President Val Jones was delighted to induct a new member into the Cannock Soroptimist Club recently. She is Olivia Lyons, a young woman in her 20s whom President Val has known for a number of years. Olivia has attended several meeting and events as a guest and felt this organisation was the right one for her to join to enable her to pursue interests with other like minded women. Olivia lives in Rugeley where she was educated; it was whilst doing her Duke of Edinburgh award at Fair Oak School she realized she had a passion to assist and help others. She built on this at University, spending any spare time volunteering alongside various community groups, particularly helping the vulnerable. She was elected President of the Raise and Give Society (RAG) whose sole purpose was to arrange and fundraise for various charities through fun and

President of SI Cannock, Val Jones, is proud of her Scottish heritage and invited members and friends to celebrate this with her at a Burns Night, celebrated all over the world, showing the on-going influence of Rabbie Burns. The evening was well attended with everyone making a particular effort to support Val by wearing something tartan – whether clothing, a sash or a ribbon; some even managed to locate white heather or the purple thistle! The tables were decorated with tartan ribbons to continue the celebration. President Val performed the Selkirk Grace and the “Address To The Haggis’ in true Scots style before everyone enjoyed a meal which included the choice of haggis, Scottish beef or Scottish salmon followed by traditional Scottish desserts, all prepared and served wonderfully by staff at the Barns Hotel. After the meal President Val ensured that everyone could toast the

This year Cannock Soroptimists again supported the Pathway Project by providing Christmas gifts such as clothing, beauty packs, toys & games for women and children who will be spending Christmas in the refuge run by the Pathway Project for women victims of domestic violence. The donated gifts filled two cars and the gifts, together with wrapping paper and all the trimmings, were gratefully accepted by staff from Pathway. On Christmas morning the women and children will be able to open gifts specially chosen for them, knowing that they are being thought of – and hopefully this will help them a little at such an emotional time of year. Some members of SI Cannock recently attended the Pathway AGM and were moved to hear stories from the women who are domestic violence victims and who have benefitted from the services provided by Pathway. The stories heard

Cannock Soroptimists enjoyed a double military presentation at their November speaker meeting with two speakers, Colonel Richard Logan, Commandant of the Staffordshire Army Cadets and Cadet Staff Sgt Rachel Humphries, who has recently been awarded the prestigious honour of “Lord Lieutenant Cadet”. Listeners were surprised to learn that Army Cadets belong to one of the oldest and largest youth volunteer organisations in the country: it is now 150 years old and there are currently over 39,000 cadets, all aged between 13 and 18 years. Girls were first admitted in the 1980s, in fact Rugeley was the first detachment nationally to take girls! Today 30% of cadets are girls. Although many activities have a military theme many do not, all are designed to develop life skills, and especially develop confidence. It is inclusive, many youngsters who become cadets deal with a variety of disabilities and learning

Action on Postpartum Psychosis [APP] is one of the charities being highlighted this year by President Val Jones, Cannock Soroptimists.  It is a small and little known charity; in fact, prior to President Val naming it only 3 members of the club had ever heard of it! The condition Postpartum Psychosis is actually as common as Down’s Syndrome and one of the aims of the charity is to raise public awareness of the condition: Postpartum Psychosis is a frightening and devastating form of postnatal mental illness. Jocelyn Ellams, a volunteer for APP and someone who suffered from the condition herself following the birth of her son, gave a most interesting, emotional and enlightening presentation to club members. APP is run by health experts and by those who have suffered from the condition, they have 700 members. Some facts about PP are: PP is the most

Cannock Soroptimists are preparing for Christmas! But not just for themselves: as in previous years, club members do what they can to provide a better Christmas for some of those who may be in some sort of need this year. They provide Christmas gifts for the women and children who will be living in a refuge run by the Pathway Project for women victims of domestic violence over the festive period.  They send along toys, games, clothing, books, toiletries, jewellery – the recipients of the gifts are always touched that there are people thinking of them at this time. Soroptimist Carole Holdcroft will coordinate the club’s preparation, cooking and serving of a Christmas Dinner in December for those who use the Soup Kitchen in Mill Street Cannock. They fund a large part of this meal too and usually serve over 50 meals, complete with all

Val Jones, President of Soroptimist International of Cannock held a cocktail party at her home; club members and friends enjoyed an evening of fellowship whilst discovering how to mix cocktails.  30 people attended, mixed mocktails and shook cocktails with a flourish, a cherry and an umbrella! The evening raised funds for the SI Emergency Fund and for one of President Val’s chosen charities: Action on Puerperal Psychosis. The International Emergency Fund ensures there are always funds available for use when disaster strikes, wherever in the world that might be. Funds are usually donated via a Soroptimist club near to such a disaster area, often used to purchase materials which are needed to help the people in distress. The raffle held on the night raised £90.00 which will be donated to this Soroptimist Fund.  Other monies raised on the night will form part of the donation to

Soroptimists from all over the UK are working to establish the public’s knowledge of Human Trafficking and Modern Day Slavery. From 1st to 7th October 2017 Soroptimists from SI Cannock & District, as part of their mission to inspire action and transform the lives of women and girls world-wide,  are encouraging members of the public to complete the UK wide survey undertaken by the Soroptimist United Kingdom Programme Action Committee.  Working with UK Modern Slavery Training Delivery Group, which is part of the Government’s strategy to combat trafficking/slavery, the intention is to find out the extent of public knowledge of Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery. The results will help to inform and direct their work. The on-line version of the survey is accessed from www.sigbi.org/ukpac/survey/ and it is hoped that a wide range of individuals will give a few minutes of their time to log

Club member Emma Hodges, CEO of St Giles Hospice, was the speaker at the September meeting of Cannock Soroptimists. The aim of Emma’s presentation was two-fold – to explain the reasons behind the recent re-brand and to show something of the diversity of care offered by St Giles whilst the main focus of care for patient and family remains at its core: what was important 34 years ago is important still today. The new logo shows a return to the original colour of Orange used by St Giles for many years; the strap line: ‘It’s your life and that’s what matters’ demonstrates that the Hospice is about life:  Hospice care is holistic, caring for emotional, practical, spiritual and physical needs and worries for the whole family. There have been so many changes and advances in the last 34 years: 80% of Hospice care is now

Soroptimists are marking World Food Day – Monday 16th October – by collecting items of food to donate to the Cannock Food Bank, collecting at their September and October meetings.  The local food bank has recently put out an urgent plea for more food as their stocks are running very low. Soroptimists are pleased to be able to support this project – many of us are lucky enough to never have to worry about where the next meal comes from, though we know this is not the case for everyone.  Enabling a mother to feed her children, [and herself], means that they are being helped towards a safer and healthier life. The focus of the action and work undertaken by Soroptimists is to improve the lives of women and girls: making sure they are not hungry is part of that work. All food donated is