Dozens of ladies and guests donned white gloves and stylish hats to partake in the Bedford Women’s Club (BWC) annual High Tea, a just-for-fun event that preceded the club’s April business meeting and induction of new officers. The event was held Thursday, April 19, at the Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall in Bedford.

High Tea co-chair women, Kathleen Catania and Marilyn Frederick, looked especially elegant in their chic chapeaus, as they directed members to banquet tables laden with silver tableware, trays of freshly baked scones and porcelain teapots filled with fragrant libations.

As the arrivals settled in and began chatting, volunteers tended to many other tasks in the hall’s spacious kitchen. The High Tea Committee included some of the club’s most active members: Elizabeth Amundson, Fran Wiggin, Anita Dillon, Fran Gray, Marilyn Quail, Sue Galeucia, Gen Miller and Becki Kuhns.

They were joined by many other volunteers who contributed delectable edibles, ranging from tea sandwiches to home-baked cookies to flavorful pineapple wedges studded with colorful party picks. Each attendee brought her own tea cup, fancy or plain. Fresh-cut flowers on each table added a note of springtime joy.

The event was one of many club activities held each year. Similarly well attended are the club’s garden tours of some of Bedford’s most spectacular home gardens, its progressive dinner and its annual road rally, in which teams of participants use a variety of clues and a roadmap of Bedford to find designated points of interest and win prizes.

Those who attended April’s fancy High Tea mostly belong to one or another of the BWC’s many special-interest groups, assemblies of ladies who enjoy scrabble, mahjong, cooking, playing bridge or dining out – among others. New members, residents from Bedford and several other towns constantly comment on the wealth of available offerings.

Nancy Herper and Pat Lauer, co-chairwomen of the club’s Publicity Committee, are members who often receive inquiries about upcoming events, many of which are designed to raise funds for the club’s scholarship program, an effort established in the mid-1940s by a recently deceased, past president of the club – Josephine “Jo” Fearon. Recipients last year were students Lauren Brodeur, who is attending Fairfield University, and Alexandra Evans, who is attending Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute.

“It’s inspiring to learn of the achievements of Bedford High seniors, as well as to learn the goals of women who are non-traditional students,” said Herper.

The scholarship program is accessed through applications available on the BWC website (bedfordwomensclub.org) or from local high-school guidance counselors. Assisted are high school seniors who are female Bedford residents, along with young women who are pursuing non-traditional educational endeavors such as nursing.

Inquiries about any of the BWC special-interest clubs, its scholarship program, membership or other topics may be addressed to membership Co-Chairwomen Chris Buffey at 935-7228 or Terry Chapman at 472-3642.

Loretta Jackson is a freelance writer and member of the Bedford Women’s Club, residing in Merrimack.