Moving on to the Regional Lunch – Sunday 25 June 2017 Sixty two members gathered from across the Region to enjoy our annual lunch at the Crofters Hotel.  This event is an important day in the Regional calendar because it is also the day the Regional awards are presented.  It is a fairly informal lunch making it a very sociable day getting to know new people and meeting up with old friends. Following a very nice lunch the award presentations took place.  There was a tie for the Haslingden trophy for membership, which was won by Rossendale and Grange-Over-Sands.  They will share the trophy for a year.  The Fylde received an extra prize of a tin of chocolates because they had included a video. Clubs had to write a limerick to enter the Rosebowl competition this year.  Every club sent in an entry and every

It was a busy weekend for the Region with a meeting at Lancaster University on Saturday and the Regional Lunch on Sunday at The Crofters Hotel in Cabus. Regional Meeting – Saturday 24 June 2017 [new_royalslider id=”22″] Members arrived at the meeting to find that there had been a few changes. Firstly everyone was asked to sign in, and there were tables as well as seats. In the past the seats have been arranged in theatre style but for the first time the seats were arranged around tables and members were given numbers at random to sit at the numbered tables. Most reports had been sent out prior to the meeting so that not too much time was spent on business which had already been reported. President Angie gave her report updating members on the progress of the region’s 3-5 year plan, with some of

The SIGBI Leadership Development Day was held on Saturday, 10 June at Birmingham Aston University. After registration and coffee delegates were welcomed by Federation President, Ann Hodgson who asked us to remind ourselves why we were attending.  Our aims of helping women to achieve their potential, to work towards the elimination of violence against women and gender equality were all reasons.  It was important we all worked as a team – together we are strong. Workshop 1 – Make your Club a success run by Dishi Attwood.  There are no right answers.  Dishi talked about experiences within her own club and this generated a lot of discussion.  Cherish the past, adorn the present, construct the future.  We are all guardians of the past – we should not throw out the old; relationships adorn the present, include and engage, construct for the future.  Ideas are nothing

Fylde Soroptimists’ “80 FOR 80” Launch Members and friends of Fylde Soroptimists celebrated the start of their 80th year by launching the “80 for 80” Toilet Twinning project.  The event took place in the new Pavilion Café at AKS School, where Head of School Catering, Steve Shepherd, gave a masterclass in making canapés. Attendees enjoyed the delicious results with prosecco and elderflower cocktails. The group raised £200 from the raffle – all prizes, including a microwave oven, a magnum of Bordeaux wine, an afternoon tea for two, hampers and bottles of fizz – were donated by friends. A further £36 was raised from the sale of loo rolls and soap – all monies going into the toilet twinning fund. A number of toilets were also pledged, bringing the total twinned to date to 20 – giving basic sanitation, hygiene training and clean water to 20

Rishton and Great Harwood  Soroptimist club member Joyce Hargreaves was recently presented with an award for her long standing voluntary work with the NHS. Joyce who is secretary of the Rishton and Great Harwood club began working many years ago with the East Lancashire Primary Care Trust looking after local health care services. Following on from the introduction of the 2012 Health and Social Care Act, in 2013 the Primary Care Trusts were replaced by Clinical Commissioning Groups, who Joyce continues to volunteer with.. The Clinical Commissioning Group is a clinically led statutory NHS body responsible for the planning and commissioning of health care services for their local area. Joyce, along with her colleagues  has spent many years attending meetings, visiting Hospitals and Doctors Surgeries hoping to improve the standard of healthcare for all of us. The award was presented as part of the Clinical Commissioning Groups annual

The Rose Bowl Event for 2017 was held on Thursday 18 May, when the following set of Limericks were performed and voting took place. Full write-up and pictures are on the Rose Bowl page. Blackburn A reluctant reporter was sent To cover an SI event She liked what we do, With fun & friendship too And now she’s the club’s president!   Blackpool & District There is a Sorop in our region Whose work with P.A. is a legion. She knits, sews, recycles, Collects in great bag  fulls That friendly Sorop in our region. Burnley There was a kind lady named Joyce Who frightened us all with her voice. She made us all knit When we wanted to quit That bossy, sweet lady named Joyce.   The Fylde Some Soroptimists living in Fylde Said one day “Girls, let’s go a bit wild” “Toilet twinning we’ll