{"id":6128,"date":"2021-10-24T23:40:27","date_gmt":"2021-10-24T22:40:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/?p=6128"},"modified":"2021-10-24T23:40:27","modified_gmt":"2021-10-24T22:40:27","slug":"presidents-message-number-73","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/","title":{"rendered":"Presidents Message – Number 73"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good Morning all my sister Soroptimists in Northern England<\/span><\/h3>\n

This will be my last Regional Newsletter as your Regional President and I thank each one <\/span>of you for the complimentary feedback that both Joyce ( who started this form of inter-club <\/span>communication with her weekly emails ) and myself have received from so many of you. <\/span>It certainly has been a very useful tool during these times when communication between <\/span>us has certainly been different and innovative. After discussions with President Elect Pam, <\/span>I am going to continue to be the writer and editor of this bi-weekly Newsletter with Pam <\/span>sending us a message with her contribution. So, please do remember to continue to <\/span>send your club and member news to me and we will continue to enjoy reading of your <\/span>activities and seeing photographs of smiling, active Soroptimists.<\/span><\/p>\n

Many of us joined in the annual event of the Inter-club Dinner which was hosted by <\/span>S.I. Durham on Monday 4th October. The ballroom at the Ramside Hotel was a spacious <\/span>and airy room where about 70 of us gathered to enjoy the meal and listen to the guest <\/span>speaker who was Gary Bankhead, Honorary Research Associate of the Department of <\/span>Archaeology at Durham University. His story of how his hobby of sub-aqua diving turned <\/span>into a remarkable quest for ancient relics in the river Wear was a fascinating account of life <\/span>in this City over many centuries. I don\u2019t think that any of us had realised what a notable <\/span>
\ncentre Durham was for weaving and fabric trading as well as enjoying looking at his <\/span>photographs of pilgrims tokens and other personal items that had fallen into the river <\/span>many, many years ago. This was no \u2018dry\u2019 talk but a \u2018fluid\u2019 (sorry ! ) account of how history <\/span>can be bought to life. Thank you Durham members for arranging such an enjoyable <\/span>evening. <\/span><\/p>\n

I was invited by S.I. Tynemouth, Whitley Bay & District to their tree planting event. Here <\/span>is their report and photograph :- <\/span>\u201cOn Saturday 9th October, members of S.I. Tynemouth, Whitley Bay & District, with\"\" guest <\/span>Regional President Christine, gathered to plant our tree as part of the celebrations for the <\/span>centenary of Soroptimist International. Our tree was planted in Holywell Dene, an ancient <\/span>woodland which runs between Seghill and Seaton Sluice. On the advice of the Friends of <\/span>Holywell Dene, we chose an English Oak, a tree which fits well into the existing <\/span>landscape. The Friends of Holywell Dene also kindly agreed to allow a plaque to be <\/span>erected to mark the occasion and we were very grateful to them for their advice and <\/span>support, and to member Linda Johnson who nurtured our sapling until it was ready to <\/span>plant. The tree is in a wonderful location, overlooking Seaton Burn which runs through the <\/span>Dene, and is close to a bench where visitors can pause to take in the view. Holywell <\/span>Dene is a wonderful place for a walk and we hope you\u2019ll be able to visit to enjoy a walk and <\/span>see our Soroptimist oak tree.\u201d <\/span>As their guest, I can confirm what a dignified occasion it was with a wonderful poem about <\/span>an Oak tree being read out to the assembled group. As usual, the event was an excuse <\/span>for more Soroptimist fellowship with a lunch at the local golf club after the planting. <\/span>The photograph shows Joint President Anne Gunning watering in the 5\u2019 sapling which had <\/span>been carefully protected and staked with its plaque clearly identifying it. Long may it grow <\/span>and long may we be able to visit it to watch it grow.<\/span><\/p>\n

S.I. Middlesbrough member Shirley Bond first started knitting teddies in 2020 when she <\/span>read about the suffering of children who had experienced trauma in places like <\/span>Afghanistan. More recently, SIM members heard about the Bungalow Partnership whose <\/span>Director, Marie Blythe spoke at a club meeting about the distress of the young people and <\/span>families they care for, who themselves had experienced traumatic events. Since then, <\/span>Shirley has provided the Middlesbrough charity with a constant supply of \"\"teddies, which <\/span>have been a source of comfort to children as part of their emotional healing process. <\/span>
\nShirley says \u201c I have kept knitting teddies because the Bungalow Partnership always <\/span>needs them, which is very sad\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

