By PHOEBE DONALD ROBINSON / Community Columnist

The Vignette Club, a member of the Alabama Federation of Women’s Club, recently installed its new officers for 2012-2014 in a ceremony led by Donna Reed Morris, parliamentarian. New officers are President Barbara Lang Robinson (Columbiana); First Vice President Chanda Davis Jennings (Wilsonville); Second Vice President Helen McCord Gibson (Columbiana); Secretary Hailey Porter Fant (Columbiana); Treasurer Samantha Bristow Rush (Inverness); Historian Hayden Hill Jeffries (Columbiana); and Parliamentarian Morris (Columbiana).

The installation was held at the Rush law office. Rush is a 1969 Shelby County High School graduate. She and husband Andy have one daughter, Hunter, age 10. After graduating from the Birmingham School of Law four years ago and having an office in Birmingham, Rush decided to open an office in her hometown in the building owned by her great uncle, Buck Falkner, located at 106 N. Main St., Columbiana. She practices general practice of law.

The Vignette Club was organized by the Culture Club of Columbiana in 1949. The first president was the late Mrs. Ginny Fowler, wife of the late Judge Conrad Murphree Fowler, mother of local attorney Conrad Fowler Jr., and mother-in-law to Vignette Rachel Fowler. Another charter member was the late Mrs. Wylodine Hill, wife of Elvin Hill, former superintendant of Shelby County Schools, and mother of State Rep. Mike Hill, mother-in-law of Vignette Carol Hill and grandmother of Vignette Jeffries.

The second president was the late Mrs. Sonya Lefkovits, chairman of the Columbiana Public Library Building Committee, first Ambassador of the South Shelby Chamber of Commerce, and founding member of the Columbiana Merchants and Professionals Association. Lefkovits’ daughter Marsha and husband Richard Quick have established the Sonya Lefkovits Community Service Award for the Miss Shelby County Pageant, the Vignette Club’s primary fundraiser, which provides thousands of scholarship dollars to deserving Shelby County young women and also gives back generously to Shelby County schools and other worthy organizations.

Outgoing President Tresa House (Columbiana) has led the club extremely well for the last two years. As her last official duty, she thanked the club for the opportunity to serve and presented each new officer with a plant to signify their office.

The club today is comprised of 36 women whose mission is: “Building Friendships to Help Communities.”

Phoebe Donald Robinson can be reached by email at phoeberobinson@bellsouth.net.