Our Story

Friends of DAWC is a women-focused non-profit dedicated to community advancement through outreach for all ages. We are committed to investing in the needs of our community as we continue to "Lift As We Climb." 

In 1921, the Detroit Association of Women's Clubs formed with eight sodalities dedicated to community service, education, charity, and fellowship. In the early 1900s, Mr. William Lennane was a prominent building contractor specializing in paving, sewer, and concrete assignments, forming neighborhoods such as Boston-Edison, Indian Village, and Arden Park. In 1913, Lennane commissioned the noted architectural firm of Smith, Hinchman, and Grylls to design a house in the affluent Ferry Park subdivision for him and his family. In 1941, Dr. Rosa Lee Slade Gragg's determination led to the Lennane family home becoming the Detroit Association of Women's Clubs meeting space. To acquire the house, Dr. Gragg arranged a second mortgage on her residence and her husband's company to enable the purchase. The officers and members of the club repaid her trust and the clubhouse's mortgage in only five years. For over a hundred years, the Detroit Association of Women's Clubs, Inc. has led initiatives including scholarships, annual clothing drives, community clean-ups, food distributions for senior citizens and the homeless, and literacy programming.