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September update

September update

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Soroptimist International Convention in Dublin Here is the September update on our activities, which featured lively meeting this month.  Two members reported back on their experience of attending the Soroptimist International Convention in Dublin.  They attended as part of a 50 strong party from the Yorkshire Region who travelled to Dublin together.  The party added exploration of the city to the Convention meetings.  There was praise for the Dublin Convention Centre’s exceptional organisation and efficiency.  The Centre staff succeeded in providing tea, coffee, and a hot lunch to 1600 SI members without queues. There were several impressive speakers at the Convention.  The keynote speech was given by the former President of Ireland, Mary Robinson. She is currently chair of The Elders group at the United Nations, of which she is a founder member. The main themes of the convention were Gender Equality and The Environmental

Soroptimist Cup for Making a Difference

Soroptimist Cup for Making a Difference

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Member Sue Young recently attended the Richmond School Awards night to present the Soroptimist Cup for Making a Difference to this year’s recipients.  We donated this Cup to be awarded each year to pupils in recognition of outstanding voluntary actions contributing to the school or the local community .  This year it was awarded jointly to Amy Salvin, Thomas Greer and Toby Watson.  The three of them were inspired by a visit to the Store House foodbank which helps local people who are struggling to feed their families.  Amy, Thomas and Toby ran a campaign to raise awareness of this issue in the school.  They delivered assemblies and organised quizzes where the entry fee was a food donation.  This was a great success, resulting in more than 1000 items being donated to the food bank.  Worthy winners of our cup, indeed!

Update for August

Update for August

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We don’t have a regular club meeting in August, as so many people are away on holiday.  However, that doesn’t mean no activity that month! Here is my update for August: Kiplin Hall Visit A group of members and their other halves went on a guided tour of the local historic house Kiplin Hall.  We had an excellent tour guide, who took us through the history of the house whilst displaying its architecture and contents.  This impressive Jacobean mansion was built by successful statesman George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore, from 1619.  He was also the founder of the American colony in Maryland, and there are ties between the house and it’s American connections to this day. The last family owner, Bridget Talbot, bequeathed it to the Trust she set up in 1971, and opened it to the public.  Bridget Talbot was a notable woman in

July News

July News

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July Meeting The speaker at our July meeting was Alice Rose, Programming curator of Kiplin Hall, the local Jacobean historic house.  Alice described her role then went on to describe the history of the house and its families and current facilities and exhibitions for visitors.  She also outlined future plans for the Hall and grounds in a wide-ranging and fascinating talk. We will be visiting as a group in August. We were delighted to welcome two new members at this meeting – Rachel Pavitt and Jane McLennan.  They were welcomed and presented with their badges by the President and their mentors, Chris Bowran and Sue Eastham. President Babs reported back on her attendance at the Yorkshire Region meeting held in July at Askham Grange Prison. She was impressed by the speakers, and the experience of visiting the prison.  Christina Gabbitas spoke of her work writing

Our June Activities

Our June Activities

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Here is our update on our June activities. Cheque presented to Colburn Community Support Members Judith Clark and Sue Young visited Colburn Community Support to present them with a cheque from our fundraising for this new organisation, set up last year, which provides support to the impoverished community of Colburn.  CCS aims to support individuals, families, and businesses in the community by offering practical & admin support, budgeting & financial management advice, help with CVs, job applications & benefit forms, bereavement support, business mentoring and advocacy services.                   June Meeting Our speaker at the June Meeting was Irene Boreham, from the Breast Cancer Support Group associated with The Friarage Hospital MacMillan Cancer Care Centre in Northallerton. Irene told us about her own journey through breast cancer and then went on to describe the history of the support

Presenting a Cheque to Friends of Garget-Walker House

Presenting a Cheque to Friends of Garget-Walker House

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Babs Hunt, our President, together with member Lin Clarkson recently presented a cheque to the Friends of Garget Walker House.  This was at a recent fundraising coffee morning run by the Friends, held in Richmond Town Hall.  The Friends of Garget Walker house provide resources, activities and support for dementia sufferers and their carers in Richmondshire.  SI Richmond & Dales has supported the Friends with donations on several occasions.  

Presentation of Cheque to Marrick Priory

Presentation of Cheque to Marrick Priory

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Two of our members recently attended a fundraising lunch at Marrick Priory Outdoor Centre, where they presented a cheque for £150, as an additional donation to the Centre. This is part of the money raised at our Quiz Night.  Sue & Judith are pictured below with the Director on the bench we purchased for them earlier in the year.  We have also received a “thank you” email, including a picture of the safety helmets, which were part of the earlier donation.

Update from Our May Meeting

Update from Our May Meeting

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Here is our monthly update from our May meeting.  We were very pleased to welcome visitors from two other SI Yorkshire Clubs – Regional Membership Officer Judith Parsons, and long standing stalwart of the Region, Pat Kilbane – and another prospective new member of our club.  Judith and Pat congratulated the Club on its good record of recruiting new people.  Judith spoke about the need to continue to bring new members into Soroptimism.  This is designated “Membership Month”, but Judith says that every month should be membership month. EVA Women’s Aid The Speaker for the meeting was another SI member – Richinda Taylor of SI Scarborough, Malton & District.  Richinda was speaking in her capacity as CEO of the Charity EVA. She  began  her talk by reminding us of the vision of EVA, which is to end violence towards women and girls. The ethos of

April meeting and AGM

April meeting and AGM

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This month was our April meeting and AGM.  However, we began  with an excellent talk on Guide Dogs for the Blind. Guide Dogs for the Blind Babs and Paul Hunt, together with Lynne Pinkney and Morrisa, her 22-week-old pup in training, provided an informative talk about the work of families who take on very young dogs for their first part of training. This is the beginning of detailed training to be a guide dog for a visually impaired person. Paul and Babs’s dog, Eryn, who they had from 14 weeks to 16 months, has just left them to continue training in Leeds. The primary role of the first trainers is to socialize the dogs, taking them into many different environments and on as many forms of transport as possible. Verbal commands and expected behaviour must fit in with future training, to provide a companion for

Update for March

Update for March

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Here is the update for March on our club’s activities. Monthly Meeting At our monthly meeting we were pleased to welcome Sarah Cooper and Sarah Doherty from “Spouse Force“.  Sarah C began by introducing herself and giving an insight into her background as a Military Spouse.  Her experiences, not all of which had been positive, inspired and gave her the impetus to form the not-for-profit Social Enterprise “Spouse Force” in Catterick on the back of her work as an independent Financial Adviser with Focus Financial. She explained the importance of being financially aware, particularly when so many people are not confident or are unaware and lacking in information about how to approach this vital part of life.  The two Sarahs recognised that many Military spouses were particularly affected by the inability to access friendly, easily comprehensible financial advice as well as information on other aspects