During the 1950s and 1960s groups across the country were forming with one goal in mind – raising funds for the Maryknoll Sisters. From Chicago to St. Louis to the suburbs of New York City, groups, mostly composed of women, began hosting card parties and fashion shows to raise money to send to the Maryknoll Sisters.
One such group was the Long Island Maryknoll Committee (LIMC). This group held a luncheon, card party and fashion show in 1951 and 1953. The first event “was planned after a visit to Maryknoll when permission was granted by Mother Mary Joseph for the purpose of raising Funds to help in the advancement of the work of the Maryknoll Order.” The Hotel Commodore in New York City was the chosen venue. A lunch of of Chicken Saute Chasseur and Pave Fraiselia was served. While dining, the guests were treated to a fashion show with the clothes provided by Milgrim. Afterwards door and table prizes were handed out, including an electric blanket, luggage, an area rug, lamps, and a pressure cooker!
Two models in Rose Test Gardens, Washington Park, Portland, Oregon, c. 1954. Image courtesy of the Boston Public Library’s Tichnor Brothers collection.
Letter from the LIMC announcing their Fashion Show, 1951
LIMC’s Fashion Show invitation, 1951.
Luncheon Menu for the LIMC Fashion Show, 1951.
Door Prize Ticket from LIMC’s Fashion Show, 1951
Photograph of the Luncheon, Card Party, and Fashion Show to benefit the Maryknoll Sisters held at the Hotel Commodore on January 24, 1953. The event was hosted in the hotel’s ballroom and was well attended. The room is packed with New York’s fashionable ladies seated at tables surrounding the elevated fashion show runway. The models posed on the runway are wearing items from the House of Milgrim, designed by Sally Milgrim. Milgrim is best known for the elegant, pale blue gown she crafted for Eleanor Roosevelt, which she wore to her husband’s first inaugural ball on March 4, 1933.
In 1959, the Maryknoll Sisters Guild of New Jersey began raising funds to help educate Sisters in the fields of medicine, technology, and education. The primary means of raising funds were card parties and raffles. In later years, funds raised by the Guild were used for many purposes, such as to aid victims of the 1976 earthquake in Guatemala. In 1962, the Guild hosted a fundraising party at Mayfair Farms in West Orange, New Jersey. The evening consisted of games of Bridge and a hat show. There was a drawing for four grand prizes that included a four-piece sterling silver tea set (valued at $575), a diamond ring, an imported luncheon set, and a Lilly Daché hat. Sweepstakes prizes included a mink collar, a lady’s umbrella, a six-deck bridge set, and an automatic clock radio, among others.
Sister Leona Michiels, teaching science to her students at St. Ann’s School in Kaneohe, Oahu, Hawaii, 1960s.
Ticket to an “Evening of Bridge and Hat Show” at Mayfair Farms, West Orange, NY, 1962
New Jersey Guild event program, 1962
New Jersey Guild event prize list, 1962
New Jersey Guild event prize ticket, 1962
Portrait of Sr. Aquinas McKenna
Organizing NIKA in Chicago was the dream of Sister Aquinas McKenna. Sister was a promoter for the Mid-West region and in September 1963 she met with a group of lay women friends of the Maryknoll Sisters. The first official meeting was held on December 5, 1963 at the Maryknoll Sisters Greenwood Avenue house in Chicago. Sister Aquinas suggested the name NIKA as it was derived from a Greek word meaning “Christ conquers all.” Beginning in 1964, NIKA held an annual “Round the World” Ball which was successful in raising funds for the work of the Sisters. That first Ball was MC’d by Michael Kirby, featured Mary Pastor, and was held at the Lake Shore Club in Chicago, Illinois on October 24, 1964. Guests listened to the music of the Hi-Fi’s as they feasted on Tournedo of Beef Tenderloin, oven browned potatoes, string beans, and a chocolate sundae.
Menu from the first NIKA Ball, held at the Lake Shore Club in Chicago, October 24, 1964.
Program from the first NIKA Ball, held at the Lake Shore Club in Chicago, October 24, 1964.
Event Ad for the first NIKA Ball, held at the Lake Shore Club in Chicago, October 24, 1964.
