Regional President Pam’s Message
Good morning Sister Soroptimists,
In my last message I talked about my impending move from Edinburgh to amalgamate with my house in Morpeth. I can report that the move went smoothly and the removal company was excellent. Although we had some snow a couple of days before the move the weather was fine on the actual day. I s6ll have to spend some 6me in Edinburgh this week to complete the move but by Thursday 17th it should be complete except for all the boxes to be sorted most of which are in storage !
Although I haven’t had much time to watch the Winter Olympics what I have seen has been amazing. I’ve caught snatches of the snowboarding, speed skating, skiing and biathlon, a combination of cross country skiing and shooting. Some of these sports look so dangerous and the speed and stamina of the athletes taking part is extraordinary. I also enjoy the skating and hope to see some next week. If you haven’t seen any of these games it is worth having a look at something before it closes on 20th February.
The date of this Newsletter, 20th February has been designated by the United Nations as the World Day of Social Justice. As Soroptimists our mission is transforming the lives of women and girls and clubs have used the Sustainable Development Goals ( SDG’s) such as SDG 5 – Gender Equality and SDG 1 – No Poverty, to seek social justice for women and girls in their respective communities. Soroptimists advance social justice when we seek to remove barriers to form a fair, equal society which we achieve through our projects.
And now to the Region’s clubs and their members. I am looking forward to my visit to S.I. Penrith and District’s club meeting on Zoom on Monday 21st February. It will be a pleasure to meet its members and to hear about the range of projects they have undertaken, par6cularly as they won the ‘Reach for the Skies’ Award this year. Following this engagement I will be attending the Afternoon Tea at the Spanish City being held to commemorate the 75th anniversary of S.I. Tynemouth, Whitley Bay and District on Sunday 27th February. It sounds as though it will be a most enjoyable event and it will be an honour to meet club members along with others from the Region. The club has an interes6ng past and owes a great deal to its founder Mrs Ella Thompson.
The next couple of weeks will be busy but will be most rewarding and it will be wonderful mee6ng other Sister Sorop6mists.
Take care and look after yourselves – Best wishes : President Pam
Editor : I am sure that all members send President Pam their best wishes for her new settled life in Morpeth. We appreciate the stress and work that a house move entails and hope that her programme of sorting out boxes and boxes of house contents will not be without it’s rewards.
News Letter
The first news item this edition is from S.I. Darlington and District who report on their members. families and friends who have amassed a huge number of empty medicine blister packs over the past year. At last there are collection points in Darlington so they don’t have to deliver them to Chester le Street any more. Their fourth collection was handed over in the last week of January and was received with some amazement !
Photograph shows S.I. Darlington’s Barbara Brown with the enormous number of empty pill blister packs.
S.I. Darlington and District also report that their member Elspeth Robinson has left the UK for Kumi in Uganda and will be there for the next month. This is her first visit for two years because of COVID restrictions, and Elspeth will be there when the ‘Wheels for the World ‘ team arrives to distribute over a hundred wheelchairs and even more mobility aids to those in need. Just how life-changing the correct wheelchair can be to a disabled child is illustrated by the enchanting smile of ten-year-old Faith .
Elspeth’s Kumi Community Foundation team first met this little girl at one of the outreach clinics in 2019. She has a diagnosis of Brittle Bone Disease, but she desperately wanted to go to school and was clearly clever enough as she could hold a pen, draw and write her letters. Her elder siblings taught her when they came home from school in the afternoons. The Kumi Community Foundation had a special wheelchair sent from Kampala as an ordinary wheelchair would not have been safe enough for her and when schools returned in January, Faith was at last able to attend.
Editor – we look forward to hearing more about Elspeth’s visit to Uganda in future Newsletters. Our club work with overseas projects is so valuable and it is wonderful to have first hand reports on the positive impact on children and their families lives.
A further update has been received from S.I. Carlisle who continue to support the Hostel for homeless women in Water Street, Carlisle. In January they delivered yet another batch of long life food and 6 pairs of pyjamas. There seems to be a never ending need for these items, but it’s always important to have a stock ready to hand out as they are needed.
The latest delivery in February was a little different. Sharon (the Hostel Manager ) had told them that they only had one hairdryer which was shared between all of the 14 residents. This meant that the ladies frequently needed to go out with wet hair – something none of us would like to do in the middle of winter ! They hope that it won’t happen again, since they now have another 3 new hair dryers as can see in the photograph below.
The ladies were also sharing just one iron and ironing board, which was kept in the laundry room. Most of our clothes don’t need ironing nowadays, but some still need to look smart for special occasions such as job interviews. The club members were able to supply another iron with ironing board to be used in the laundry as well as two table top boards and irons which will be kept in the office and lent out as needed for the ladies to use in their rooms. The stock of long life foods was running low on
several items, including tea, coffee, sugar and breakfast cereals. These items were able to be provided, together with large quantities of toiletries and make-up, which will be a help to new arrivals.
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Sunday 27th February : S.I. Tynemouth, Whitley Bay and District celebrate their 75th Charter Anniversary with Afternoon Tea in the Spanish City.
Saturday 5th March : SINE Regional Coffee Gathering on Zoom. Everyone is welcome -just contact Margaret Ayton ( margaretayton40@gmail.com ) to be sent the link. We start at 10.30am for about an hour – no business – just chat and fellowship between members.
EDITOR :
I have recently been given a copy of the best selling book “Big Panda and Tiny Dragon” by James Norbury who was inspired by Buddhist philosophy and spirituality to share the ideas that have helped him through his most difficulty times. It is beautifully and copiously illustrated by James who is also an artist. Here are a three quotes that might help us :-
“A new day and a new beginning” said Tiny Dragon. “What shall we do with it ?”
“Big Panda,” said Tiny Dragon. “I like the way you listen to me and talk to me and travel with me, but most of all, I like the way you make me feel”.
“Sometimes I think I”m not good enough” said Tiny Dragon.
“A cherry tree doesn’t compare itself to other trees”, said Big Panda, “It just blossoms”.
I hope that these thoughts might help us as we work at developing our clubs, member friendships and positive activities.
The next SINE Regional Newsletter will be on Sunday 6th March. Please do send me any news of your plans for Interna6onal Women’s Day or any other club or member news. This Newsletter belongs to you all and I hope you feel able to support it. in friendship – your Editor and JIPP