Zonta Club of Joliet marks 50 years of empowering women and girls

Joliet — The Zonta Club of the Joliet Area celebrated its 50th anniversary Thursday night at the Joliet Area Historical Museum with dinner and a tribute to one of music’s most iconic female artists.

The Zonta Club, which officially created its Joliet branch on Oct. 25, 1973, is an international organization of professional women founded in 1919 and dedicated to “building a better world for women and girls.”

“We advocate for women and girls domestically and around the world,” Anniversary Committee Chairwoman Katy Leclair said. “We work to fight domestic violence and support projects that promote women’s rights.”

Some of the Zonta Club of Joliet’s causes are supporting Take Back the Night in Will County, an initiative meant to combat violence against women and memorialize those who have lost their lives to domestic violence, hosting the Zonta Film Festival for women-made movies as a fundraiser, providing college scholarships to Joliet high school students, and even supporting the underground education of girls in Afghanistan.

Zonta Joliet member Pam Hunte launched the Afghanistan initiative in 2011 because of her past work in the country with the Peace Corp and as an anthropologist.

“I spent a lot of time there through many ups and downs,” Hunte said. “I knew of the Afghan Institute of Learning, which focuses on educating girls and women, and I knew they were supposed to be honest. They’re very, very good at what they do, so when I joined Zonta I thought it would be a good opportunity.”

The Zonta Club of Joliet has sent thousands of dollars in donations from members and from the club collectively to the organization in the last decade and has continued to do so even after the 2021 Taliban takeover of the country that forced most of the country’s schools for girls, including the one supported by Zonta, underground.

“It’s illegal now, but they still send us pictures of the girls in school and of the women doing embroidery to earn a living at the school,” Hunte said. “It really brings home the fact that we can help people personally around the world.”

Founding members reflect on the mission

During the evening the club also took time to recognize two of its current members who were part of the original 25 founding members of the club, Carmela Castagna and Dr. Patricia Miller.

“I had never heard of Zonta before when I was first told about it,” Castagna said. “But I thought ‘If it’s a way to help people, and to help women, I’m in.’ I figured if I didn’t like it, I could always just quit, and now here I am, 50 years later. It’s just a wonderful group of people. Not only have we been able to serve others globally, but the friendships we’ve made here are just a treasure.”

“I think I was a Zontian before I even knew what Zonta was,” said Miller, who, like Castagna said she had never heard of the organization before she was recruited into it in 1973 at the recommendation of a graduate school advisor. “I’ve always been passionate about protecting the rights and privileges of women and girls.”

“To celebrate 50 years is truly an honor for our club. We are more determined than ever to push our mission into high gear and make this world an even better and safer place to live and pursue one’s dreams.

—  Bonnie Winfrey, Zonta Club of Joliet president

Miller noted that years before starting her career as a school psychologist, she, as a high school student, had twice advocated to her district’s board of education for equality for female students: once to allow herself and other girls to take shop classes and again to allow a pregnant girl to attend school with the other students. Both appeals were rejected.

“My element has always been advocacy,” Miller said. “People need to be made aware of the important issues.”

In pre-recorded comments played during their recognition, Castagna noted “we’ve come a long way,” since the club was started in the areas of women’s rights and equality.

To which Miller responded, “Yes, we have come a long way, but we’ve still got a long way to go, honey.”

The Zonta Club of Joliet is well-positioned to continue making that progress. Club President Bonnie Winfrey noted that the club is the largest Zonta chapter in all of Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana, it has sponsored the creation of two other Zonta chapters and donated $30,000 to local and international organizations in 2022 alone.

“To celebrate 50 years is truly an honor for our club,” Winfrey said. “We are more determined than ever to push our mission into high gear and make this world an even better and safer place to live and pursue one’s dreams.”

Following the recognitions, the celebration concluded with a high-energy performance by Joliet native Brandye Phillips, who performed a tribute to the late, great “Queen of Rock and Roll” Tina Turner.

The multi-platinum Grammy winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee was not only known for her powerful voice and iconic dance moves, but as an advocate for domestic violence survivors after she came forward with her own story about her abusive marriage to Ike Turner, inspiring many other women to speak out.

Phillips’ performance included classic Turner hits such as “Simply the Best,” “Proud Mary” and “What’s Love Got to Do with It” as well as heartfelt stories about Turner’s remarkable comeback after leaving her abusive marriage and poetry readings.

Proceeds from Phillips’ performance of The Tina Turner Experience go to benefit Helping Hands Family Outreach, which works to help children of fallen police officers and veterans as well as foster children and other at-risk youth.