Summer 2016 Editor: Tricia Weinbren

Issue 15 Club News from around our region

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When I began my year as Regional President my aim was to attend the Business meeting of every club in the region and I am pleased to report to you that by the end of March I had achieved half of these visits. It has been very interesting to see all of the differences in each club and to have

been welcomed so warmly by everyone. I can also report that I have booked in another two attendances at clubs Business meetings and so am fairly confident of achieving my original aim.

As usual there is a lot of planning going on with the region with hard work by Jan Bowden sorting out your bookings for the

Change of Insignia on the 15th May @ the Granary, Kidderminster; Ann Keepax sorting out new regional ‘pull-ups’

and the new communication group, many thanks to those who have volunteered to be on that group; and Rose Hutchinson working on the study day for 17th September. I must also

mention the evening AGM meeting on the 18th July when Kumbi Kariwo our web site manager will be helping us with social media

and the winner of the Inspirational Woman Award will tell us about her charity. I am aware that clubs in the region have been very brave in their efforts to have a membership

month event. One example was where I attended SI Coventry’s event at the West Orchards Shopping Centre. Also clubs have been busy with their charter lunches as I have attended those of

SI Coventry and SI Kenilworth. SI Rugby organised a walk around Draycote Water in aid of Water Aid which Steve and I completed on a fairly cold March morning.

Hoping to see more members at the regional; and your club events, during the remainder of my year

A Message from our Regional

President Su Roxburgh

Theme for the Year

Women Standing for Women

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Soroptimist International of Central Birmingham

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN;

WOMEN AGAINST VIOLENCE

Wednesday 25 November 2015

FORUM REPORT

The Forum

On 25th November 2015, Soroptimist International of Central Birmingham hosted its first Violence Against

Women, Women Against Violence forum for those who support victims of violence. As well as raising

awareness of domestic abuse issues, the event aimed to offer an opportunity for participants to engage with the

professionals and discuss ways in which support could be offered to victims across Birmingham through

partnership working.

Welcome & Introduction

The forum was chaired by Algar Goredema-Braid, President Elect of Soroptimist International, Midland Arden

Region. She welcomed each of the guest speakers and outlined the format of the evening as a discussion forum

focussing on topics such as Domestic Violence, Exploitation of Women and Female Genital Mutilation. Algar

was keen that this opportunity was used to understand the issues in more detail and identify areas of mutual

support.

The Speakers

Mark Rogers, Chief Executive of Birmingham City Council

Clare Edwards, Head of Safeguarding Children Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Trust

The Victim’s Perspective

The issue of the evening, Violence Against Women, was dramatically and movingly described by a young

woman who herself was abused by her partner. She wanted to be “the voice of 100s of women in this country

who have lost their lives when they needed to be heard”. Her powerful presentation introduced the perspective

of the victim. The audience was asked to consider how women like J do not always appreciate that they are in

an abusive relationship. Her experience also highlighted how domestic violence can often take different forms

such as abuse and manipulation as well as physical violence.

What Happens Next

The forum was the first of its kind hosted by Soroptimist International of Central Birmingham.

It is hoped that from this event, further opportunities in which the Club can raise awareness and encourage

partnership working will be identified. Updates on these activities will be posted on the Soroptimist International

of Central Birmingham website. (www.sicentralbirmingham.co.uk) The Club would also like to encourage

individuals to feedback how they are progressing with their pledges via email or facebook

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Inspirational Woman Award 2016

All photos courtesy of Algar

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Public Speaking Competition 2016

PUZZLE CORNER

WORDSEARCH – Summer delights

R E L A X I N G S Y

G M X X X A W N Y Y

R S P A P Y G I A S

E N I H S N U S D E

S E H C A E B G I A

B L H R X O J N L S

L B G D Y K R I O I

Q H W Y D C R K H D

C A Q A N V H I U E

E B E T S N A H V D

BEACHES

HIKING

HOLIDAYS

RELAXING

SEASIDE

SUNSHINE

Answers on page 19

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SI Bromsgrove and Redditch Club

SOROPTIMISTS’ WALK – HANBURY

THURSDAY, 17TH MARCH 2016

The start point for today's walk was the car park next to Hanbury Church perched high up

on its hill. The assembled walkers were Chris, Eithne, Sarah, Gilly, Sue, Liz and Sprocket the dog. We set off through the church yard and onto a footpath heading North, in lovely

Spring sunshine but accompanied by a cool wind. The path led us onto Pipers Hill where we turned West out of the woods and onto a footpath across arable land. At one point on

a narrow path beside a stream we spotted the remaining wreckage of a car long since crashed into the stream.

