Perpetually honored
Kathleen Aberman received the annual News-Press Perpetual Trophy for being the designated go-to person of the Women’s Athletic Club of Glendale.
Aberman was presented the award Tuesday during the June Tea at the Glendale clubhouse.
“I’m so happy the ladies recognized my efforts to support the club,” Aberman said. “It is an honor to receive the Glendale News-Press Perpetual Trophy.”
The award, which premiered in 1938, honors a member who goes beyond what is expected in supporting the club’s activities.
Members belong to one of three departments — hiking, music or honey bee. Each has fundraising events throughout the year to support scholarships for students following a sports-oriented career.
Aberman, of Eagle Rock, has held membership in the club since 1997. She is a member of the hikers department and has been that group’s secretary. For the general assembly, she has served as program chairwoman, first vice president, president, and this year has been in charge of reservations.
“She’s been a wonderful help to the club,” President Martha Moren said. “She’s a real asset. She takes all the reservations for the club’s luncheons, and she’s a go-to person if you need to know how to do anything with the club.”
Aberman meets with fellow members of the Hikers Club every Thursday. They hike an average five miles each week in Griffith Park, the Verdugo and San Gabriel mountains or the beaches, often walking from Santa Monica to Venice Beach.
“We walk, we talk and usually bring a bag lunch and eat on the trail or at the end of the hike,” she said.
Hikes begin at 9 a.m. and finish at about 12:30 p.m.
The best part of the group is the camaraderie, she said.
“While my sister was very sick with cancer, I looked so forward to our hikes every Thursday. It was my therapy,” Aberman said. “In the beginning, I joined the club for the exercise, but I found out it was more than that.”
The total membership is now between 90 and 100 women.
“You met other women you wouldn’t ordinarily meet,” she said. In the community, Aberman is also a member of Temple Sinai of Glendale and the Eagle Rock Homeowners Assn., whose purpose is to protect and preserve the single-family homes and historic commercial buildings in that city.
Originally from Iowa, she and her husband have two children and four grandchildren.