Skip links

March Meeting: A Global Perspective and Local Action

March Meeting: A Global Perspective and Local Action

in Tags

This month, our club has been buzzing with activity! From inspiring talks to exciting upcoming events, here’s everything you need to know: A View from the UN: The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) We were privileged to welcome Susan Mendoza, a member of SI Bingley, as our guest speaker at the March meeting. Susan shared her incredible experiences as a delegate at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in 2024 and 2025. Did you know? SIGBI and Soroptimist International (SI) both hold special consultative status at the UN, enabling members to participate in critical global discussions on gender equality. Susan gave us a fascinating overview of the CSW, which has been fostering global awareness of women’s issues since its first meeting in 1947. Each year, the CSW focuses on a priority theme—this year, it’s Justice, while past themes have

February Meeting: A Night of Community Support and Future Planning

February Meeting: A Night of Community Support and Future Planning

in Tags

Our February meeting was held on Thursday, 19th February 2026, at the Holiday Inn Scotch Corner. This was a bustling evening of community support and future planning. Supporting Specialist Palliative Care We were delighted to welcome Claire Bunting and Sarah Holland from the Hambleton & Richmondshire Specialist Palliative Care Team as our guest speakers. They provided a moving and informative overview of their vital work. Their team gives end of life care and support to patients and their families. They work in both community and hospital settings. This essential service relies on funding from both the NHS and charitable donations. Following a successful bingo night organised by SI Richmond & Dales, we were thrilled to present the team with a cheque for £1,421. This donation was gratefully received. Other Donations Treasurer Babs hunt confirmed that other recently agreed donations have been made: £100 to the

Driving Ukraine

Driving Ukraine

in

SI Richmond and Dales has donated £200 to support the Driving Ukraine project, in which there is local involvement.  This is an all female convoy of donated vehicles and medical supplies going out to the Ukraine to be presented to a team of female medics. This is our contribution to International Women’s Day! Here is more information about the project:

Start the New Year

Start the New Year

in Tags

  In December members of the club enjoyed a very pleasant evening at The Station, Richmond, sharing a Christmas Dinner. Then in January, we gathered to start the New Year with our big planning meeting at our usual venue, The Holiday Inn, Scotch Corner.  Our club programme year runs from April to March, and we hold a special meeting in January to plan the next Club Year, so that we are ready in good time. New Members This year we were delighted to formerly welcome two new members to the club, and present them their badges and welcome packs.  Two of  our other new members also volunteered for committee  roles in the club next year. They will take over as Programme Action Lead and Comms & Website when the current incumbents complete their term in March.    We were also  pleased to be joined by

November Meeting in Colburn

November Meeting in Colburn

in Tags

Colburn Community Hub As has become traditional, we held our November Meeting in Colburn, at the village Community Hub. We handed over an impressive array of donations – food, toiletries, gifts – towards the Christmas Hampers which the community group provides for those in need in the area.  There was also a heap of warm clothes donated for the Community Warm Rail. It is a privilege to help the magnificent work of the Colburn Community volunteers.                 Lady Chaytor Our speaker was Kate Streatfield, who gave us a tour and talk about the Easby Abbey ruins earlier this year. This time Kate’s gave us a fascinating insight into the extraordinary life of Lady Isobel Chaytor, ‘ A Titled Northern Lady’.  Although she came from a modest family in Middlesbrough, in 1912 she married the third son of  the

Update for October

Update for October

in Tags

Save Our Swale At this month’s meeting we were joined as speakers by 3 representatives of Save Our Swale (SOS). They came to address the meeting about their campaign against pollution in the River Swale.  Brian Benson spoke about the poor history of water supply and sewage disposal regulation, in particular since the privatisation of the multiplicity of Water Companies under the Conservative Government in 1989 into a few large regional monopolies.  Nationally, management since then has resulted in massive dividend payments to the small number of shareholders, build-up of billions of pounds in debts, increasing charges and – most critical – ongoing underinvestment in the infrastructure.  This has resulted in leaks of 2-3bn litres of water a day, and chronic release of untreated sewage into our rivers.  Together with chemical run off and spills from farms this means widespread river pollution. SOS is one

September Meeting

September Meeting

in Tags

This was the first “regular” meeting attended by our 3 new members, who joined us last month for the outing to Easby Abbey.  Babs was able to present them with their badges and formally welcome them. Richmond Refugee Support Our speaker was Annette Clarke from Richmond Refugee Support group. This is a voluntary group who provide social support for resettled people from Syria, Afghanistan, Iran and Ukraine.  They have arrived in our area by various different routes, though many are linked with the Ministry of Defence.  They and their families may have been given a settlement agreement for up to 3 years through work they performed for the MOD.  We were very impressed at the range of support the group gives. The group helps provide a befriending service which provides many things. This includes explaining where local facilities are, taking people to medical appointments or

Meeting at Easby Abbey

Meeting at Easby Abbey

in Tags

Easby Abbey We held our July Meeting at Easby Abbey, the English Heritage ruins on the edge of Richmond.  The evening began with a picnic in the grounds on a lovely evening, which was followed by a tour and talk about the history of the Abbey by Kate Streatfield, one of the English Heritage custodians. Evidence suggests that a religious community of some sort existed on the site before the abbey was founded. This was probably based on the surviving parish church of St Agatha, and may have been an Anglian minster, a community of priests responsible for serving the surrounding parishes.  The Abbey itself was founded in about 1152 by Roald, constable of Richmond, and may have absorbed the earlier minster.  It was a Premonstratensian Foundation, only the third one in England. Most of the Abbey was built in the 13th century. The Premonstratensian

News of June Meeting

News of June Meeting

in Tags

We held our June meeting at Holiday Inn, Scotch Corner on a very warm evening.  Sadly, our guest speaker from the Richmond & Hambleton Palliative Care Team, had been taken ill and could not be with us. However, our newest member, Sara-Louise offered to stand up and speak to us about her life and work. Sara is a real local, having been born in Northallerton, and lived all her life in Richmond.  She works as a senior member of a Chartered Accountancy firm in Richmond.  Her main focus is supporting new clients, especially those setting up new businesses, as well as supporting the women on her team.  She discovered Soroptimism when her Godmother Lin (our past President and current club Secretary) nominated her for our ‘Women of Richmond Exhibition’ for International Women’s Day. Sara received a very warm welcome from club members. Our Programme Action