Silent March through Canterbury Saturday morning, November 25th brought a large group of people carrying posters and banners protesting against violence against women and girls. Yes, we all see it on the news, yet another woman killed by a stalker or ex-boyfriend. But we may not know the true figures. One in four women in England and Wales will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, according to the Crime Survey of England and Wales and 8% will suffer domestic violence each year. On average, two women are killed every week in England and Wales by a current or former partner. The number of domestic abuse-related crimes recorded by police in England and Wales increased by 6% in the year ending March 2021 to 845,734. A total of 1,459,663 domestic abuse-related incidents and crimes were recorded by police in the year to March 2021. In 73% of

A quiz organised and run by SI Canterbury was well attended and raised £680 to support the essential work carried out by Catching Lives. A fun evening and a great cause ♥

We are delighted to be awarded Highly Commended 2023 by the Judging panel of the Kent Mental Wellbeing Awards. The panel were extremely impressed at the initiative and the amount of hard work and dedication by all of our sisters.

We are all concerned about the state of our beaches and the quality of our bathing water. Can we find the perfect family picnic spot on the beach, unworried by abandoned plastic bottles, cans and other detritus? Are we and our children safe to bathe in the sea or local rivers or is there untreated sewage swimming around with us? Soroptimist International Canterbury has been carrying out regular beach cleans in Seasalter since July 2019. However, as well as picking up the usual litter left behind by visitors, in the last year we have been picking up more and more reams of toilet paper and other sanitary products left behind on the shoreline when the tide retreats. Disgusting!! Nobody wants to find this on the beach, let alone imagine what is swirling around in the sea! Great Big Green Week (June)  - a nationwide week

Our AGM was filled with fun, laughs and gratitude from outgoing President Agatha. President Dawn was formally welcomed into the role and expressed her gratitude, enthusiasm and hope for the year ahead. The club also thanked secretary Jane for her wonderful work keeping us organised and up to date over several years. We look forward to another inspiring year!

Our April Charity Car park at Whitstable Junior School raised the largest sum yet for the school and our charities. This was a joint fundraiser by Soroptimist Canterbury and Whitstable members and we raised an incredible £927.13 through donations for parking. 50% of the proceeds will support the school and 50% is donated to charities supported by the two clubs. This month’s charity was The Rising Sun Domestic Violence Unit in Canterbury.  Thank you to everyone who donated. #charityfundraiser #siwhitstable  #sicanterbury

Soroptimist International Canterbury, in partnership with Save the Children, hosted a Christmas carols luncheon at the Kings School in Canterbury on Monday 19th December. Over 80 guests attended and enjoyed a three course meal provided by the Kings School kitchen staff and carol singing by the Cathedral boys choir and Good company Regional president Lyn Chiswick was accompanied by other members of Soroptimist clubs in the South East region. Opening and concluding remarks were made by our President Elect, Dawn Ryder. She perfectly expressed the essence of appreciation for all those who made the event a success. We would like to thank the Lord Mayor, Cllr Anne Decker for her support and participation and give a special thank you to Carol Reed for the organisation of this event. We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a great New Year.

Canterbury Soroptimists Support our local refuge throughout the year. For Christmas, members bought, packaged and delivered presents for the women and children and also collected items for the pop up boutique which runs at the refuge. In the summer of 2022, for example members raised over £900 for a garden project at the refuge. This was aimed at improving outdoor facilities for the women residents and their children. New seating and planting brightened up the area and improved the outlook. We wish all clients and staff at the refuge a very merry and safe Christmas. 

Canterbury Soroptimists recently traveled to Nepal to undergo an arduous hiking trip to visit the Hidden Villages. Whilst there, Canterbury members Dawn, Maggie and Joy plus Tunbridge Wells member Jane, met up with Soroptimists from Kathmandu. All agreed that this was a truly  amazing opportunity to meet fellow Soroptimists and to discuss and share ideas and friendship.                     The group hiked for several days and after an arduous 12 hour slog over the pass they finally arrived at the Hidden Village to a wonderful greeting.     

          Canterbury Soroptimists were joined by members of SI Folkestone, Thanet and East Grinstead as well as staff and supporters of the Rising Sun Domestic Violence & Abuse Service as they gathered to mark the beginning of 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence. After an emotional speech in Canterbury city centre by Cllr Anne Dekker, Mayor of Canterbury, a silent march began through the streets thronging with shoppers. Those who marched wore or carried something orange, chosen to represent a bright and free future. The aim was to raise awareness through the power of silence. Throughout the march passers-by stopped and watched and sympathetic comments were heard.                                             For more information, please go to: www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/take-action/unite