San Joaquin Valley Town Hall — the oldest non-profit, all-volunteer run town hall in the country — enters its 90th season this fall. Eight times a year (six weekday mornings and two evenings), upwards of 1,000 people pack Fresno’s Saroyan Theatre and other venues to hear leading thinkers and innovators speak on ideas shaping our world.

The organization’s original purpose, to “sponsor and present lectures, panel discussions and programs of an educational, literary and cultural nature,” really hasn’t changed but grown. Its updated purpose, to “bring nationally and internationally renowned, thought-provoking speakers who inform, educate, and entertain,” reflects a re-energized modern mission with an expansive and inclusive scope.

The 25-member working board and 75-plus community ambassadors are poised to launch this nonagenarian nonprofit into the next decade, as they continue to hone its vision for the future and a 100th birthday.

A public benefit corporation’s immortality is never a given nor a minor task to achieve. How does it stay relevant and better serve the diverse communities of the San Joaquin Valley? Well, it’s always an evolving, innovating work-in-progress.

The Birth of Town Halls in America

Town halls can be traced back to the 1820s, when townspeople gathered under a tent for a “Chautauqua.” Modeled after the Chautauqua Institute of Western New York, the movement spread across the country, featuring speakers, teachers, musicians and specialists of the day.

Public gatherings in the form of town halls were important – a vital way to keep citizens informed and entertained. Think of Ted Talks for the 19th century: an opportunity to gather community members together to experience new things, hear varied viewpoints and expand horizons.

SJV Town Hall proudly carries on that tradition today. Through a cadre of volunteers, it exists in the ether of its own collective energies. No bricks and mortar here, no paid staff, just a shared passion for lifelong learning and lots of sweat equity.

How SJV Town Hall Began

The idea for such an organization began with one trailblazing woman in Hanford, California. In 1937, after attending a speaker series in San Francisco, Mrs. Clio Lee Aydelott was hooked.

As a writer who belonged to a “letters society,” Mrs. Aydelott and her colleagues convinced Dr. Alan Rappaport to bring the unique format to Fresno to enhance the intellectual and the cultural life of the Valley.

Among the earliest speakers to grace the SJV Town Hall stage in the late 1930s were diplomat Nicolas Roosevelt, a cousin of President Theodore Roosevelt; the Countess Alexandra Tolstoy, the youngest daughter of Leo Tolstoy; and, Emma Linda Palmer Littlejohn, an Australian feminist, journalist, and radio broadcaster known for her advocacy of women’s rights.

Since then, SJV Town Hall has procured over 500 hundred notable speakers across a wide spectrum of disciplines, such as Alistair Cooke, Henry Kissinger, Maya Angelou, Judy Woodruff, Condoleezza Rice, Anthony Bourdain, Gloria Steinem, Ben Vereen, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Vincente Fox, Rick Steves, Roseanne Cash, Jimmy Chin, Michael McFaul, Father Greg Boyle, and Amy Tan.

Thanks to the continued support of our audiences and sponsors, SJV Town Hall hosts students free of charge, awards scholarships to high school Merit Scholars, and provides Certified Sign Language interpreters. We also offer livestreaming to all paid ticketholders and are in the midst of expanding streaming services to groups who might not otherwise be able to participate.

Highlights of SJV Town Hall’s 90th Season

Don’t miss our 90th anniversary celebration beginning Wednesday, Sept. 16, with comedian Pete Holmes. Our other speakers this season are journalist and CBS News senior correspondent Norah O’Donnell, NASA chief engineer and Mars expert Kobie Boykins, Food Network host and award-winning chef Tyler Florence, jazz virtuoso and music theorist Benjamin Boone, retired, 4-star Army general and cybersecurity specialist Gen. Paul M. Nakasone, zoologist and Nat. Geo. documentary producer Lucy Cooke, and to close out this stellar season in April 2027, A-lister actor Christine Baranski. Visit valleytownhall.com for details and ticket information.

In the digital age, as new technologies provide instant access to anything anytime, opportunities for true human connection are increasingly rare and even more important. San Joaquin Valley Town Hall continues the long tradition of community gatherings for a shared purpose and invites you to come along.

Enjoy a morning outing with friends or a family member; have a fun date night at Twilight Talks, attend a private Pardini’s lunch at the Saroyan Theatre; grab a quick food truck snack in the setting sun of the Paul Shaghoian Concert Hall or in the gardens of Clovis Veterans Memorial District.

As we mark its 90th birthday, we will continue to feed your mind and celebrate all that this amazing organization brings to San Joaquin Valley communities. Through its board, ambassadors, sponsors, partner organizations, schools, students, and loyal audiences, SJV Town Hall is a touchstone you can rely on to educate, entertain and inspire.

Join us and feed your joy!

About the Author

Phyllis Brotherton is a San Joaquin Valley Town Hall board member and the organization’s programming vice president.