Welcome to the Morning Forum of Los Altos web site. The Morning Forum has been operating for over 50 years, bringing local speakers as well as nationally known figures to a pleasant and friendly venue convenient to the citizens of the Los Altos region. The speakers are university professors, journalists, government representatives, activists, authors, musicians, and other widely respected experts in their fields. The wide range of topics as well as the eminence of the speakers has kept membership and attendance at its limit for many years. A quick look at the "Archives" tab and its link to articles about previous speakers will confirm why the Morning Forum has remained so popular for so many years.

At this site you will be able to see the current board organization, see the schedule of programs for the current season, learn something about the history of the Morning Forum, and access articles about previous Morning Forum presentations. If you are new to the Morning Forum, there is information about the time and location of the meetings, status on and steps to take to become a member and a membership application.

 

BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2008-2009

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The Morning Forum of Los Altos meets from 10:15 AM to 11:45 AM on the first and third Tuesdays of each month, starting the season in September and continuing into June of the following calendar year. Our meeting location is in the chancel of the Los Altos United Methodist Church (LAUMC). Click on LAUMC for directions and a map. Morning Forum of Los Altos membership is required for attendance at the presentations.

History

In the 1930's, a dozen women, all newcomers to Los Altos, used to meet at the home of Mrs. Frederica Rohrer to discuss current events, new books, and the "burning issues of the day." From that nucleus in the 1940's, the group, numbering forty-nine, became part of the national Delphian Society, which concentrated its study on culture and the arts. Local speakers, generally professors from San Jose State and Stanford, would give a talk, answer questions, and then be given lunch or a dessert and coffee.

The women eventually decided to broaden their interest and create a local study group in which they would set the agenda. After disbanding their affiliation with the Delphian Society, the women from Los Altos and Mountain View created the new organization they called, "The Morning Forum of Los Altos." The board defined the object of the organization as, "general cultural and intellectual stimulation through the giving and receiving of opinions with an open and tolerant attitude."

Their first meeting was in September 1950 in the San Antonio Women's Clubhouse with 49 members. The group's first speaker, Julia Easley, a San Jose State attorney, talked about "California Law for Women." At later meetings guests gave book reports and presented play readings. The World Affairs Council of Northern California, of which the Morning Forum was an affiliate, also provided speakers who spoke on "problems of Asia and the Pacific Area."

By the group's second year, membership had grown to seventy-one; and by the third year, it was over one hundred. By year four, the membership had grown to over two hundred and fifty; and by the sixth year it had expanded to over four hundred and was then open to men. Members came from almost every city in the area, from San Francisco to Santa Cruz, with the largest number coming from the areas near Los Altos. The board now sought speakers both locally and nationally and they no longer settled for a free lunch! In 1950 the early founders could hardly have envisioned that their organization would grow to its present membership of six hundred, with over two hundred people on the waiting list.

Over the past fifty years, the Morning Forum has brought nationally-known figures to Los Altos, including noted anthropologist Margaret Mead, Henry Kissinger, then a Harvard Professor, James Reston of The New York Times, and Gloria Steinem, feminist. Many journalists have spoken, including: Richard Reeves, Haynes Johnson, Mark Shields, David Kennedy (Stanford University Professor of History), Kathleen Sullivan (Stanford Dean and Professor of Law), and Presidential Historian Michael Bechloss.

The Morning Forum does not present political candidates. It attempts to present balanced programs; the program committee tries to look at issues that are likely to be getting attention and then procures speakers to address these issues.

For information write to The Morning Forum of Los Altos, Box 274, Los Altos, CA 94023. To apply for membership, download an application form.

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