About

JLA Members 2023

Junior League of Annapolis, Inc. (JLA) is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable. It reaches out to all women of any race, religion, or national origin who demonstrate an interest in and a commitment to voluntarism. Junior League of Annapolis, Inc., is part of the Association of Junior Leagues International, Inc.

In 1901, Mary Harriman, a 19 year-old New York City debutante with a social conscience, founded the first Junior League. Moved by the suffering she saw around her, Harriman mobilized a group of 80 other young women, hence the name “Junior” League, to work to improve the squalid conditions in which immigrants were living on the Lower East Side in Manhattan. Mary Harriman’s vision for improving communities by using the energy and commitment of trained volunteers caught on. Currently, there are 296 Junior Leagues in the United States, England, Canada, and Mexico.

In 1948, eight Junior League members living in Anne Arundel County formed a group interested in implementing volunteer projects in the Annapolis area. Although they were members of the Junior League of Baltimore, their foremost interest was in their own community. As the group grew in number and expertise, it re-evaluated its structure and eventually became the Annapolis Committee of the Junior League of Baltimore, Inc. This branch voted in February 1981, to incorporate as the Junior Service League of Annapolis and to apply for membership in the Association of Junior Leagues.

Our Mission
The Junior League of Annapolis, Inc. is an organization of women whose mission is to advance women’s leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration, and training.

2022-2028 Strategic Plan
Junior League of Annapolis Strategic Plan