Le Coterie Society in San Angelo celebrates 40 years

SAN ANGELO, Texas. In 1983, a group of 18 black women came together in San Angelo to form a small sister organization called the Sabbath Group.

A few days after its formation, the group appointed officials and changed its name to Le Coterie Society, which in French means “a circle of people with common interests or goals.”

Now, in 2023, the organization is celebrating 40 years of outreach and activism.

“These ladies here volunteer their time and [are] strives to ensure that these children receive scholarships every year, and they have been doing so for the past 40 years, said Tiffany Sellers, chairman of the advertising committee. “So it’s a pretty big achievement.”

The Le Coterie Society holds two major fundraisers each year in which they raise money for scholarships for seniors before going to college.

One fundraiser is the “From Boys to Men” fashion show in February, and the other is “The Taste of Le Coterie” in November, serving Thanksgiving food. Students can find the scholarship application at their school’s advisory offices and an essay is required for consideration.

At 6:00 pm on January 14, Le Coterie will celebrate its 40th anniversary at the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, 1 Love Street, where San Angelo Mayor Brenda Gunther will deliver a proclamation.

There will also be a memorial tribute, a dinner and a keynote speech by a local pastor.

Looking ahead, Sellers hopes the sorority will continue to grow.

“Hopefully the goal is just to continue to be successful and continue to thrive and grow in terms of membership and also in terms of helping more kids,” she said.

After all, Le Coterie’s motto is to be “generous and fair,” and Sellers hopes to demonstrate that.