The History of the Anchorage Petroleum Women's Association
The Anchorage Petroleum Women's Association began in 1958 when a group of eight women gathered to welcome the wives of oil and gas employees transferred to Alaska. Known then as the "Anchorage Petroleum Wives Club," our founders finalized by-laws and elected first officers. Dues were $5 per year. Read more about our founding and history by accessing our Founder's Message page, written by APWA Co-Founder Doris Silva, which chronicles life before statehood and in the early years of our organization.
Today, we continue to provide members with opportunities to socialize and share interests through various Social Events, such as Monthly Gatherings and Activities Groups. Additionally, since our founding, we have embraced a charitable and volunteerism component, which is encompassed in our associated 501(c)3 organization, the Anchorage Petroleum Women's Foundation. The Anchorage Petroleum Women's Foundation supports (through volunteerism and fundraising) a number of local non-profit organizations. Each year we select an organization to be our annualNon-Profit Partner. Recent Non-Profit Partners include the Alaska Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired (2013-2014), The Children's Lunchbox (2014-2015), Alaska Botanical Garden (2015-2016), The Alaska Zoo (2016-2017), The Arc of Anchorage (2017-2018), Alaska Resource Education (2018-2019), Challenge Alaska (2019-2020), and Alaska Youth Orchestra (2020-2021). To raise funds for local non-profits, we organize an annual fundraising event.
Interested in joining us? Learn more by visiting our Membership page.
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Anchorage Petroleum Women's Association Celebrates 60 Years in 2018