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Strawberry Tea

Strawberry Tea

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We had a great afternoon at Yvonne’s house on Sunday at the annual charity Strawberry Afternoon tea for members and friends. We had a produce stall selling home made cakes made by the members as well as other produce  and crafts that had been donated. Of course we had to have a raffle with plenty of prizes! It was a great success and raised more than £500 for our general charities. There were plenty of cakes left over which we donated to Cornerstone who were delighted to receive them. A big thanks to Yvonne!

Fundraising for our 90th Year Project

Fundraising for our 90th Year Project

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We had a successful morning at the Car Boot Sale at Bowler’s, Trafford Park on Sunday 7th August. We were there to raise money for our 90th year project supporting the Act4Africa HEAL Malawi initiative. Thanks to plenty of donations from the club members £285 was raised! Plenty of goods were left over and we hope to do another event in a few months. A fun day for a great cause!

“Generation Hope (Mary’s Meals)” Film Screening

“Generation Hope (Mary’s Meals)” Film Screening

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Regional President Sandy joined us for our July meeting. In place of a speaker members watched the latest video from the charity Mary’s Meals entitled “Generation Hope.” It was filmed in Malawi, India and Haiti and features not only some of the children who have benefited from the school feeding stations, but also Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, the founder of Mary’s Meals. Magnus talks about his inspiration for starting the charity which now provides meals for over a million school children in the developing world each day, and he highlights how much there is still to do in this area. President Sandy also joined us for our Business meeting and will be coming to our session in October when we will make up our backpacks for the Mary’s Meals backpack project.

90th Anniversary Afternoon Tea

90th Anniversary Afternoon Tea

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We had a lovely Champagne tea on Saturday the 18th of June at Stanneylands Hotel to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the official Charter of our club. President Molly, Past President Sue and Honorary Member Yvonne in turn spoke about how the Soroptomist organisation first started in America and how it spread around the world. The first UK club was chartered in London and Manchester was the second club chartered. The enthusiasm we have to help women and children 90 years on is still of utmost importance to us as a club, and is reflected in our Programme Action projects locally, nationally and internationally. It is amazing to reach 90 years and look forward to the next 90.  

More mugs, please!

More mugs, please!

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The club has received feedback from Gail Heath, CEO of Manchester Women's Aid, about the drinks packs we made for their refuges last year. Each new arrival at a refuge receives a welcoming gift of a mug packed with portions of tea, coffee etc. Gail told us how well received these small gifts have been, but warned us that stocks are now running low. In June, members were pleased to spend an evening working together packing up 100 more drinks packs to be donated to them.  

Federation President Margaret’s Lunch

Federation President Margaret’s Lunch

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There was a lunch arranged as a celebration and in honour of our Federation President, Margaret  Emlsley on Sunday 12th June at Statham Lodge . All the clubs from the region were represented. We had a lovely meal followed by speeches from Regional President Sandy and Immediate Past International President Ann Garvey. Entertainment was from a ladies choir who sang songs from a selection of films with a few comedy pieces in between . There was a toast to President Margaret and of course a cake . It was a very enjoyable afternoon and great to see so many people there .  

June Speaker Meeting

June Speaker Meeting

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In June, members were pleased to hear about the work undertaken by Age UK Trafford from their CEO, Ann Marie Jones, who was accompanied by Karen Patel, their Care Services Manager. Age UK Trafford works in partnership with Age UK(the national charity) and only covers Trafford. This 'shared brand' allows for standards to be monitored, gives access to the national help line and the supply of literature. Other services, however, are funded and organised on a local basis, and Age UK Trafford have been operating for the past 40 years. They offer information and advice to the elderly on both a drop in and telephone basis, advice on the benefits system, a home library service, dementia advice, meetings for interest groups, training for professionals and local businesses and silver surfer courses. They are also developing a falls prevention service, offer a “Winter Warmth” programme to test electric blankets and a “My Life,

A Big Thank You!

A Big Thank You!

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President Molly and members would like to say “Thank You” to Alex Charlton for organising his afternoon tea event in support of our 90th Project, HEAL Malawi. Alex devoted many hours for his Bronze Duke of Edinburgh award to preparing the room and the food for the event on 23rd April. Guests enjoyed delicious homemade sandwiches, scones and cakes and there was a comprehensive menu of teas and coffees available. With the sale of tickets and a raffle Alex raised over £400 for our project. Thank you, Alex, and good luck with all your efforts to achieve your Bronze award.

A Letter to a Duchess

A Letter to a Duchess

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In Autumn 2015, the members of Soroptimist International of Manchester were interested to read an article in a newspaper about the Duchess of Cornwall visiting a rape crisis centre in London. She expressed the idea that giving a small gift of toiletries to survivors of such crimes could make a great difference to them, by bringing them the “human touch” after their trauma. Thisstuck a chord with members of SI Manchester who have been donating toiletries to St Mary’s Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) here in our city since it opened in 1986, and they asked Val Moss, their Programme Action Officer, to write to the Duchess about it. In the letter Val informed the Duchess that St Mary’s SARC would be marking their 30th Anniversary year in 2016 and expressed the hope that she would visit them if she were able. Sometimes Soroptimist dreams do come true, and on April 26th

Speaker Meeting March 2016

Speaker Meeting March 2016

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The speaker at our March meeting was the Rev. George Lane from the Manchester Airport Chaplaincy. This is a workplace chaplaincy for over 20,000 workers at the airport, and also offers pastoral and humanitarian aid to anyone who may be in trouble on the site. He and his colleagues work closely with the airport customer care team and the police, and offer non-denominational support to people of all faiths who are in need of help. With over 24 million people coming through the airport per year, they deal with a wide range of issues including human trafficking, forced marriage and homelessness. Their philosophy is that “it’s about people” who are considered as human beings (rather than passengers or customers) and help is given according to their individual needs.