On Long Island, Mr. James A. Roe, father of Sister Margaret James (Patricia) Roe, held a Reception and Luncheon at the North Hills Golf Club in Douglaston, Long Island, NY on December 8, 1959 in order to raise funds for Maryknoll. Prizes included two tickets to see Mary Martin in The Sound of Music on Broadway, a beaded evening bag, a steam iron, a silver lazy susan, and a red velvet hostess coat. All you needed was a dollar and you would be entered to win a fabulous prize!
Reception and Luncheon for Sr. Margaret James at the North Hills Golf Club in Douglaston, Long Island, NY on December 8, 1959.
Prize List from the Reception and Luncheon for Sr. Margaret James on December 8, 1959.
Prize Ticket from the Reception and Luncheon for Sr. Margaret James on December 8, 1959.
Group photo of Maryknoll Sisters and Mr. & Mrs. Roe at the Reception and Luncheon for Sr. Margaret James on December 8, 1959.
Interested in learning more about Maryknoll?
You can contact the Archives at:
Maryknoll Mission Archives
PO Box 305, Maryknoll, New York 10545
Phone: 914-941-7636
Office hours: 8:30 am-4:00 pm Monday-Friday
Email: archives@maryknoll.org
Website: www.maryknollmissionarchives.org
References:
Cooper, D. (2022, July 20). Mayfair Farms in West Orange closes after 80 years in business. The Montclair Girl. https://www.themontclairgirl.com/mayfair-farms-west-orange-closure/
Emily. (2021, March 3). Hotel Commodore: Past, present, and future: Part 1. I Ride The Harlem Line. https://www.iridetheharlemline.com/2021/03/03/project-commodore-past-present-and-future-of-grand-centrals-railroad-hotel-part-1/
The hi-fi’s. Hi-Fis. (2024, July 30). https://thehi-fis.co.uk/
History – Lake Shore Country Club. Lake Shore Country Club. (2026). https://www.lakeshorecc.com/history/
Home. Maryknoll Sisters. (2025, May 23). https://www.maryknollsisters.org/
Mother Mary Joseph Rogers. Maryknoll Mission Archives. (2019, July 25). https://maryknollmissionarchives.org/mother-mary-joseph-rogers/
North Hills Country Club – Golf. (2026). https://www.clubmsites.com/northhills_web/golf/golf.html
Sister Leona Michiels, MM. Maryknoll Mission Archives. (2015, January). https://maryknollmissionarchives.org/deceased-sisters/sister-leona-michiels-mm/
Sister Mary Aquinas McKenna, MM. Maryknoll Mission Archives. (2014, April 30). https://maryknollmissionarchives.org/?deceased-sisters=sister-mary-aquinas-mckenna-mm
Sister Patricia Roe, MM. Maryknoll Mission Archives. (2026, May 18). https://maryknollmissionarchives.org/?deceased-sisters=sister-patricia-roe-mm
SkateGuardBlog. (2025, March 8). A sensation from Sydney: The Michael Kirby Story. Skate Guard Blog. https://www.skateguardblog.com/2020/05/a-sensation-from-sydney-michael-kirby.html
Tichnor Brothers Postcard Collection. Digital Commonwealth. (2026). https://www.digitalcommonwealth.org/collections/commonwealth:0p096w19r
Wikimedia Foundation. (2025, November 29). Sally Milgrim. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sally_Milgrim
Wikimedia Foundation. (2026, April 6). 1976 Guatemala earthquake. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Guatemala_earthquake
Wikimedia Foundation. (2026, April 26). Lilly Daché. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lilly_Dach%C3%A9
Wikimedia Foundation. (2026c, May 11). Mary Martin. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Martin
Wikimedia Foundation. (2026, May 12). Eleanor Roosevelt. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleanor_Roosevelt
Wikimedia Foundation. (2026e, May 21). The sound of music. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sound_of_Music
*Original content comes from the blog post, “Card Parties, Fashion Shows, Luncheons – Oh My!”, which was published on April 20, 2017. This version was edited by Meagan Cairns.
Sr. Margaret James (Patricia) Roe and her parents during a visit while missioned at Colegio Monte Maria, Guatemala City, Guatemala.
Sr. Margaret Rose Winkelmann, who helped to establish Marian College (later Secondary School) in Mogoro, Tanzania in 1957; Rosary College in Mwanza, Tanzania in 1961; and Rugambwa Secondary School in Bukoba, Tanzania in 1965.
Maryknoll Convent School class in the new Laboratory, c. 1950
