It started with five girlfriends, who were originally a self-formed maternal group, but quickly turned into a good friendship. The girlfriends enjoyed having such an amazing community through each other and decided to work on others experiencing the same thing. At the same time, they wanted to keep Visse as an attractive neighbourhood to live in Denmark, by keeping going and activating the local community. Therefore, they set up an association under the retro name Visse Housewives’ Association – an association for women of all ages in Visse.
Important with a common focal point
An association is typically formed on the basis of a common focal point. Some Housewife Association members range in age and interest, but still succeed because all members have an interest in creating a community in the city and strengthening the local community. At the same time, the aim is to organise different events every six months so that all members find at least one of them interesting and relevant for their part.
Involvement of members creates success
The first event of certain housewives’ association took place at Visseladegaard and consisted of an info night where there was talk of the purpose of the association and all the people could make suggestions for upcoming events. By the time of the evening, the association already counted 43 members who had transferred the annual quota of 50kr.
Events such as Easter egg hunting and Christmas tree parties with the family, lectures on person types, inspiration evening in the clothing store, farm house visits, New Year’s shed and much more were in the pipeline. The housewife association of the members, which is why it is important for the board that members have a say in what events come on the drawing board.
How much work does it take to keep the association going?
Some Housewives’ Association organises between 4-6 events every six months. It is very different how much preparation time each individual event requires. The board generally spends a lot of time on it, but something is clear over chat and other over coffee and cake. In addition, events are divided up so that each board member is the main organizer at each event.
3 advice from the board of Visse Housewives’ Association about being a voluntary board of directors
- Speaking of a lot of work, it is a good idea to delegate tasks – both between board members, but also to the members of the association. Some Housewives’ Association has a voluntary list, which is used, for example, when extra hands are needed for installation, clean-up or cake baking.
- Do the board members know each other in advance and also meet in other circumstances, then divide your meetings into “board time” and “non-board time”. It is more efficient and also means that the association work will not take up too much space in your friendship/co-ownership/partnership.
- Always bring coffee and cake to the meetings.
Read more here about how volunteer managers are motivated to volunteer:
https://minforening.dk/hvordan-motiveres-frivillige-ledere-til-at-lave-frivilligt-arbejde/
Do you also want to start your own association? Read more in previous blog posts: How to create an association? https://minforening.dk/hvordan-stifter-man-en-forening/