Good Morning Soroptimist Sisters.
I have so much news for you this week; since my email access was restored last Monday, I had a whole week of messages to catch up on and thank you so much to all those who have kept in touch.
Indeed, the first item would have made an appropriate beginning for last week – Remembrance Sunday.
SI Middlesbrough members, Alwyn Kraus and Shirley Bond, have created beautiful knitted Poppy displays in their respective churches. Alwyn’s Poppies in St Margaret’s Church, Brookfield, Middlesbrough and Shirley’s, outside the lovely village church at Low Worsall [2]. Wonderful to see!
Members of SI Middlesbrough have not been idle during the long days of isolation and embarked on a new and exciting project to research and publish a book – “OVERCOMING THE ODDS” , – brief biographies of 32 Women Scientists, which is published this week. As Pam Cooper says – ‘this is a very ambitious SI Middlesbrough Project’ which she hopes we will support. All details for ordering are attached Link to Booklet. I am looking forward to receiving my copy shortly. Congratulations SI Middlesbrough members – this may well be a first for our Region and perhaps there will be a second book as they discover more women scientists who are worthy of inclusion.
Pauline Reed of SI Middlesbrough, is volunteering for four hours every Tuesday at Middlesbrough Food Bank Warehouse. She tells me that it is extremely busy as an unprecedented number of donations are currently being received. She is involved in processing and packing away all the donations in order of ‘best before’ dates. Pauline praised the kindness and generosity of local people.
Middlesbrough Club members have been thinking about how to support members on an individual basis in the new Lockdown which we are now in; copying SI Harrogate and District, they have set up a Buddy Scheme and members will have the opportunity to have a weekly telephone chat with another member.
SI Stockton-on-Tees members have also been busy with the first of their centenary plans – 100 Sanitary products were collected by members and donated this week to their local Food Bank .
Other collections are planned with items beginning with the letter S for Stockton and S for Soroptimist.
Their New Start Bags Project has continued throughout the Pandemic with the work being carried out by Project Director, Julie Everson, mostly ordering the contents online. Stockton Club has now provided 70 bags to Cleveland Police in the recent past – 25 bags directly from members and 45 from funding which was given from the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner. Ten bags were picked up from Julie this week, along with some Toilet Bags, and a further five are planned, plus more toiletries in the custom made drawstring bags.
Dorothy Seth of SI SouthShields has drawn attention to a different kind of Advent Calendar, to help their main charity – Hospitality and Hope – specifically the Food Bank, and it may be of interest to any club wishing to support their local Food Bank this Christmas.
Dorothy tells me that they have also approached South Tyneside Council about turning the Town Hall ORANGE for the 16 Days of Action – commencing on 25 November. What is your Club doing for this initiative to draw attention to the UN Campaign – Eliminating Violence against Women and Girls? You will have an opportunity to share your plans at our Regional Council Meeting on 28 November. Watch out for an email from Karen Alexander which is going to your Club Programme Action Officer.
Also, don’t forget about the SOROPTIPET competition which Karen launched earlier this month.
I was invited to attend the charter event of SI Newcastle upon Tyne on 7 November 2020, on Zoom, of course. We were asked to wear masks – of the masquerade variety – and of course bring our own food. [I enjoyed a delicious Afternoon Tea from my local deli!] We toasted Soroptimist International, answered quiz questions concerning women from the past 10 decades, and heard about the current situation of Food Banks. The highlight of the afternoon was the most excellent presentation of 100 Years of Fashion, featuring photographs provided by members throughout the Region, of themselves, family or friends from 1921 onwards, showing the fashion of the day. The photographs, which were presented in such a delightful way by Lis Graham, provoked much reaction as we viewed members we remembered from the past. I really hope that this can reach a wider audience than those who attended; it is well worth viewing.
A belated HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Sheila Hadwin, one of our Associate members in Penrith. Sheila’s was a significant birthday and the other Associates managed to celebrate with her, just before the second Lockdown began, and enjoy some birthday cake.
Finally, because it was World Kindness Day on Friday, I leave you with the following quote from
Whoopi Goldberg:
‘When you are kind to someone in trouble, you hope that they’ll remember and be kind to someone else. And it’ll become like a wildfire!’
Until next week, STAY SAFE, KEEP WELL.
In Friendship,
JOYCEJOYCE
Joint President
SINE
