The Group also had another thing going. With every visit, they gave a small amount of money to the treasurer. I think they gave Kes.10 each. Any member who did not bring their 10 Shillings on that day, it was considered late and they brought it later with a small fine. Nobody wanted to pay that fine, so the women were prompt in paying their dues. With 20 women in the group, that was Kes.200 collected every Thursday. That was a lot of money back then. A lot.
This was the fun part of the group. The officials were the sophisticated women of the group. Every group anywhere has them. These officials kept a Wish List of all their members. The Wish List was mainly of household items members wished they could afford if they had a lump-sum amount, which was rare to come by back then. Remember these women were just establishing their households in OlKalou with minimal finances for extra purchases. Most homes had basic household items enough to run their new homes, but not well stocked like all women want their kitchens and cabinets to look like.
The Group changed all that. With the Kes.200 every week, pooled together from Group members, the recipient of the week had items delivered to her from her Wish List. Dozens of cups, Plates, Cutlerly, Trays, Basins (Besheni) Sufurias, anything the member wished to have, as long as it was within the price range of Kes.200. The Group wooed and wowed as gifts were unwrapped one by one by the Chair-lady.
After witnessing some of the beautiful items being unveiled, some members approached the Chair-lady and changed their Wish List. They now wanted what this member just received. That part of the Group was real fun. These women stocked each others homes to perfection.
To this date, most of the items that are used in my mothers’ house, especially when we have functions were purchased by the Group back in the 1970s.
