ABOUT US
Carson Women’s Club (CWC) is a nonprofit non-political public service organization founded in March 1968 on the principles of community service, civic engagement, youth development, and cultural diversity.
We were incorporated January 14, 1969 and are a charitable 501(c)3 organization supported 100% by volunteers.
Our Mission
To serve as Official Hostesses for the City of Carson, to provide services for city government, and to promote post-secondary education by awarding scholarships to deserving high school seniors who reside in the city of Carson.
Brief History
After the February 20, 1968, City of Carson inaugural ceremony, the wives and supporters of the first city council members would bring cookies and coffee to be served during "recess" breaks in the agenda discussions at the late-night sessions of succeeding meetings. As a result, in March of that year, they decided to create a new women's service club to expand community participation.​​
“Their desire to serve the new city was emphasized through their volunteer participation on special event committees and through their weekly hosting of refreshments at every council meeting. Thus, the newly Organized Carson Women's Club had aptly established itself and in order to strengthen its service mission they sought formal recognition by the City of Carson. In appreciation for their early commitment the city council responded by designating the new club as the “Official City Hostesses” for the City at Carson.”
~Gil Smith, former Carson Mayor and associate member, Excerpt from Carson Women’s Club 40th Anniversary Book
The club was incorporated in 1969 and in the early days created a public information directory, hosted many civic and community events, helped beautify the city and design a float for the Annual Rose Bowl Parade, joined friends of the library, and until the mid 70s organized and hosted the entire city anniversary celebration. The CWC donated trees for Arbor Day, a Blood Analyzer to what is now the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, and a piano to Parks and Recreation. To finance their many projects, they held bake sales, luaus, bus trips, fashion shows and rainbow balls, and even manned a fireworks stand! They participated in city parades and fed firemen on the 4th of July. As time passed, we have supported the Relay for Life, El Nido Family Center, and Friends of the Library. We provided Thanksgiving baskets to families in need through local elementary schools, donated to Toy Drives, and held holiday boutiques. Our members have provided support to local schools and students in many ways throughout the years, by becoming Rolling Readers, serving on School Site Councils, organizing reading walk-a-thons, donating magazines to schools, and many other activities. In the mid 80s, the scholarship committee became permanent, and we began providing scholarships to post-secondary students residing in Carson. We have provided over 489 (as of January 2026) scholarships since our inception and an average of 22 scholarships annually for over the last 17 years. Although the COVID-19 pandemic brought all our activities to a screeching halt, we continued our scholarship efforts. Once we were able to meet in person returning to our other activities was slow going. As we continue to provide scholarships and volunteer to serve at city events, our goal is to improve our service to the community through different projects.
