This was also a time when EFCL-led initiatives, which were run by leagues would become so popular, they would eventually become independent associations – groups like Neighbourhood Watch and Block Parents to name a couple. So, too, did the sports programs. By the early 90s, the number of organized sport programs (and participants) was beyond the capacity of league volunteers to handle effectively. It made sense that they too, would become independent with one caveat – you still needed a community league membership to play.

All this “leaving” didn’t stop the EFCL or its member leagues from coming up with new initiatives to continue bringing neighbours together, including creating a Youth Awards program, which recognized the talent and effort put forth by Edmonton’s youth in making the city a better place to live. This program would run for numerous years and honour many of the city’s young people who would later become leaders and major contributors within their own communities and the city.

By the mid-1990s, there were 143 leagues across Edmonton. The volume of members, volunteers and creative ideas on building stronger communities meant that the grass-roots movement that is the “community league way of life” would continue to flourish as community leagues moved into the final quarter of their first 100 years.