This started Chris off enthusing about the colours of the rust on the nuts and bolts which led us into a discussion about exactly what is Art? This subject kept us going until the

footpath joined the canal towpath, and at that moment a narrow boat slowly glided past to negotiate a lock.

We followed the tow path until we reached the next lock and then turned onto a well defined footpath across a corn field. Behind us another boat slid by at the same time as a

train rushed past on the railway line on the far side of the canal, provoking a conversation

about boat trips and train trips. We then followed paths around the edge of Hanbury Hall Estate where we had to

negotiate a couple of slightly wobbly wooden stiles! We joined the road briefly to rejoin another footpath leading towards Hanbury Hall, and then across the front of the Hall. Our

finishing point, Hanbury Church, was in view but the last stretch was back up hill! We all made it to return to the car park and after a change of footwear all but Eithne

(who had to be somewhere else) drove back down to the Jinney Ring for a well earned cup of tea/coffee, a short bread biscuit, a sit down in the sunshine and another chat.

The walk was 4 miles and took us two hours. Many thanks to Sarah Rennie for organising the walk.

Liz Every

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SI Central Birmingham Club

Violence against women Following the success of its first Violence Against Women, Women Against Violence Forum, Central Birmingham Club held a meeting on 1 March 2016 to explore themes and ideas that had developed from the forum. The meeting was attended by members of Central Birmingham club and regional president Su Roxburgh. We heard from three speakers: Birmingham City Council: Paula Harding, Senior Service Manager Violence Against Women, Equalities, Community Safety and Cohesion; Birmingham Crisis Centre: Vanessa Chapman, Centre Manager and Claire Brook, HR Manager; Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid: Joanne Carter, Operations Manager. We heard from the various speakers about what we could do to support each of their organisations. We have since been able to contribute various items requested by the crisis centre. On 30 March 2016 we delivered much needed bits and pieces such as: bedding and items for children which has been gratefully received. We are currently looking in to the prospect of ‘adopting’ a room within the centre to make it more comfortable for the women who need the centre. New members Birmingham Central has welcomed two new members into club: Caroline Cobbing and Rebecca Pearce. Coffee morning A successful coffee morning was held on 27 April 2016 to raise funds for VSO (Voluntary Services Overseas) Fistula Hospital The ladies continue to knit blankets for the fistula hospital in Ethiopia. Bridge Day On 12 April 2016, a Bridge Day was held at Walker Hall, Edgbaston to raise funds for outdoor exercise equipment at the Queen Alexandra College (QAC). There were 48 players, raising around £700. The total figure is still to be finalised. Talk from Jackie Careless of the Northfield Eco Centre The project began as an advice centre on conserving energy within the home. The Centre itself has a small city garden which demonstrates the very best use you can make of limited space. Jackie’s main project was created out of a Council-owned garage court. The Council knocked down the garages and roughly cleared the site. With a lot of work from herself and volunteers, Jackie has created a magnificent community garden .There are terraces made from all the old bricks found on the site, with raised beds made of tyres. All are now full of vegetables and flowers in the summer. There is a small fruit orchard and fruit bushes, and a wood in creation. Schools bring children on outings. Another project was collecting fruit: for example, apples from gardens (with permission) and public spaces, and recycling it to day centres, etc. They had enough apples to make and sell their own apple juice. For more information about the centre and their projects please see: www.northfieldecocentre.com.

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Forthcoming Events

2 May – Earlsdon Festival, 1030-1630, Stall 35 – collecting signatures for Purple Teardrop Campaign plus

awareness raising

10 May – speaker meeting: “The Coventry Haven”

14 June – speaker meeting: Ann Farr “Human Rights Observer Role”

19 June – with SI Leamington Spa and SI Kenilworth at the Leamington Spa Peace Festival

12 July – speaker meeting: David Mobley “The ‘A’ Word”

AGM

At our club’s AGM in April, we celebrated past presidents and looked forward to a new experience – a year

without a President! We will operate with a rota of past presidents taking the helm for a month each; continuity

will be provided by our three officers (Secretary, Treasurer, Programme Action Officer).

Growth Pilot

Following the Government’s cancellation of the small business growth programme in November, the Federation

and Affilius have had to rethink how the pilot will operate. Instead of working with individual clubs, Affilius will

now meet with clubs in three clusters – North, Midlands and South.

On 21 March, Carol and Sue attended the Midlands Cluster Meeting in Birmingham. We were greeted by Isobel

Smith, Federation Director of Organisational Development. The agenda for the day included explanations from

Affilius CEO Andrew Dewhurst, followed by workshops where we considered how to action plans in our own

clubs. Andrew briefly outlined the Affilius Growth Plan, emphasising the need for an effective Marketing &

Communicatons (Marcomms) Plan and promising clubs access to Affilius’ online portal and toolkit. He also

shared the poster that the ‘pilot of pilots’, SI Garstang, has produced as well as their long list of places to target

with posters and leaflets.

Workshop 1 – Unique Selling Points of our club

Workshop 2 – Six key questions to intrigue prospective new members

Workshop 3 – Which organisations in our area would make good partners?

Workshop 4 – Develop Orbit wheel and Single Page Plan (SPP) for our club.

Club ‘homework’ following this meeting is to prepare our club Orbit wheel and Single Page Plan. Copies of

these have already been distributed, and members are encouraged to consider how to complete them. We hope to

have an agreed version ready in time for the next cluster meeting in May.

Programme Action

Charity Quiz

A Friday evening seemed a good choice for a pub quiz; unfortunately, this particular Friday, 4 March, it snowed!!

However, five keen teams turned up at the Humber pub to pit their wits against each other, and the range and

variety of questions was broad. Teams agonised about when to play their joker, and the final result was very

close. Everyone had a good time; a gratifying £112 was raised in entry fees and raffle ticket sales.

International Women’s Day

On 5 March, SI Coventry members manned a display in West Orchards shopping centre to showcase our

activities and raise awareness of soroptimism. Many of our club leaflets were distributed and we talked to women

who were shopping and/or enjoying a coffee. We were pleased to be supported by other regional clubs.

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Coventry Women’s Network (of which our club is part) collated activities throughout the city for International

Women’s Week, publicising them on a dedicated website. SI Coventry members attended one of many events, a

cultural women’s event in Foleshill Library, hosted by Lady Godiva.

Speaker Meetings

Vison Aid Overseas

In February we learnt from Alan Taylor about an amazing charity called Vision Aid Overseas, which provides

access to eye care and spectacles to the poorest of people. In Ethiopia volunteer opticians travel out to treat and

test men, women and children who cannot access school or work because they cannot see properly. The

presentation was very thought-provoking and moving. Did you know that 670 million people are affected

worldwide? And that the cost of a can of coke can provide glasses for one person?

http://www.visionaidoverseas.org

On Air

Marion Mcmanee's engaging talk began with her school life and how one teacher's belief in her helped her follow

her dream and become a radio presenter and journalist. After her degree in radio and business she went worked

for a number of different stations but was drawn back to the city she grew up in. Marion talked passionately

about the job she clearly loves, explaining that she wanted to 'paint pictures' for her audience. She most enjoys

being able to connect with people and hear their stories. She shared clips from her recent work, and challenged us

to talk to each other and listen to each other's stories.

Social Events

On 2 March Ann R held a Fairtrade coffee morning, raising £63 for our charities.

We were delighted to welcome the Lady Mayoress and Regional President Su and her husband among other

guests to our Annual Lunch at Brandon Hall on 13 March.

Coventry History Project

SI Coventry has joined other women’s groups in the city to produce a series of panels, each portraying a century

of Coventry’s history from 1016-2016 under the leadership of Lady Godiva (Pru Poretta). Much happened in this

millennium, starting with a Viking raid on St Osberga’s convent in 1016. The panels will be used in schools for

history projects and lessons. Each group has freedom to design its own panel, using techniques such as

embroidery, crochet, collage, etc. A set palette of colours will provide overall coherence, and the panels will be

linked by a river and tree branches.

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Installation of President

On the 14th April at the AGM the Election of Officers, 2016-2017 took place. Immediately afterwards President Elaine invited Tricia

Weinbren to the table and transferred the Chain of Office, installing Tricia as President of Kenilworth and District for 2016-

2017.

Installation of President Elect

Tricia then invited Sharon Maxted to the table and presented her with the President Elect’s Chain.

News from our Sister Soroptimists in Malawi

When I met some members of SI Blantyre back

in November at Conference, they told me that they were trying to get a second Soroptimist

club started in Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. Now Pricilla Matinga from SI Blantyre has sent

us the exciting news that this club has been started, and forwarded a photo showing some of

the potential members. Pricilla has also sent a photo of SI Blantyre’s hand over of more

uniforms to girls at a school they support.

She tells me that selected students from this rural state school were invited to a quiz competition with the students from the

private school owned by Judith Chirwa (President of SI Blantyre last year, not sure about this year), together with students from

a school for City residents. Pricilla says that this was to expose the sponsored students to ‘other life styles’.

You can read more about Judith here - www.chifundomalawi.org/content/mrs-judith-penchirwa

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2016 February to April

Over this last year on a number of occasions we chose not to have a speaker at our

supper meeting but use that time for more in-depth presentations by Pat Martin of our Programme Action projects.

Busy March: photo shoot and lunch in Bewdley Bridge for International Women’s Day. Speaker Meeting: Richard Green, Director of the ‘Reshaping Birmingham City Centre’ gave

a most interesting illustrated talk on the massive project that produced the fascinating city centre we all now enjoy.

We welcomed Ann Becke, our candidate Inspirational Woman Award, who during her adult life has raised ¼ million pounds and continues active involvement with a plethora of

charities, most importantly the Chernobyl Children’s Lifeline. For 22 years she has brought 500 children from Belarus for a recuperative holiday. A truly inspirational woman.

We helped at Birchen Coppice Primary School’s Easter Fayre raise several hundred pounds!

In April we thanked President Shirley Bonas for her successful 2nd term of office and welcomed Denise Carson for her 3rd term. Her motto for the year is ‘Why I am ….’ with

our first speaker being Isobel Smith, SIGBI Director of Organisational Development.

Appropriately the title of her talk was “Why am I………a Soroptimist?” Our Day of Service was again devoted to making items for the Hoima Hospital and

Orphanage in Uganda. To date we will have sent an impressive: 215 birthing sheet, 13 blankets, 85 dresses , 15 shorts, 180 hat & vest sets plus 338 hats, 95 vests and 62

premature baby hats & vests. Our 2nd annual whole day Bridge Tournament was attended by 92 players and raised

about £800 for the Alzheimer Society. Grateful thanks to Sandra Squires for again so expertly taking charge of the playing side of the event.

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Club members met for a “Pot Luck lunch” on 11th February and the money raised

contributed towards a £175 donation to Warwick Rotary’s appeal to provide a reliable electricity supply for the Children’s Hospital in Bo, Sierra Leone.

On 23rd February members celebrated both Fair trade Fortnight and World Leprosy Day with a sale of fair trade goods which raised £40.

In March members were inspired by youth in the shape of 14 year old Oliver Webb who won 2nd prize at the Regional Public Speaking competition and 18 year old Daisy Howden

who has cared for her mentally ill mother since the age of 3 years. At the club meeting Noreen Dean spoke about the work of the Samaritans and members

celebrated Santosh Kundi’s “significant birthday” with a bouquet lilies and a very colourful balloon!

On 8th March Santosh hosted a social evening with a Nigerian theme in honour of the Meru Women’s Garden Project. £75 was raised.

A coffee morning held by Jackie Graham on 8th April raised £250 for Water Aid. Preparations are proceeding for our 80th birthday celebrations and invitations are being

sent out for the lunch on 26th June. We expect visitors from some of our Friendship Links .

The club held its AGM on 19th April. In a break from tradition there is no incoming President but there will be a series of chairmen each holding office for 2 months .

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SOROPTIMIST INTERNATIONAL

LEAMINGTON & WARWICK

1936 – 2016

Members of SI Leamington & Warwick invite you to lunch to celebrate the 80th anniversary of

our Charter on Sunday 26th June 2016,

The venue is Alderson House (Masonic Rooms) Back Lane off High Street, Warwick. CV34

4AX.

.

Lunch will be 12.15pm for 12.45pm and there will be a pre lunch drink on the lawn.

Members of our friendship links – Apeldoorn, Cologne, Birkerod and Nantwich will be joining us

for the weekend

We are delighted that Federation President Elect Ann Hodgson and Regional President Su

Roxburgh have accepted our invitation to lunch.

The cost is £28. We would appreciate your reply by Saturday May 28th 2016, to be sent to June

James 17 Eborall Close, Warwick CV4 5QA jcjames251@aol.com

We hope that many of you will be here on the 26th to celebrate, with us, this very special

occasion.

Yours in friendship

June James

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Since Christmas SI Rugby have had 3 big events all in March. The first occasion was The Big book

give away in Rugby town centre shopping precinct. We gave away over 400 books both

children’s and grown up books. We put a sticker in

all the books to show that they are donated by SI Rugby. Mayor Richard Dodd joined us and stayed

to help give away books.

Later that evening our Education group put on a 50’s swing evening. The Big Band from the local boys’

grammar school entertained and after an interval with 50s style food (Who remembers the pineapple

hedgehog?) a disco of 50’s music. The money raised is going to help support a summer scheme for young

people in Rugby.

Two weeks later at Draycote Water we were out again for our sponsored walk. We were raising

money for Water Aid. This is the 2nd year that we have organized this walk and our thanks to

Severn Trent Water and Draycote Water for their help.

Thank you to Regional President Sue for

attending both the swing evening and the sponsored walk

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At SI Solihull & District in February we held the second Solihull Borough Schools’ Public Speaking

Competition at the St John’s Hotel, Solihull, in two age categories – 11-13 (Intermediate) and 14-17 (Senior).

Winners in each age group received vouchers along with a large silver trophy for their school to hold for one year,

whilst all entrants received certificates. The Mayor and Deputy Lord Lieutenant of the West Midlands were

present along with notable councillors and Director of Change. The worthy winner Tamanna Janjua was then

sponsored by our club to go forward to the MAR competition in Dudley on 12th March.

Also in February our club took part in Solihull’s Fairtrade Fortnight Cake Off, with over 80 entrants - always a

great success and again boosting our profile locally. A very successful Quiz night organised by one of our

Friendship Links officers Judith James was held at Oliver Bird Hall, Solihull which raised in excess of £900 for

our charities, most especially the Women of VVamatula project.

At the March meeting of MAR we were extremely proud that our entry Hannah Borg won the Inspirational

Woman Award. Hannah is only 23 and founded Cherish her charity which supports disadvantaged girls.

New President and officers are now in place and we are encouraging all members to become more involved as our

numbers grow (we are now 52 strong). At our AGM on Thursday 14th April President Ann Thomas took over

from Liz Lowe and Jane Davies (Secretary) was succeeded by Sue Mitchell. Susan Knowles has now taken over

as Treasurer from Joanne Ackrill. Liz Lowe and Marina McGoldrick are our new Programme Action officers.

Because our Club is growing and vibrant, we have initiated 4 Club Support Teams of about 12 members in each,

which will organise the tasks involved in setting up our monthly business meetings on a quarterly rota basis. We

hope that this will give more ownership to all members and encourage new friendships as well as a greater

understanding of the running of the Club. In addition it is hoped that members will become more confident in

coming forward to take on Officer’s roles in the future.

This year’s President’s charities are Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid, Macmillan Cancer Support and

Look Good Feel Better for women with cancer. Our Crafts ‘n Laughs Group are supporting two other charities

as well as BSWA with their plans for articles to sell at the Christmas Fair. Their on-going international efforts –

and the club members - support the Hamlin Fistula Hospital, Ethiopia. Our Lobbying Group is holding a film

night (Suffragette), on 16th for our Friendship Link club SI Masaka.

On April 30th we will be promoting our club at the Go Green Fair in Solihull town centre as part of our

commitment to Fairtrade. We will be manning a stall to sell handmade products from our FL club SI Masaka.

In May, we are looking forward to a Club outing by coach to the gardens of the Prince of Wales at Highgrove

with tour and lunch. It promises to be a very special day out.

On June 10th, we are planning a visit to the Lady Katherine Leveson Foundation at Temple Balsall for a tour and

afternoon tea. If any MAR members would like to join us the cost is £8 for tour, tea and cake.

Programme Action in June: We will host our annual project to encourage the sciences in women and girls

through Skirting Science at Light Hall School on Friday 24th. We will be honoured by the presence of Federation

President Margaret Emsley who herself is an engineer, as one of our VIPs. This project is tremendously

successful thanks to the efforts of a team headed up by Past President of our club Angela Sadler.

We have a few members going to visit SI Fulda, Germany in June to reinforce our Friendship Links, and we in

turn plan to host SI Molde, Norway in October.

Our Helping Hands project is on-going with members bringing essential provisions to club meeting for the Food

Bank.

In July we will again provide afternoon ‘Tea for the Elderly’ at Elizabeth House, Shirley as we have done for

many years. The club also tidies the gardens for the residents to enjoy during the summer months. Our Gardening

group are still active in keeping the railway station at Widney Manor looking immaculate, a splendid

community enterprise by the Club

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The Soroptimist Programme Action focus in the Stourbridge & District Club

has moved to Food Security and Health for the first few months of 2016. Our

January Speaker Dinner, led by Jane Flint Bridgewater, welcomed Charlotte Scofield, Director of Fundraising and Lottery at Mary Stevens Hospice (MSH),

to give an update on refurbishment and future daycare plans at the hospice. Charlotte reflected very movingly the deep appreciation felt by patients and

their families for the care and fulfilling final times. A forthcoming capital appeal will benefit patients and families so assessed and extend to all people at end

of life, as recommended in national guidelines. Training initiatives at the hospice will also be shared across the local community.

The January Business meeting addressed a very full agenda including planning of the 2016/2017 programme. A sale of surplus seasonal gifts raised

£100 for Cockermouth Soroptimists' fund to help after the floods. The Rosemary Jean Carter Soroptimist Legacy for Music Education was

discussed. Submissions were invited for the Midland Arden Region Inspirational Woman Award for a non-Soroptimist. Posters raising awareness

and recognition for action against Modern Day Slavery were distributed for

exhibiting by local organisations together with Club booklets. The Coffee Collective in Stourbridge is kindly hosting Soroptimist Membership awareness

afternoons. The February Dinner meeting was led by Jadwiga Shiels, introducing Zoe

Baggott from Alzheimer's Research UK to talk with a focus on women, where Alzheimer's is now the commonest single cause of death for women over the

age of 65. She highlighted the growing dynamism of research in the field, women contributing significantly, both in scientific study as well as leadership

of the organisation, and invited registration of those members willing to be potential study participants in the future.

An important vote took place that evening to nominate the Club's candidate for the Midland Arden Region Inspirational Woman Award to a current non-

Soroptimist; the winning candidate going forward to the regional competition is Bev Hodt of Ridgewood High School's Project Gambia.

February Business also marked Fairtrade Fortnight with consideration of our

Food Bank donations among other forthcoming activities for March, which included hosting of the Midland Arden Region Soroptimists' Public Speaking

competition at Dudley Town Hall on Saturday afternoon 12th March. Regional President Su Roxburgh of Stourbridge & District Club hosted a special

showing of Wicket Warriors to a full Electric Cinema audience of regional Soroptimists and friends on 19th February, marking International Anti-FGM

Day on 6th February. The Maasai Warriors of Kenya have partnered among others the Cricket without Boundaries charity to raise awareness of health

issues, including most recently FGM (female genital mutilation), which the increasingly confident cricket team have now persuaded their tribe elders to

abandon.

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Vertical gardens in Cape Town, South Africa

Since 2015 SI Stratford-upon-Avon have been making donations to the Mhani Gingi Social

Entrepreneurial Network, whose founding director is Lillian Masebenza, based in Cape Town. The

project we are supporting promotes vertical gardens. This has enabled disabled persons at the

Langa Cheshire Home for Disabled Adults to actually participate in gardening.

Trade Justice

At the SI Stratford-upon-Avon February meeting the current chairman of the Fairtrade group in the town gave

us more information on the scheme. Fairtrade goods were displayed. In essence, “By requiring companies to pay

sustainable prices (which must never fall lower than the market price), Fairtrade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates

against the poorest, weakest producers. It enables them to improve their position and have more control over their

lives”.

First ever female editor of the “Herald” The editor gave SI Stratford-upon-Avon insight into the history, the difficulties and, to a limited extent, the workings of the local, privately-owned broadsheet. Its first edition was published in 1860, when few local newspapers existed. She explained that before the 1900s the masses were not encouraged nor were financially able to regularly read newspapers. Local journalism is not an easy field to be in but the newspaper’s first woman editor is certainly

making inroads. We look forward to a mutually beneficial relationship with her and our local newspaper.

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The Presidents Dinner The Presidents’ dinner in February was a great success. Philip Gerrard from Deaf Direct of

Worcester and Merleen Watson from Hearing Dogs for the Deaf outlined their charities activities and our guest speaker Philip Serrell gave an entertaining speech about his life when he started out as an auctioneer. Sixty-eight Soroptimists and friends packed the Golf Club and the evening

raised £1000.00. A very special guest was Grace who is Merleen’s hearing dog.

Philip Serrell, Carolyn Varley, Lynda Owen, Philip Gerrard, Deaf Direct, Merleen Watson and Grace from

Hearing Dogs for the Deaf.

Club meetings. We were pleased to welcome Jane Sturdy from FOAG who gave a insight into the work of FOAG in

Uganda and an update on the progress of Agnes whose education we sponsor.

Carolyn Varley, Jane Sturdy from FOAG and Lynda Owen

A representative from Water Aid gave an interesting talk on the plight of girls and women through

lack of running water and showed the sterling work Water Aid did to provide water and toilet

facilities in schools and villages in the poorest countries of the world.

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Worcester and District have restructured their monthly meetings starting in May and will now hold

one evening meeting on the third Wednesday in the Month and a lunch club on the first

Wednesday in the month. Each evening meeting will include business and a speaker and we hope

this will work well and encourage ladies with less time to join our group.

Friendship Links.

Worcester and Districts friendship link in Zwolle, The Netherlands are celebrating their eighty

birthday in May with a friendship weekend which some members will attend.

In April some members will attend a lunch hosted by our friendship link in High Wycombe.

A special member

We are very proud of our member Jo Dowling who was received by the Prince of Wales at

Buckingham Palace in February where she was awarded the MBE for services to the community.

Jo Dowling at Buckingham Palace with her MBE

Membership Drive

As part of the Soroptimist membership drive Worcester and District club are holding an event at The Hive,

Worcester on 6th and 7th May 2016 to try to recruit new members and raise awareness of our club and the

Soroptimist movement.

Summer Outing

Our summer outing will be on Thursday 4th August 2016 to Trentham Gardens, tickets are £16.00.

Information and tickets from accandlish@hotmail.com

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Solution from wordsearch on page 4

R E L A X I N G S +

+ + + + + + + + Y +

+ + + + + + + + A S

E N I H S N U S D E

S E H C A E B G I A

+ + + + + + + N L S

+ + + + + + + I O I

+ + + + + + + K H D

+ + + + + + + I + E

+ + + + + + + H + +

(Over,Down,Direction)

BEACHES(7,5,W)

HIKING(8,10,N)

HOLIDAYS(9,8,N)

RELAXING(1,1,E)

SEASIDE(10,3,S)

SUNSHINE(8,4,W)

Dates for your diary

Sunday 15th May Regional Change of Insignia

12.30pm for 1pm Lunch The Granary Heath Lane Shenstone Kidderminster

Monday 18th July 6pm for 6.30pm AGM and

Regional meeting Cobden Hotel 166 Hagley Road Birmingham Hosted by SI Stratford-upon-Avon

There will be four issues of the Midland Arden Newsletter. Please email club news(200 words maximum) and photos to paweinbren@btinternet.com Cut off dates for copy Spring 1st February Summer 1stMay Autumn 1st September Winter 1st November Our president is particularly interested in programme events and how your club is helping the community in your area. (Maximum words and one picture please) Let’s also celebrate new members of our clubs so please send me their details for inclusion in the newsletter! Many thanks The Editor Tricia Weinbren