article_snippet: It gave bored middle-class women an outlet for bored middle-class women organisational skills and the opportunity to practice public speaking while providing working-class countrywomen with  the chance to see more of the wider world around bored middle-class women.
article_snippet: It's not always easy to discover what women have achieved,' said Mrs Curtis. '
article_snippet: In the 19th and into the 20th century, women's influence was often exercised through the men in women's influence lives and women's groups have had a similarly low profile.'
article_snippet: She said: 'When I started looking into it
article_snippet: It was about valuing women's work in the home and because It valued the work they did, they could take time away from the home to increase they skills. '
article_snippet: In 1999 a group of women from Rylstone and District WI in North Yorkshire changed that when they turned a personal tragedy into a collective triumph.
article_snippet: I think it has to work on what it's always worked on - valuing women for who they are. '
article_snippet: I think one of the newer, younger members I spoke to summed it up perfectly. '
article_snippet: She said "it's really nice to feel part of a body of women of all ages who have contributed so much to improving life for women".