I am delighted to receive this news from S.I. Darlington & District who are celebrating <\/span>with this report of one of their long time members – Gypsy Nichol. <\/span>\u201cCelebrating her 90th birthday on 31st October, S.I. Darlington\u2019s Gypsy Nichol has been <\/span>an active member since 1964. When she joined, membership was by invitation only and <\/span>Gypsy, then working for Paton’s & Baldwins, with shorthand typing and book-keeping <\/span>skills, was \u2018head-hunted\u2019 by founder president, Nora Fenby. Gypsy was the youngest in <\/span>the club by 15 years. Within three years she was Regional Secretary – though in those <\/span>days the Northern Region was called \"\" the Northern Divisional Union. 1973 – 1974 she was <\/span>our D.U. President and so the 25th DU Conference was held in Darlington. <\/span>One of the highlights of her early years as a Soroptimist was being a member of the <\/span>organising committee for the Federation Conference in Newcastle in 1968. Southern <\/span>Soroptimists had been reluctant to come north, claiming there wouldn\u2019t be enough hotel <\/span>rooms. Gypsy was instrumental in removing their doubts and supplied delegates with <\/span>detailed local information once they\u2019d ventured up to Newcastle. <\/span>Gypsy was involved in the launch of Abbeyfield in Darlington in 1970 and in the opening of <\/span>the Women\u2019s Refuge in 1976 when the club equipped the kitchen. <\/span>As President 1970-71, she led the club as it learned about developments in science and <\/span>technology ( use of pesticides & causes of pollution ). Members were also concerned that <\/span>the use computers in record-keeping could lead to misuse of personal and private <\/span>information. Plus ca change !! Gypsy was also DU rep and held the post of club <\/span>treasurer three times. <\/span>She has vivid memories of the 1975 International Convention in Sheffield, where the NDU <\/span>was responsible for organising a very successful Friendship Lounge. In 1977 Gypsy \u201ctook <\/span>a back seat\u201d – though still an active member – when she married her dear John. After ten <\/span>happy years together, John sadly died. <\/span>Since then Gypsy has unfailingly supported the club and taken part in activities. She <\/span>enjoyed the visit to SI Soest ( Germany ) and the 2013 SI European Congress in Berlin. <\/span>Wherever she goes, people remark on her resemblance to the Queen ! On a cruise <\/span>
\nbeside the Mohne Dam children were all keen to have their photos taken with her. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"In March this year Gypsy was a vital member of the Tree-planting team, able to dig the <\/span>holes herself and leaving at least one younger member feeling very feeble ! <\/span>During the first Lockdown Gypsy was quick to use Zoom – playing bridge and attending <\/span>French lessons online weeks before the club had its first Zoom meeting. <\/span>Gypsy knows that she has been lucky to keep her health, and she lives according to the <\/span>
\nmotto \u201cUse it or Lose it\u201d. Darlington club is organising a tea party in her hour because, as <\/span>one member put it, \u201c Some of us might not be here when she\u2019s 100\u201d. <\/span>All members of S.I. Northern England <\/span>
\nsend their love and birthday wishes to <\/span>Gypsy Nichol <\/span>a very happy 90th birthday <\/span>on 31st October 2021 <\/span>❤ ❤ ❤<\/span><\/p>\n

