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President Sandra Frier
Club President’s Welcome – our future plans

Club President’s Welcome – our future plans

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Club President Sandra Frier address: It is an honour to be the President for Soroptimist International of Harrogate & District for 2020-21. Although our AGM was not the usual formal Presidential handover of chain of office and celebration, eighteen of our members joined our virtual AGM on Zoom. We raised a toast to all our members as well as outgoing and incoming officers. We look forward to a time for celebration on a much larger scale when all our members can meet together again and we can return to a new ‘normal’. As a Club we are finding ways to communicate and look after each other. In the first week of lockdown our priority was to put a buddy system in place, whereby a team of Soroptimists regularly contact all of us to find out how we are and making sure none of our members

Pamper Bag for NHS Covid-19 staff
What are we doing during Covid-19 lockdown? Pamper packs, Scrubs and Zoom

What are we doing during Covid-19 lockdown? Pamper packs, Scrubs and Zoom

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What are we doing during the Covid-19 Lockdown?  Many of us may be isolated in our homes but Harrogate and District Soroptimists are busy despite the COVID-19 lockdown.  Club members are working together to support NHS and front line staff during the #covid-19 pandemic. Zoom is helping  us to stay in touch and our buddying system ensues regular telephone contact with members. It’s business as usual. Some members are using their sewing skills and making much needed scrubs for the NHS with the Harrogate Scrubbers. From the basic material to three sets ready for the front line.   Fifty Pamper Bags are now distributed to NHS staff staying at local hotels and front line staff  working at Harrogate District Hospital. The  NHS Nightingale Field  Hospital is now stood down but in place should it be need.                 Domestic violence

Club members Visiting Allerton Waste Recovery Park
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover – turning our waste into energy

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover – turning our waste into energy

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Club members Visiting Allerton Waste Recovery Park Do you ever wonder what happens to the rubbish you put in your black bin? Club members found out today what happens to rubbish in North Yorkshire and York when we visited Allerton Waste Recovery Park – turning our rubbish into energy – enough electricity for 40,000 homes. It’s sifted, sorted and incinerated at over 850 degrees Celsius with minimal impact on the environment. We found out why black plastic is so bad – It can’t be seen by the infrared sensors that sort out plastic waste for recycling. It is estimated the average household generates 1 tonne of rubbish a year! We saw how much rubbish is collected in just one week (and this was after everything recyclable is removed). Frightening. The content of the black wheelie bins used to go into landfill. Now more than 90%

Iris Newbould with SIGB President Sue Williams
Up in the skies and down to earth – Club members attend Yorkshire Conference

Up in the skies and down to earth – Club members attend Yorkshire Conference

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Club members spent a fantastic day at the Yorkshire Air Museum when we attended the  Soroptimist International of Yorkshire Conference on 29th June. The theme of conference was, ‘From Behind the Scenes to the Front Line’. We were privileged to hear from Iris Newbould, now 94 yrs old and full if vim, and her life as young Land Girl. WW2 like WW1 opened up job opportunities for women. Corporal Katherine Height gave us an insight into what’s life like now for a woman serving in today’s RAF.   The 29th June is Armed Forces Day. and at 12.10 a Hurricane provided a Fly Past tipping it’s wings on the 3rd Approach. So emotional. It reminded us of all the sacrifices Iris’s generation made ‘just doing our job’ to give us a future. Excellent representation from SI Harrogate & District  with 14 members attending and nearly all

Club is delighted to win the Yorkshire Women Volunteer Award

Club is delighted to win the Yorkshire Women Volunteer Award

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The Club is delighted to win the Yorkshire Women Volunteer Award for its community service project to combat loneliness. For the last 17 yrs.  we have worked with Contact the Elderly.  The Club Service Project, led by Elsie Johnston in Harrogate  and Wetherby and Tricia Chapman in Ripon, involves Club members and other volunteers hosting tea parties once a month usually in their own home. Other members give lifts to pick up the  elderly lonely people referred to us by Contact the Elderly to and from tea parties. The guests tell us how much they look forward to their afternoon treat and often leave with goody bag for a little something extra later.   (Corporate Category) We were delighted to meet up with all the individuals and groups who are involved in making a difference to the lives of others at the Award Ceremony held

Club members celebrated a total of One hundred and fifty-five years of service

Club members celebrated a total of One hundred and fifty-five years of service

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At the Club AGM held in April 2019 at our new meeting place, the Yorkshire Hotel in Harrogate, we celebrated 155 years of service to Soroptimist SIGBI. Janet Hutton. 40 years, Judith Webb, Hilary Waddington, Nicola Harding (not shown) all 30 years and Liz Stickney 25 years.   We were delighted that Soroptimist International of Yorkshire Region’s President Pat Kilbane was able to join us to present the long service certificates.

