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In May 1976, the Alta Lake Community Club (ALCC) announced its first meeting since March 1972 and began recruiting new members. This was not the first time that the club had experienced a hiatus, only to re-activate.
In 1923, Grace Archibald suggested forming a social club. She, Lizzie Neiland, Flo Williams and a few other Alta Lake residents and regular summer visitors met at Rainbow Lodge to plan a picnic; from the resulting picnic, the ALCC was created. The ALCC started holding meetings in 1926 but it wasn’t long before the club took a break. In 1933, after almost seven years of inactivity, the ALCC started up again in order to raise money for a community hall, which they accomplished through weekly dances. Over the next few decades, the ALCC hosted dances, picnics, meetings, concerts, pot lucks, film nights, children’s parties and more.
The ALCC became inactive over the summer of 1972 and did not have another meeting until 1976 when a group of Whistler residents decided that, with Myrtle Philip School and its community space scheduled to open soon, it was time to revive the community club. They placed a notice in the recently founded Whistler Question to recruit members stating, “This is not a political or ladies only club. It is for single people and family groups interested in community recreational activities.”
About 35 people attended the ALCC’s first meeting of 1976 at the Mount Whistler Lodge. They elected a new executive and, with Frans Carpay as president, Ruth Howells as vice-president, BJ Godson as secretary, and Pat Beauregard as treasurer, the club was ready to plan new activities and events. Thanks to its previous activity, the ALCC already had $7,700 in the bank (just over $40,000 today when adjusted for inflation) and they decided to start by sending out a questionnaire to find out what kind of things people wanted to see from the club.
The ALCC hosted a “Soccer Ball” dance fundraiser that August to raise money for soccer balls and uniforms for the Whistler team, followed by an “old fashioned family fun and sports day.” In its first year back, the club hosted Halloween and Christmas parties (including a visit from Santa), supported the local Brownies and Cubs, held an Easter egg hunt, cooked pancakes for Mother’s Day, and even formed a drama club. They had used some of their funds to establish an annual scholarship for a graduating student from the Whistler or Garibaldi area and purchased sound equipment and tables that could be used by other groups. The ALCC had also started sponsoring events such as the annual ski swap and dance workshops because the club had the necessary liability insurance and were trusted renters of the school community space.
According to Ruth Howells, some of the most successful adult events hosted by the club were their suppers. These were so popular that they had to limit them to members and guests only and even then often ended up with a waiting list. Ruth summed up the success by saying, “Good food, good company and good music make for very enjoyable evenings.”
The ALCC continued to bring people together through events and fundraisers such as their annual Fall Fair into the 1980s. In 1981, they began hosting a “Welcome to Whistler” tea and in 1984 donated money to the RMOW for benches along the Valley Trail. As Whistler continued to grow, other clubs formed for different activities and interests and over time the ALCC wound down.
