Aronos lives on in Sonora
Local service group raises funds to replace roof on its historic clubhouse in downtown Sonora
The roof on a historic former Baptist church in downtown Sonora was showing wear last year, leaking into the ceiling and endangering hardwood floors that have hosted dancing feet for almost a century.
The members of the Aronos Research Club had a choice to make: Raise the funds to renew the roof, or finally allow the modern hardships of limited membership and funds to draw them from their longtime home.
“The roof was leaking and the ceiling was starting to show damage internally,” said Dennis Wiebe, secretary of the club. “It just had this ominous feeling about the building deteriorating. Some people wanted to give up, but some of us said, `Hell no, we're not going to quit. Even though numbers are not robust, let's do this.' “
The Aronos clubhouse is located at 37 Elkin Street in downtown Sonora. The service club, dedicated to scholarly pursuit and social philanthropies of various sorts, was founded in 1915.
According to Union Democrat records, the club over the years has provided scholarships for Columbia College students, has supported a Christmas stocking program, fundraised for mental illness and health organizations and even bought a water buffalo for a family in Indonesia.
The coronavirus crisis has brought most of their events to a halt, though they have recently maintained their meetings and their annual mandate for academic research and philanthropic projects.
“Obviously, we knew we had a leak,” said Mary Jayne Moffatt, president of the club. “We maintain the building because we see it as a service for the community for their use.”
The new roof was installed by contractor Rob Kerr with Kerr Roofing at a discounted bid of between $20,000 and $30,000, Moffatt said.
Moffatt said he offered to do the project at $13,000 less than other companies in the area.
“We are very happy and pleased that he did it for us, and he did a good job,” she said. “We are also very thankful to Sierra Pacific Industries, they gave us a $5,000 grant.”
The other money used to pay came from the club's savings account and other donations.
Wiebe said the new roof appeared sturdy and was working well.
“It kind of gives us that warmth of that security blanket between us and the elements,” he said. “There's plenty of challenges out there, but we're going to get through anything else we need to do.”
The preservation of the roof also preserved much of the history that occupies the interior.
The story of the Aronos Research Club's original building begins outside of its walls. In the 1850s, during the mass colonization of the Sonora area during the Gold Rush, churches cropped up along what would later become Highway 49.
One of those denominations was the Baptists, who in 1857 first met in the county courthouse, then took over a Methodist Church on the corner of Elkin and Stewart Streets three years later. A fire destroyed that building about 38 years later, and a second church was built in its place in 1902.
During the Great Depression, attendance at the church fell on hard times. When the people left, so did a reliable and attendant pastor. In the 1930s, the congregation was in serious discussion to disband and offer the building for sale.
The women of the Aronos Club, a local service club, were looking for a permanent home.
“They wanted a name that sounded Greek-ish, and someone said they turned Sonora around, well, in reverse. Backward was not a good word back then,” Moffatt said. “But they had the people, so they needed a place.”
They offered the Baptist Church $750 for the building (half of the asking price), which was accepted because it was acknowledged the new function of the building would still have moral purpose.
The transaction was recorded on Sept. 5, 1936. According to Union Democrat records, the women were notably able to pay off the building in four years.
“In 1936, there was much interest and enthusiasm among club members concerning the remodeling of the building. The membership was approximately 100, and many ideas were presented,” said a club history document from 1982.
The renovations were periodic and augmented the function of the building. Over time, the iconic hardwood floors were installed, along with a stage and a kitchen. Then came furnishings, from a piano, a president's chair,
a congoleum rug, vases and 83 rolls of wallpaper.
Just after the building was acquired, in 1945, the club had 110 active members. Many of the original members were “hoity toity” members of the community, Moffatt said, housewives with disposable time and income interested in learning about international concerns like art, literature and religion.
The Aronos Research Club, before it's acquisition of the building, also dedicated a plaque to Tuolumne County Superintendent of Schools George Philip Morgan in 1930 at the base of a cypress tree on the lawn of the historic courthouse on Yaney Avenue in downtown Sonora. When the 80-foot tree was removed after it died following a spate of drought, a crane was used to remove the plaque attached to a large marble obelisk at the base of the tree. The objects currently reside in the county's Carlo M. De Ferrari Archive on Greenley Road in Sonora.
Moffatt said the new roof was the second installation in her time there, estimating the other installation occurred in the early 1990s.
Much of the research on the club building was completed by John and Francis Germain for the Aronos Research Club's 67th anniversary in 1982, Moffatt said.
The Aronos Club is a federated women's club.
“We're slowly dropping the women out of it because we do have members who are men,” Moffatt said. “All service clubs are having issues getting dedicated members.”
The motto of the club is associated with advancement, betterment and culture, Moffatt said.
The members focus on a new topic of study every year, varying from history, government, arts and music, geography of the economy.
The Aronos Research Club does not allow alcohol consumption.
Moffatt said donations can be made to the Aronos Club at P.O. Box 4443, Sonora, CA 95370.
Among the events that are held in the building are a holiday performance by Summerville High School's Jazz@8 choir, dance classes and other events and group gatherings.
“People are looking for something alcohol free and healthy,” Wiebe said. “That's our goal, to maintain that caliber of community.”
Wiebe said they still plan to do a super-yard sale in the spring and their Quarterly Tea event. They meet every first and third Tuesday of the month.