By Mick Dillon / The Jambar
Since 1863, Youngstown Maennerchor has been a staple of both Youngstown and its local German community.
“Maennerchor” translates from German to “men’s chorus.” The concept originally began with German immigrants seeking community through choir, and locations started sprouting up throughout the United States in the 19th century.
The 524-member German social club is currently located on Mahoning Avenue and is open every day from 3 p.m. to 2 a.m.
Originally headquartered at Arms Hall until 1875, Youngstown Maennerchor saw several homes before opening at its current location in 1925.
Since Youngstown Maennerchor is a social club, it doesn’t follow traditional U.S. business structures. Youngstown Maennerchor is owned and operated by a board of trustees, and headed by an elected president.
Karen Beeman, president of Youngstown Maennerchor, has held her role since 2001 and said, while Youngstown Maennerchor has over 500 members, the group stays tight-knit through frequent events and fundraisers.
Beeman said the club is always looking for new members and typically relies on word of mouth for recruitment. The club is also open to anyone who wants to join, regardless of Germanic heritage, with a brief application process.
“People come [to Youngstown Maennerchor] and they’re like, ‘We want to belong,’” Beeman said. “We give them an application, it takes three minutes. … It’s $25 for a single person and $40 for a married couple.”
Beeman said the club also opens its doors to nonmembers from 3 p.m. to close, every Wednesday and Friday
“Wednesday is our wing night. [We] have over 32 varieties of wings,” Beeman said. “Friday is haddock dinner and an alternate special.”
In 2011, the roof of the club collapsed and deemed the building unusable. Beeman said it was the club’s members who helped with the needed renovations.
“Everybody pitched together, and we put a new roof [on the building], and got our building back up and running,” Beeman said.
Along with members paying it forward in times of need, the club’s yearly liquor license gets paid from the proceeds of Youngstown Maennerchor’s annual August fundraising event.
“We do an annual fundraiser for our liquor license, which is around $2,800,” Beeman said. “It costs $70 a ticket. It includes your dinner, your drinks and your reverse raffle. All the money goes back into the coffer for the liquor license.”
Beeman said the club has been working on a new promotion for Youngstown State University students to receive a discount on wings on Wednesday nights if they bring in their student IDs or a student-specific coupon.
Those looking to apply for membership can visit the club at 831 Mahoning Ave. during its hours of operation. More information can be found at the Youngstown Maennerchor Facebook page.
