SI Canterbury new member, Mary Adams, was formally welcomed to our club at our May meeting. Mary has been attending meetings for several months after hearing about the organisation and our club online. She was introduced by club secretary and former membership officer Carol Reed then formally inducted into Soroptimist International by club President Carol Townsend. Mary has already made significant contributions to club discussions and we have no doubt that she will be an effective and supportive club member.   

Michelle Owens, Women’s Right’s Leader, Amnesty International, Canterbury was the guest speaker at our  Club meeting on May 25th. SI Canterbury and Amnesty Canterbury have formed a partnership to help protect and further the rights of women and girls and to enable our two local organisations to better support each other’s work. Our members were therefore delighted to welcome her to our club and hear about the work of Amnesty . Michelle explained that the Canterbury group are part of the organisation Amnesty International UK, standing up for human rights across the world – wherever justice, freedom, fairness and truth are denied.    In a stimulating talk she told us a little about the history of Amnesty International as well as the Canterbury branch, which is currently focusing on the Philippines and what they are doing to help protect and defend Human Rights. Michelle then told us more about

Club member Jane Webb, and her husband David, sold tomato plants that they had grown from seeds in aid of the Meru Women Garden Project. This SIGBI Federation Project  was proposed by SI Canterbury at our conference in 2015. It supports women in one of the poorest regions of rural Kenyan to establish their own sustainable food gardens, enabling them to feed their families and even earn a small income by selling excess produce at market. The plants were bought by members and friends and raised a total of £70 for the project. A very worthwhile effort which will make a great contribution towards the project.    

SI Canterbury club members enjoyed lovely weather on the day they worked in the Women’s Refuge garden. They were joined by mothers and their children as they planted up hanging baskets and smartened up the garden table and benches. The club would like to thank everyone who donated plants and gave up their time to support the women’s refuge.

SI Canterbury held their annual AGM on Thursday April 27th at the Kent and Canterbury Club. The meeting began with new member Dawn Ryder being inducted into the club by President Yvonne. Dawn has attended several meetings and club lunches and members were delighted to welcome her. This induction brought the number of members in SI Canterbury to twenty two, a significant rise over the last club year.           Following the formal AGM and election of officers, Yvonne then handed over the chain of office to new President, Carol Townsend, who presented her programme and vision for the year. Carol’s first task as President was to welcome Suganya Smith as President Elect and lead the club meeting that followed.               Members are looking forward to an interesting range of speakers such as Michelle Owens – Women’s

SI Canterbury celebrated President Yvonne’s successful year with a dinner at Howfield Manor Hotel. Members and partners enjoyed good food and great conversation and friendship. Yvonne thanked members for celebrating with her at her President’s Dinner and for their support over the last year. We would all like to thank Yvonne for her leadership, support, encouragement and hard work.  

Club President, Yvonne, presented a cheque for £500 to Vicky Adley, Fundraising and Development Officer of East Kent Hospitals Charity, at our March club meeting. The cheque was in aid of their Dementia Appeal which will support patients with dementia when they are admitted to hospital. The appeal aims to raise £500,000 to spend across the five hospitals of East Kent. It aims to fund multiple projects to make the time spent in hospital by patients with dementia, more successful and enjoyable.   SI Canterbury raised the funds at a very successful Well-Being Day held at Kent and Canterbury hospital in March and members were delighted to support such a worthwhile appeal.

  On 12th March, SI Canterbury held a ‘Day of Reflection and Refreshment’ at Chartham village hall. The objectives of the day were: • to help new members gain a wider knowledge of Soroptimist International, our federation and our club • to review the club’s achievements both past and present • to get to know each other better • to develop a vision for SI Canterbury moving forwards • to formulate a club development programme                   The day was very well attended, with members sharing their skills and experience, reflecting on and discussing our practice and putting forward ideas for our Programme Action work.   We also enjoyed a delicious bring and share lunch in true Soroptimist style.

A very informative talk about Women’s Wellbeing was presented  to our February club meeting by club member Suganya, a physiotherapist in the NHS. Members found the talk interesting and useful, all agreeing that they had learnt many tips which would help them in the future.