About Us

Welcome to the website of The Links, Incorporated ~ Columbus (OH) Chapter. The Links, Incorporated is an international organization consisting of more than 12,000 women committed to Leadership, Friendship and Service. The Columbus (OH) Chapter is one of more than 270 chapters located in 42 states, the District of Columbia and The Commonwealth of the Bahamas.

Our Chapter was chartered in 1950, as a not-for-profit community service organization. For nearly 65 years, our distinguished members have provided programming which has and will continue to impact the Central Ohio Community and the world. Through our five Facets ~ The Arts, Services to Youth, National Trends and Services, International Trends and Services and Health and Human Services, we volunteer our time, talents and energy to help men, women and children in need.

We are pleased to share our programs and calendar of events so that you can get to know us and perhaps partner with us as we help build a strong and viable community.

Our Rich History

The original eight members of the Columbus Chapter of the Links, Incorporated were inducted on March 20, 1950. These eight women, Alberta Turner, Thelma Smith, Virginia Bailey, Hariett Tyler, Mary Curtis, Alberta Harris, Ersie Foley and Norma Starks created a legacy of service to African-American in metropolitan Columbus and Central Ohio which embraced the ideals and principles of the national Links organization. The Columbus (OH) Chapter is one of twelve chapters in Ohio and two in metropolitan Columbus.

Ohio is one of the 17 states comprising the Central Area Region in which about 3,000 members reside.

For more information, visit our National Website at http://www.linksinc.org

Founding members include:  Alberta Turner, Thelma Smith, Virginia Bailey, Harriett Tyler, Mary Curtis, Alberta Harris, Elsie Foley and Norma Starks.

About The Links, Incorporated

The Links, Incorporated celebrates almost 70 years as a women’s volunteer service organization committed to enriching, sustaining and ensuring the cultural and economic survival of African Americans and other persons of African ancestry. A premier international service organization with more than 14,000 members in 282 chapters located in 41 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, its legacy of friends providing service that changes lives, established by the original circle of nine friends in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1946, is alive and well.

The members of The Links, Incorporated are influential decision makers and opinion leaders. The Links, Incorporated has attracted many distinguished women who are individual achievers and who have made a difference in their communities and the world. They are business and civic leaders, role models, mentors, activists and volunteers who work towards a common vision by engaging like­minded organizations and individuals for partnership. With more than 2 million service hours recorded in the past three years, members regularly contribute more than 500,000 documented service hours in their respective communities annually.

The Links Foundation, Incorporated, the philanthropic arm of The Links, Incorporated, has made more than $25 million in charitable contributions since its founding. Working closely with its sponsors and supporters, The Links, Incorporated is focused on creating transformational programming and impacting lives in communities of color through Services to Youth, The Arts, National Trends and Services, International Trends and Services, and Health and Human Services, to improve the quality of life for individuals, families and communities. The Links, Incorporated: “Linked in Friendship, Connected in Service.” For more information, visit www.linksinc.org.

Share Your Story!

Do You Have A Story of How The Columbus (OH) Chapter, Links Incorporated have changed your life? Share it with us here!