On June 18, 1976, the Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt Democratic Club held its first meeting and officially filled the political vacuum left by the cessation of the Greenbelt and Springhill Lake Democratic clubs. In addition to being a forum for Democratic candidates, elected officials and party spokespersons, the Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt Democratic Club holds discussions on current local and state issues that impact Greenbelt. Through the years, the club has donated generously to selected candidates, the Democratic Central Committee and several Greenbelt community organizations.
The Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt Democratic Club combines politics with community involvement and social activities. Annual events are a reception in Annapolis with our district's delegation during the legislative session, a February Sweethearts meeting (which began as a thank you celebration for campaign workers and has evolved into an evening of appreciation to two selected Greenbelt city employees), a legislative wrap-up in May by Greenbelt's state senator and delegates, and a picnic in June. Fundraisers for the club, at first, included festive luaus and holiday dinner/dances. Now they are more informal movie, theater, and concert nights at the Greenbelt Arts Center and the Greenbelt Movie Theater preceded by a Chinese banquet at the Beijing Restaurant. The club's main fundraiser is the ever-popular funnelcake booth at the Greenbelt Labor Day Festival.
In 1984, to commemorate the centennial of Eleanor Roosevelt's birth, the club presented a photograph of Eleanor to be hung in the City Council Chambers, planted an evergreen tree across from the Municipal Building, and held an essay contest in the Greenbelt schools.
Read a brief history of the: