Mr. Dafydd Eckley from the North Wales Society for the Blind was our guest speaker at the AGM on 4 April 2023 and was presented a cheque in the sum of £100 for the Society. He gave a very interesting talk about his work as Senior Rehabilitation Officer for the Society and urged members, if they knew of anyone suffering sight loss, to introduce them to the Society where help is always available. He said there are 500 people in Gwynedd and 400 in Anglesey with some degree of sight loss. The Society produces audio books and also has a monthly walking group, which is extremely popular.  Dafydd said the motto for anyone with sight problems should be “bigger, bolder, brighter” and he also mentioned an app called SeeingAI which will read text aloud instantaneously.  Refreshments were then enjoyed by all.  It was lovely to see

Members enjoyed an extremely interesting and informative talk by Dr Gavin Gatehouse former lecturer at Bangor University and his wife Liz Gatehouse. Dr Gatehouse was instrumental in bringing to fruition a remarkable project for a small community – the Anafon Hydro scheme situated above Aber and Llanfairfechan ably supported by Hywel Thomas and Jacqui Bugden.   He spoke about the origins of the scheme, the benefits brought to the two villages and the Board’s hopes for the future. His wife also spoke about the Trust, Dwr Anafon, set up to spend the money generated by the scheme.  An excellent example of what can be achieved by a small group of dedicated people in a small community. Ynni Anafon Energy (anafonhydro.co.uk)

Club member Maggie Hughes provided a welcome respite from the cold and ice outside as members who braved the conditions joined together for a fabulous evening of experiencing different foods from around the World …. we are already looking forward to Part 2 next year !!!

Our annual Christmas dinner get together was celebrated at Y Felin in Pontrug. Entertainment was led by Top Hatted Master of Ceremonies Club Treasurer Joan Wynne and a wonderful evening of singalong classics and Music Hall style renditions! Wonderful to have such amazingly talented Soroptimists and family members to entertain us on a cold icy evening!

Fundraising can be fun too! A number of our members joined Llandudno SI club for an evening of cheese and wine and entertaining quizzing. We even came a close second, but of course the real winner was the charity supported on the night! Looking forward to the next next one!

Olga welcomed Kelly from Gorwel Women’s Aid who gave a short presentation on the work being undertaken by herself and her colleagues. At present there are three refuges covering Anglesey and Gwynedd, each with six bedrooms and all were currently full. The average length of stay in a refuge is between three and six months, although a few have been in the refuge for over a year. They are also supporting 114 families in the community. They are also currently awaiting three imminent births. Gorwel is a Business Unit within Grŵp Cynefin and Gorwel’s main focus is to provide support services in the field of domestic violence and homelessness prevention. Projects include refuges, supported housing schemes, children and young people services, support in the community and independent domestic violence advisory service. The type of support provided can include support with life skills and independent living

Lin welcomed Richard Price, Duty Officer from Penrhyn House, Bangor who gave a very informative and frank talk about the work at the Centre and also his own journey and struggles with addiction. NWRC was founded in 2014 by James Deakin, who was at the time working in criminal justice services and becoming increasingly frustrated with the lack of effective provision available for people with drug and alcohol addictions. NWRC began delivering a programme of meetings and recovery activity from Penrhyn House, which at the time was a hostel for ex-offenders. After negotiations with the landlord, James and the team took over the running of Penrhyn House and have since been running a rehabilitation programme for people with addictions to drugs and alcohol, they also provide a range of abstinent accommodation from both Penrhyn House and dispersed across Bangor. NWRC now has a team of