We are delighted to share that Amy Wilson received a bursary in the sum of £450 from Soroptimist International Haverfordwest! The money will be put towards purchasing a high-spec laptop for her university programme Amy is in her second year of the level 3 Construction Design & Management Programme. The course covers the key principles of design and management of a construction project and many learners go on to study architecture, project management, quantity surveying, surveying and even civil engineering. Amy’s goal is to become an architect and has been offered a place at the Welsh School of Architecture at Cardiff University, which is quite an achievement – well done Amy! We wish Amy all the best in her future career.

What a lovely first Dinner Meeting with President Julia Brady, and her guest speaker, Sandra Dade, Charity Manager with Paul Sartori Foundation. Sandra talked about the history of how the Foundation started, supporting people and families affected by Cancer, and where it is today, supporting several other long term illnesses – Motor neurone disease, strokes, and the range of help and care on offer. Anyone wanting more information on how you can be supported in Pembrokeshire, please contact Tŷ Paul Sartori, Winch Lane, Hwlffordd, Sir Benfro SA61 1RP Paul Sartori House, Winch Lane, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, SA61 1RP 01437 763223 01437 765755 www.paulsartori.org Keep an eye out for fundraising events throughout the year.

Once again in 2022 we were delighted to support the Not in My Name campaign by providing Stewards for the Candlelight Vigil organised in the streets of Haverfordwest by Joyce Watson MS.  The evening concluded with presentations from a range of interesting speakers all working hard to bring an end to violence against women. Despite atrocious weather the event was well supported – the weather in fact being a timely reminder for us all that we were “battling the storm” for just one evening – many women have no choice other than to “battle for their safety” on a daily basis.  We are proud to support them!

Following a donation of beautiful dresses from Pembrokeshire Care, Share and Give, and with other private donations and  additions using club funds, we wanted to enable every girl to ‘Go to the Ball’.  In partnership with Haverfordwest High School, a pop-up shop in 2022 allowed us to offer dresses on loan, free of charge, to all students to attend their school prom. For some students, this alleviated the financial pressure on family resources, while other students embraced the sustainability and ecological ideal of wearing a pre-loved dress. We are working towards extending the project in 2023 and will also be offering Pembrokeshire College students the chance to borrow a dress and make a difference. We were pleased to win a Regional Award for this project and were asked to present at Federation Conference in Belfast in October 2022 – we are delighted that the idea

Some of our members recently attended a willow sculpture workshop organised by Haverfordwest Town Council.  This is all part of a willow planting and sculpture initiative at The Saltings in Haverfordwest.  The afternoon was great fun and was a taster session to encourage us to make our own sculpture at The Saltings in due course.  Although not yet at a standard ready for display at the Saltings we managed to make some recognisable – if not all practical – sculptures!  Not bad for beginners we thought! Members have also been involved in the planting of 300 Willows on The Saltings which will be used in the future to make the scultpures. We are delighted to be involved in this exciting an worthwhile initiative. Photos will follow  

Sometimes Santa needs a little help and our members were delighted to step up recently with donations to PATCH for their Christmas Appeal 2021. PATCH are a charitable organisation aiming to relieve the effects of poverty for individuals and families within the county of Pembrokeshire. The gifts donated are for age ranges birth to 17 years old, both male and female. In the picture are Deeena Irving, President, and members of SI Haverfordwest with staff members from PATCH.