Celebrating International Women’s Day

Celebrating International Women’s Day

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Harrogate and District Soroptimists celebrated International Women’s Day at their Club meeting held at the White Hart on 6th March. Club Presidents Hilary Waddington and Elsie Johnston and Vice President Sandra Frier introduced three local women who have helped make a difference to women’s lives or helped highlight women’s achievements. Taking inspiration from Desert Island Discs each of our guests talked about their lives, what influenced them and their achievements.   Anne Smyth OBE spoke about how her own and her mother’s experience of caring had made her aware of how little support there was for Carers – and how Carers are of all ages but still predominantly women. Anne set up the Carers’ Resource in Harrogate in the early 1990s. Anne’s hard work and diligence had seen it grow to an award winning charity providing support for carers and families across Harrogate District, Airedale and

Club Celebrates reaching it’s target to raise £3000 for Meru Women’s Garden Project

Club Celebrates reaching it’s target to raise £3000 for Meru Women’s Garden Project

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Club members Celebrated  reaching our  target and more by raising £3500 for the Meru Women’s Garden Project in Kenya. This is equivalent to providing the resources to establishing twelve gardens.We were delighted to welcome three  prospective members and enjoyed an excellent  supper meeting at the White Hart Hotel on 6th February. The Club’s three year project to support our Federation project included raising funds and awareness in many different ways to support women and their families in Meru Kenya .The ladies in Meru have developed sustainable market gardens producing food for their own families and extra produce to raise family income. The project has also introduced education programmes for girls and boys with the aim of stopping Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), still widely practiced in this part of Kenya though illegal. The picture shows Soroptimist Penny Broadley, Joint President Hilary Waddington, Soroptimist Val Hills and

Shwops Evening Thursday 28th February 7-9.30pm Starbeck Community Library

Shwops Evening Thursday 28th February 7-9.30pm Starbeck Community Library

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Are you looking to reorganise your wardrobe – have you thought about recycling clothes by swapping them? Harrogate and District Soroptimist are organising a Clothes Swap/Shwop at the Starbeck Community Library, 68A High Street, Harrogate HG2 7LW Tickets cost £8 per person and available on the door or in advance by emailing sihandd@hotmail.co.uk before February 6thplease. All monies raised will go to the Grove Academy Japanese Garden project. Wine and soft drinks will be available , a prize raffle and free nibbles. So how do you Shwop Clothes? Bring up to 5 items of clothing in new or good condition. Plus any accessories you may wish to SHWOP i.e. jewellery, handbags, scarves and shoes. Full details of the Shwop procedure will be explained on arrival. Shwop Poster

Burns Nights Supper – 25 January 2019 at Wetherby Golf Club raises £300 for charity

Burns Nights Supper – 25 January 2019 at Wetherby Golf Club raises £300 for charity

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Burns Night Supper Joint President Elsie Johnston had pleasure in hosting a supper in recognition of Robbie Burns, on his birthday Friday 25thJanuary.  This was held at Wetherby Golf Club and the evening was a great success with members, family and friends in attendance including Soroptimist International of Yorkshire President Pat Kilbane and members from Garforth Elmet Club. The Presidents were piped in by Dianna Walsh and following the Selkirk Grace by Nicola Harding the haggis, carried by Chef Richard Goodbarn, was piped in and Sue Williams gave the address to the Haggis and the Toast. This was followed by a delicious supper and the programme continued with readings, poems and toasts to the Lassies and to the Laddies. It was a distinctly feminine entertainment with a lady piper. and all but the Toast to the Lassies, read by Club members. There was plenty of