Here is some information about our recent and planned activities.
Over the last year or so we have been raising awareness of Female Genital Mutilation, a barbaric practice that occurs in several countries across the world and that also affects some young girls from our own country who are taken back to their country of origin to have this practice carried out, often in unhygienic circumstances and without anaesthetic. Two of our members have addressed other clubs on this issue. In 2013 we plan to hold a local conference on FGM and other forms of violence against women.
We provide ongoing support in a variety of forms to Justice First, a local organisation (www.justicefirst.org.uk) that supports asylum seekers, many of whom have fled from torture and the threat of imprisonment or death from a regime that they oppose in their country of origin. Amongst other things, £346 was raised through a quiz evening in March 2012. Some of our members attend Justice First fundraising events.
Several members, and their families, have helped with street collections for the Red Cross and Marie Curie Cancer Care. Our current President Annabel has also held informal lunches at her home for members and their families. Voluntary donations were made to Water Aid and to a project to improve maternal and child health in islands in the Pacific. .Another member makes regular collections of furniture for emergency accommodation.
In connection with our interest in the environment, we recently had a very interesting presentation from a local bee-keeper about the life of bees and we will shortly be visiting a farm which has had to diversify because of the increasingly competitive market.
We have built links and given practical support to Women Learning Together, a multi-cultural group in Middlesbrough. Members have assisted them in developing a constitution and fundraising, mostly for Water Aid.
In March 2012 members took part in an event for International Women’s Day in which a number of prominent women spoke about their lives and work to an audience of schoolgirls. The Middlesbrough Soroptimist President was a speaker. For 2013 we are organising a competition for children from the same school to showcase their skills and talents in drama, poetry and creative writing.
We also held a multi-cultural concert for International Peace Day on 21st September 2012.
One of our members hails from Sierra Leone and requested that we collect shoes for children and adults there. Children often have to walk miles to school, and women to collect water, and few have shoes. Our appeal went out to other clubs in the region. In all, we collected about 400 pairs of shoes which have now been received by two schools in Freetown.
We have received from our Friendship Club, SI Harrogate and District, a supply of bookmarks for young people. The text on either side of the bookmarks describes healthy and unhealthy personal relationships. We intend to distribute these via a local school as well as specialist services for young people in Middlesbrough.
We also plan to support a counselling project in Ghana, with which one of our members is involved.
Over the last few years we have supported our local Barnardo’s SECOS project which combats sexual violence, abuse and exploitation. Work has included:
- Preparation of over 50 toiletries bags for rescued young people
- Production of a pack on FGM to go into schools
- Production of a pack on forced marriages for schools.
- Planned event for Easter Tuesday 2013 linked with Rotary to raise money for SECOS.
- Two houses have been furnished for emergency accommodation for vulnerable young women to escape violent and exploitative relationships. Young women stay in this temporary accommodation for 6 months and then move on.
- In a new project, “Move On”, 9 flats are being prepared.
- Friends of Barnardos for Tees Valley Projects are holding an auction of sketches for Barnardo’s Teesside General Funds.
Two of our members will, in March, represent Soroptimist International at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in New York – a rare privilege.
One member has also recently visited several SI Clubs in India, where a new club was chartered.
Three Middlesbrough members are also regional officers and one has a Federation role – Federation being our international dimension.
Our regular monthly meetings are held at a Barnardo’s project in Ormesby and we are grateful to them for allowing us free use of their rooms.