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CFUW honours Nelson’s Frances Welwood as Notable Woman

Welwood is an accomplished historian who has written many articles documenting B.C. history
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From left, Frances Welwood, Cathy Leugner, Alison Hutchison, and Bev Onischak are seen at the Canadian Federation of University Women centennial in Winnipeg where Welwood was named a Notable Woman. Photo submitted

Submitted

A Nelson woman has been recognized by the Canadian Federation of University Women.

The honour for Frances Welwood came as the organization celebrated its centennial this month in its founding city of Winnipeg. As part of the annual general meeting and celebration, 100 women from across Canada were awarded the title Notable Women.

Welwood has been a CFUW Nelson and District member for close to 50 years and has been president over four terms since 1973.

She is an accomplished historian who has written many articles documenting B.C. history, in particular the Kootenay area, which is the setting of her book, Passing Through Missing Pages, which chronicles the life of Annie Garland Foster, the first woman elected to Nelson city council.

More recently, Frances and her husband Ron received a special citation from the City of Nelson for their outstanding contributions to the preservation and promotion of Nelson’s cultural heritage.

Also attending the 100th anniversary celebration were Alison Hutchison who is the B.C. Interior regional director; Cathy Leugner, CFUW Nelson and District president; and Bev Onischak, a member from Castlegar. At the AGM, Parks Canada unveiled a commemorative plaque to recognize the contributions and advocacy work that CFUW has done since 1919.

In recognition of the 100 years, Nelson and District Club awarded a 100th anniversary scholarship to Avery Deboer-Smith toward her master’s degree for her exemplary work. As well, the Nelson and District club submitted an application for a CFUW Creative Arts Award on behalf of the Kutenai Art Therapy Institute’s Open Studio Program. The submission received an honourable mention.