Skip links

Bridgend Soroptimists ‘Challenge the Future’ at Dublin Convention

Bridgend Soroptimists ‘Challenge the Future’ at Dublin Convention

in Tags

Soroptimist International is a world-wide organisation with 72,000 members in 122 countries and is a Global Voice for Women. Alongside our annual Federation (SIGBI) conference, Soroptimist International holds a quadrennial Convention and in 2023 this was in the historic city of Dublin, in Ireland. Two Bridgend Soroptimists, Judith Lewis and Rayner Rees, joined 1600 Soroptimists from all five Federations including Soroptimist International Africa Federation, Soroptimist International of the Americas, Soroptimist International of Europe, Soroptimist International of Great Britain & Ireland and Soroptimist International of the South West Pacific.  The theme of the Convention was ” Challenge the Future”  and brought together speakers from across the globe, as well as a series of seminars, workshops, round table discussion and poster sessions. Take this visual trip through the convention.  SI Bridgend was delighted that it’s Programme Action poster was selected for display. The poster highlights the work

A Gift of Slow Cookers to Make the Pennies Go Further

A Gift of Slow Cookers to Make the Pennies Go Further

in Tags

On Wednesday 28th June, SI Bridgend made a wonderful donation of 12 Slow Cookers to the Women’s Refuge, Llamau, in Bridgend.The club organises easy cooking sessions with the women at Llamau’s refuge in Bridgend and recognised the need for equipment to encourage healthy eating. Hannah Jones, who has worked with Welsh Women’s Aid for 15 years was delighted to accept the cookers. We also welcomed Katie from Welsh Women’s Aid. Katie was so passionate about her role and it was a joy to hear her share many of the wonderful things that Welsh Women’s Aid are achieving and working on, one of which is “Live fear free” ; thank you Katie. We are looking forward to the ‘Ask Me’ Training in the coming weeks.

Soroptimists pledge support to BAWSO

Soroptimists pledge support to BAWSO

in Tags

Bridgend Soroptimists were delighted to welcome Nancy Lidubwi, the policy manager at BAWSO, to a recent meeting as our guest speaker. Nancy explained the work that BAWSO do and spoke about issues concerning violence against women, trafficking, FGM and modern day slavery victims. BAWSO has offices in Cardiff, Newport, Swansea and Wrexham to cover all of Wales. Demand for its services continues to increase and in spite of funding from Welsh Government and Social Services, also depends on charitable donations. Housing for refugees features heavily on its workload, which includes meeting educational and social needs. BAWSO is President Lesley’s chosen charity for 2023-2024. President Lesley thanked Nancy for her very interesting presentation and pledged our support for the coming year.

Membership Month with Friendship and Fun

Membership Month with Friendship and Fun

in Tags

Members of SI Bridgend gathered in friendship and fun to highlight Membership Month. Starting with a great walk in Cowbridge, a small group of members then gathered for coffee and chat. It was a great opportunity to display our leaflets and orange shoe, raising awareness of Domestic Violence alongside what it is to be a Soroptimist and our own club, SI Bridgend. We demonstrated Soroptimists Taking Action and asked David Barnes (local dry cleaners) to display the poster and orange shoe, which they did without hesitation. Remember, membership month is not just May.

Celebrating 40 years as a Soroptimist

Celebrating 40 years as a Soroptimist

in Tags

We were delighted to welcome Lesley Davies as our President at SI Bridgend and wish her every success for the coming year. Lesley takes over from Gaynor Hoare. Thank you and well done to Gaynor for leading the Club over the past 2 years. Ruth Davies Kemp stepped up as President Elect and is proud to wear the Williamsburg mace brooch as the President Elect insignia. We also celebrated Jean Thomas receiving her long service award for 40 years’ service as a Bridgend Soroptimist. Well done and congratulations Jean! We are looking forward to the next 12 months, where we will enjoy Fun and Friendship whilst supporting women and girls in our local community as well as internationally.

Bridgend welcomes new Soroptimist President

Bridgend welcomes new Soroptimist President

in Tags

Bridgend Soroptimists held their AGM at the Heronston Hotel last night and welcomed their new President, Lesley Davies. Although outgoing president Gaynor Hoare was unable to attend, she expressed her thanks to members for their support and commitment over the previous two years. Eileen Bayley stood in for Gaynor and presented Lesley with the chain of office. President Lesley said it was an honour to be taking up this role and she looked forward to continuing to promote Soroptimism with a busy programme. Her theme for the year is the Safety of Women and Girls with a focus on modern slavery and trafficking. Find out more about President Lesley here.   President Lesley then welcomed Ruth Davies-Kemp as President Elect giving her the President Elect insignia of the Williamsburg brooch. The gold brooch is a replica of the Mace of the Colonial City of Williamsburg

Celebrating 75 years of service

Celebrating 75 years of service

in Tags

Bridgend Soroptimists were delighted to be celebrating 75 years of giving service as members of SIGBI (Soroptimist International Great Britain and Ireland). All agreed that this is an amazing achievement for the Club and its members. Supper, a celebration cake and a glass of fizz helped the evening go with a swing. Long-standing member Anne Morgan shared fond memories of days gone by, noting the incredible impact the club has had on the lives of women and girls, not just in the Bridgend area but also internationally through projects such as Education in Cape Verde and Empowering Girls in Nepal. One project that Anne highlighted is the support the club has given to victims of domestic abuse through the women’s refuges in Bridgend. Members were instrumental in ensuring support programmes were available locally and expanding the facilities available for women affected by domestic abuse, in

Protect women’s rights in the workplace

Protect women’s rights in the workplace

in Tags

Standing up for women is at the heart of being a Soroptimist. Following an alert from WEN (Women’s Equality Network Wales), a number of Bridgend Soroptimists added their names to the letter sent to the House of Lords regarding the proposed changes to the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill. At the WEN Gender Network meeting in March, members discussed the enormous risk that this bill poses to women’s employment rights – protections around equal pay, family-friendly policies, pregnancy and part-time working could be lost overnight on 31 December 2023. WEN then drafted the open letter to peers in the House of Lords, who will consider the bill for report stage on 19 April, urging them to protect women worker’s rights and asking for amendments to the Bill to achieve that. Bridgend Soroptimists will be monitoring the progress of this Bill and intend to do