SI CANNOCK & DISTRICT
Diamond Celebration Year 2014 – 15
PRESS RELEASE AUGUST 2014
Cannock Soroptimists are celebrating their Diamond Year – 60 years of working to improve the lives of women and girls locally, nationally and internationally. As the local club celebrates reaching this milestone, the Soroptimist International UK Federation is celebrating reaching it’s 80th year.
The first Soroptimist Club was formed in USA in 1921, 3 years later the first UK club was formed in London and in 1934 clubs within the UK formed their own Federation within the International organisation – Soroptimist International United Kingdom and Ireland – SIGBI. SI is divided into four federations: SIGBI actually comprises 355 clubs in 29 countries, including many Commonwealth and former Commonwealth countries such as Barbados, India, Gambia, Zimbabwe, Jamaica, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
When the Soroptimists first formed as a club for women it was a rather exclusive one; you had to be invited to join, its members were taken from only the most well-to-do in society and it had a strict ‘hats and gloves’ policy. Things have moved on somewhat!
Gone are the hats and gloves, the formal invitations and the restrictions to only ‘professional’ women.
But what remains is the continued passion that is at the heart of the Soroptimist movement to improve the lives of women and children around the world. Throughout the decades, members have been driven by the same goals: working to achieve equal rights through the education, empowerment and enabling of women.
Since its birth in Oakland, California, in 1921, Soroptimism has spread to more than 100 countries with in excess of 3,000 local clubs. Its 80,000 worldwide members make Soroptimist International (SI) the biggest and most influential women’s voluntary organisation in the world. It is the only female organisation that consults with the United Nations to ensure that women’s voices are included in international decision-making processes.
The local club, SI Cannock & District, is a thriving club – three new members have already been inducted this year and others are attending meetings with a view to joining. The Club meets generally twice each month at the Barns, enjoying a meal and friendship whilst planning the Programme action projects which are at the heart of Soroptimism.
The work they do ranges from holding fund raising events in order to support local refuges for women victims of domestic violence as well as for international projects such as Birthing in The Gambia (the BIG project) and providing solar lanterns and cookers to women in developing countries, to collecting good for Pathway, Women’s Aid and the local Food Bank and also involves lobbying and awareness raising of many issues affecting women including delivering AIDS education, child sexual exploitation, and human trafficking.
Cannock Soroptimists are currently involved in preparing talks and leaflets to raise awareness amongst young women and teenage girls regarding the health issue Endometriosis, something which can be very debilitating. Another group within the Club are working with other Clubs in the Midland Chase Region to establish their continued role in fighting FGM [Female genital Mutilation]. In August, members will join Rotary International at Weston Park in the clean up following the annual V Festival when items of use to women needing the local refuges will be collected and donated to them.
More information about Soroptimist International is available on the website www.sigbi.org and about the Cannock Club on www.sigbi.org/cannock-and-district. Their email address is si.cannock@outlook.com and their phone number 07971 494510
Photo attached: l to r: Soroptimists Sue Cartlidge who heads the Endometriosis awareness raising team and Club Programme Action Officer Dawn Jacobs-Clutton