I hope that many of you have registered for our SIGBI Federation Conference which <\/span>begins with the Federation Programme Action meeting on Thursday 28 October and <\/span>finishes with a Centenary party on Saturday 30 October. It is being streamed from <\/span>Llandudno Conference Centre and will see our Federation President Cathy Cottridge <\/span>leading our members in this very special year. It will be entirely different from the <\/span>Soroptimist International 100 years celebrations and may be easier for us to engage and <\/span>follow the speakers and debates. I can see from the programme that it is certainly more <\/span>convenient hours to sit and view. I know that in-coming President Pam has organised <\/span>some reporters to feedback during November so it will be interesting to hear views on the <\/span>speakers, events and how well it was received this year. Throughout the Conference <\/span>many of us will be thinking of Johanna Raffan and the role that she should have played in <\/span>leading this year\u2019s event but let us celebrate all that she held dear in our global <\/span>organisation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m about to leave ( on Saturday afternoon : 23 October) for the Afternoon Tea Party to <\/span>celebrate S.I. Middlesbrough\u2019s 75th Charter anniversary. I hope that I will see many you <\/span>there and we\u2019ll take some pictures to show you next time. <\/span>Lastly – don\u2019t forget to continue to send me your news of club events and members for us <\/span>to share and celebrate our activities as we will continue to be cautious in our meeting face-to-face as infection rates continue to urge restraint in social interaction. Keep safe and <\/span>look after yourselves <\/span>in friendship.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"Christine Lumsdon – your regional president ( until 30th October 2021)<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Good Morning all my sister Soroptimists in Northern England This will be my last Regional…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":113,"featured_media":6132,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-club-news"],"yoast_head":"\nPresidents Message - Number 73 | News | Blog | Events | SI Northern England<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"SI Northern England : Blog & News : Presidents Message - Number 73 : Keep up to date with the latest news, articles and events from the Soroptimists of SI Northern England . Read more about Presidents Message - Number 73 .\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Presidents Message - Number 73 | News | Blog | Events | SI Northern England\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"SI Northern England : Blog & News : Presidents Message - Number 73 : Keep up to date with the latest news, articles and events from the Soroptimists of SI Northern England . Read more about Presidents Message - Number 73 .\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SI Northern England\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-10-24T22:40:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/files\/2021\/10\/03-darlington.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"643\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"482\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"northern-england\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"northern-england\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/\",\"name\":\"Presidents Message - Number 73 | News | Blog | Events | SI Northern England\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/files\/2021\/10\/03-darlington.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-10-24T22:40:27+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#\/schema\/person\/6c14dd88bcf580e539c0205737a70971\"},\"description\":\"SI Northern England : Blog & News : Presidents Message - Number 73 : Keep up to date with the latest news, articles and events from the Soroptimists of SI Northern England . Read more about Presidents Message - Number 73 .\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/files\/2021\/10\/03-darlington.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/files\/2021\/10\/03-darlington.jpg\",\"width\":643,\"height\":482},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Presidents Message – Number 73\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/\",\"name\":\"SI Northern England\",\"description\":\"A Soroptimist International of Great Britain and Ireland Club website\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#\/schema\/person\/6c14dd88bcf580e539c0205737a70971\",\"name\":\"northern-england\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cbf39234ddf6352500752d21f15c9d7bcf781870da3dfac3d8b0d8c1e2a6d1a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cbf39234ddf6352500752d21f15c9d7bcf781870da3dfac3d8b0d8c1e2a6d1a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"northern-england\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/author\/northern-england\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Presidents Message - Number 73 | News | Blog | Events | SI Northern England","description":"SI Northern England : Blog & News : Presidents Message - Number 73 : Keep up to date with the latest news, articles and events from the Soroptimists of SI Northern England . Read more about Presidents Message - Number 73 .","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Presidents Message - Number 73 | News | Blog | Events | SI Northern England","og_description":"SI Northern England : Blog & News : Presidents Message - Number 73 : Keep up to date with the latest news, articles and events from the Soroptimists of SI Northern England . Read more about Presidents Message - Number 73 .","og_url":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/","og_site_name":"SI Northern England","article_published_time":"2021-10-24T22:40:27+00:00","og_image":[{"width":643,"height":482,"url":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/files\/2021\/10\/03-darlington.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"northern-england","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"northern-england","Estimated reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/","url":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/","name":"Presidents Message - Number 73 | News | Blog | Events | SI Northern England","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/files\/2021\/10\/03-darlington.jpg","datePublished":"2021-10-24T22:40:27+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#\/schema\/person\/6c14dd88bcf580e539c0205737a70971"},"description":"SI Northern England : Blog & News : Presidents Message - Number 73 : Keep up to date with the latest news, articles and events from the Soroptimists of SI Northern England . Read more about Presidents Message - Number 73 .","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/files\/2021\/10\/03-darlington.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/files\/2021\/10\/03-darlington.jpg","width":643,"height":482},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/2021\/10\/24\/presidents-message-number-73\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Presidents Message – Number 73"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/","name":"SI Northern England","description":"A Soroptimist International of Great Britain and Ireland Club website","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#\/schema\/person\/6c14dd88bcf580e539c0205737a70971","name":"northern-england","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cbf39234ddf6352500752d21f15c9d7bcf781870da3dfac3d8b0d8c1e2a6d1a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cbf39234ddf6352500752d21f15c9d7bcf781870da3dfac3d8b0d8c1e2a6d1a0?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"northern-england"},"url":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/author\/northern-england\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/113"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6128"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6128\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6135,"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6128\/revisions\/6135"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6132"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sigbi.org\/northern-england\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}