Good Morning Soroptimist Sisters
What a variable week it has been weather wise with no two days the same!
However, there was certainly one day worth remembering for sunshine and on Monday, Margaret and I took a trip to visit our Club President, Sue Scott, at her home in Low Worsall. We spent a glorious sunny afternoon drinking tea and eating her Lemon Drizzle cake, [yummy and absolutely no calories!!!] whilst seated in her garden, surrounded by a lavender border which was attracting bees and butterflies in abundance! For two and half hours we never stopped talking, we had so much to catch up on!
I hope that some of you have been able to enjoy face to face meetups with family and friends?
-o0o-
CLUB NEWS
I was delighted to join SI Darlington’s ZOOM meeting on Wednesday last, and to learn about the work of Healthwatch/Youthwatch, Darlington.
Led by young people and driven by the ideas of young people who want to make a difference, they together bring awareness about important, pressing health issues including mental health.
Outreach Coordinator, Jemma Austin, was joined by three of their youthful volunteers and together they shared their experiences working on their most recent campaign on Body Image Awareness.
Overwhelmingly, 153 out of 196 young people surveyed said that they think body image contributes to poor mental well being.
Amy, Emily and Jessica each spoke about their role within the campaign with Amy, who had serious health problems herself, bravely sharing a blog on Body Image issues; Emily on information gathering on relevant services and showing how young people could feel better about themselves; and Jessica, the creative one, who, among other contributions, shared inspirational quotes, such as – ‘We are all born beautiful, the greatest tragedy is being convinced we are not’.
This campaign was circulated online around schools and colleges, on social media, mental health services, libraries and community centres, Healthwatch England and many others and can be found on:
Link to Health Watch Darlington
I was impressed to learn that Amy, Emily and Jessica volunteered in other areas and for different charities in addition to Youthwatch
Jessica joined the meeting from her bed, following a horse riding accident the previous weekend, resulting in a spine broken in five places and a fractured pelvis! An extremely courageous young lady!
It is impossible to do justice here to the commitment and enthusiasm which was so evident in these presentations.
I couldn’t help but think that these ladies held a similar ethos to ourselves and one day, perhaps, would make absolutely brilliant Soroptimists!
Thank you Barbara, for your invitation, it was good to see some familiar faces.
SI Middlesbrough has been given a donation of 15 saplings by the Woodland Trust. They will arrive sometime in November and will be planted in Albert Park, Middlesbrough in celebration of the Centenary of Soroptimist International. Thanks to Kathy Warrick for her initiative.
I was pleased to hear from Vyvyenne Mack of SI Durham that she had used Jess Sinclair’s pattern from my message number 19, to make some fingerless gloves for the homeless. Maybe others have done the same?
The new edition of the online SOROPTIMIST NEWS was launched this week and makes for interesting reading. It includes articles on the Environment, Partnerships, the Belfast Virtual Conference and the Nepal Project. I was pleased to see that our Northern Soul Dance Party had a mention in the latter article and delighted that there was a photograph of SI Stockton’s New Start Bags on page 8.
Also circulated in an additional mailing were SIGBI’s Annual Report and Accounts 2020.
The SIGBI Briefing from Friday will give you links to both the Magazine and the Accounts as well as an invitation to register for the FPAC meeting in October, as observers. This Briefing gives so much information and many links to important Soroptimist matters including a Summary of the SI Board Meeting and AGM, July 2020 and a final report on the International President’s appeal – Women, Water and Leadership. See also the link to the Centenary Website.
Your Club Secretary will have received the invitation from Regional Secretary, Joan, to join our September Virtual Regional Council Meeting and AGM.
If you are intending to be with us on the 26th, you will need to get the GoTo App on the device you are planning to use, at:
https://global.gotomeeting.com/install
Quote this week is by Mason Cooley, who is described as an American Aphorist.
Reading gives us somewhere to go when we have to stay where we are!
I am sorry that I have no photographs to share with you today. Please keep in touch.
Until next week, stay safe and keep well.
In Friendship,
Joyce
PRESIDENT
SINE