By Perry Jones, Piney Wood Model A Ford Club
My journey to becoming the first male member of the Era Fashion Committee (EFC) started during the pandemic, by taking the six open book Fashion Judging Tests. And why not? I already had the MAFCA Fashion Guidelines. I was also participating with the EFC’s Facebook group, “Model A Era Fashions – MAFCA”.
Then one evening I received a call from a number I did not recognize, but I answered anyway. It was an EFC Member calling to see if I would be interested in becoming a member. My first thought was how did you get my number (probably from the MAFCA office) and why me? After a short discussion about what was a member’s duty, I said give me a couple of days to think about.
I learned that the EFC is an integral part of the Model A Ford Club of America (MAFCA). It oversees the rules for judging era fashions, assists MAFCA chapters and regions with their era fashion events, and conducts extensive research on the clothing styles of the time. This committee is composed of six dedicated members, each appointed for a two-year term. With this information, I decided to write my letter of interest. I was approved by the EFC, then by the MAFCA Board and I officially became a member on July 1, 2021.
Being a member of the EFC is not just about rules and research; it’s about passion and preservation. You get to connect with like-minded individuals, spread out across the county, who share a love for vintage fashion and history. The joy of seeing a perfectly recreated outfit or helping someone discover the beauty of era fashion is immensely rewarding.
I didn’t just become an EFC Member; I believe I became an EFC Family Member. We would have Zoom calls for official MAFCA meetings but they would include casual conversations and laughter and being the only male member, the conversations could be quite colorful. The same is true for in-person meetings. I have placed and received many phone calls that pertained to business but would go on for 15, 20 or 30 minutes talking about nothing and everything. From taking a ghost walk tour in Fort Worth or breaking bread with all members or just one member or while waiting for a train for an hour to take two of us to the airport gave us some one-on-one time. These are the things (and there are many more) that I cherished about my two terms of service.
But what I am most proud of is my small contribution to the monumental task of defining and documenting the guidelines for the new Fashion Display Judging.
And to all the ladies of the Committee, hats off for the countless hours, months and years of work that was done without reward except for the friendships, camaraderie, fun and the pride in a job well done. We are our own support group.
September 2024 Meeting: from left to right Peggy Gill, Diann Eason, Lois Przywitowski, Perry Jones (me), Anne Beck and Laurie Elliott.
EFC Members that I was proud to serve with and love:
Chairpersons
- Laurie Elliott, CA
- Lois Przywitowski, CO
Members
- Melanie Whittington
- WV Sherry Winkinhofer, NE
- Patti Jones, MT Jill Barrett, CA
- Lynda Davis, TX
- Peggy Gill, CA
- Pat Menz, CA
- Anne Beck, GA
- Diann Eason, CO