who had been volunteering in the community as members of the Border Guild since 1948 learned about the Junior League and decided to formally join the organization.

"They learned that there is an international organization, the Association of Junior Leagues International they could become a part of," Detrick said. "They had all been doing things on their own and they wanted to make it official."

The first Junior League was established in the U.S. in 1901.

Lindsey Hubbard, who has been a member of the Junior League of Bristol since 2022, explained that she has moved around the country a lot over the years, and emphasized that the one constant in her life has always been the Junior League, through which she has been able to make friends and connect with people.

"I've been in the Junior League of Macon, Georgia, I've been in the Junior League of Atlanta, Georgia. I've been in the Junior League of Annapolis, Maryland. I've been in the Junior League of Northern Virginia, and then my husband and I moved back here in 2022, so I transferred my membership back into this League," Hubbard said. "I immediately have women that I can meet with and make friends and, you know, rebuild those friendships that last because I'm still friends with everyone I've ever met, and all of those leagues."

Hubbard explained the focus of the Junior League is to empower women and children by providing mentorship and resources and highlighted that each League works to meet the unique needs of their community.

"In every league it's the same, we focus on the different things that affect women and children, ours happens to be literacy and food insecurity," Hubbard said. "In other leagues, it could be human trafficking, or it could be domestic violence, but it always focuses on women and children."

The Junior League currently has twelve Little Free Libraries, five of which are set up at Anderson Elementary School, Avoca Elementary School, Fairmount Elementary School, Haynesfield Elementary School, and Holston View Elementary School.

The League also runs the Caterpillar Crawl, which is a treasure hunt for kids that is set up across various businesses in Bristol's downtown.

They encourage children to make healthy eating choices through our Kids in the Kitchen program and provide local families with Thanksgiving Baskets.

The Junior League of Bristol Tn./ Va. has a total of 120 members with 15 of them being currently active.