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5th Birthday Celebration

5th Birthday Celebration

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On Saturday 17th August, 2024, Salisbury Soroptimists and invited guests met to celebrate the club's 5th birthday. Dressing for a 'summer day by the river' everyone gathered on the patio of the Legacy Rose and Crown Hotel in Harnham, for pre-brunch drinks. We were delighted that SIGBI President, Ruth Healey, could join our celebrations, along with other invited guests. Kay Linnell, Southern Region President, also joined us, as did representatives from our two charities. We were happy to see many of the founding members along with others who only joined this year. A delicious buffet was served in the Orangery, which was perfect for enjoying views of the Avon while dining. A selection of filled bagels, samosas and chicken kebabs ensured there was something for everyone. On each table were quiz sheets, asking questions about what the club had achieved since its beginning. From the
Autism Awareness

Autism Awareness

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The main part of our July meeting was a presentation by two of our members who are autistic. Cath and Louise explained that autism is a type of neurodiversity, which means their brains operate in different ways to those of us who are neurotypical, and they see the world in different ways. Other neurodivergent conditions include dyslexia, dyscalculia, misphonia, dyspraxia, stammering, ADHD and Tourettes Syndrome. It is not uncommon to be neurodivergent in more than one way. Despite legislation which obliges organisations to make reasonable adjustments to remove barriers, autistic people still find difficulty navigating our society and may often feel like square pegs being forced into round holes. They often face services which do not meet their needs in health, education, employment and housing. Indications There are many things that we may notice about someone with autism: appear shy look aloof talk incessantly discuss
ABRAcadaBRA! CeleBRAting new record!

ABRAcadaBRA! CeleBRAting new record!

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One fine evening and some willing counters were all we needed to complete our annual bra collection. Fortunately, after several days of rain, we picked the right evening to gather in Helen's beautiful, riverside garden to celeBRAte the end of this year's collection and to use our BRAins to sort our haul. Our annual bra collection takes place during May and June. The main collection points were Five Rivers Leisure Centre and 60 Endless Street (Penny's house), with other locations in Downton and Stratford-sub-Castle. Other people collected from friends and colleagues. Still others posted bras to us following coverage by BBC Wiltshire! BRAndishing scissors, tape and plastic bags we BRAvely gathered to emBRAce the cereBRAl task. The scene was set: two tables on which to deposit bras and count piles of 10. The piles were then counted into black bags: 10 x piles of 10
Her Salisbury Footprint Revisited

Her Salisbury Footprint Revisited

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For our June meeting we planned to take advantage of the warm summer weather and long evenings to revisit Her Salisbury Footprint, the walking trail developed through Her Salisbury Story. The weather was sunny and the evening light. A group of us met in front of the Guildhall where we heard about Lady Edith Hulse the first female mayor of Salisbury. Along the south side of the Market Square, we marvelled that Jane Botly had raised seven children above the Ox Row Inn, as well as running the cutlery business. Passing the Poultry Cross we paused at the Haunch of Venison to hear about Louisa Potto who took on the license after the death of her husband. The family were not just innkeepers, but also wholesale wine and beer merchants with cellars under what is now Culver Street carpark. On the corner of High Street
Cooking in Africa

Cooking in Africa

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Following the late cancellation of the speaker from the Nelson Trust, Julia gave a presentation about the problems of cooking in Africa. Julia lived in three different Sub-Saharan African countries for ten years and encountered the numerous problems associated with 'dirty cooking'; four out of five Africans cook with polluting fuels like charcoal, wood or kerosene. These fuels cause many problems: carbon emissions smoke - inhaled by those nearby (mostly women and children) causing respiratory problems using up natural resources (deforestation) time consuming to gather firewood (and danger of rape) cooking pot needs constant tending danger of clothes catching fire danger of children falling in fires There are many fuel efficient stoves available worldwide, but often cost too much for the average family. Schemes such as micro finance can help make them accessible. Families save in the longer term from reduced fuel bills and the
AGM 2023-4

AGM 2023-4

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Outgoing President Jenny looked back on her two years in office. She was pleased that her aim of promoting friendship during her presidency had been successful in many ways. Although the move to the new venue was prompted by financial considerations, it had the knock-on effect of making our meetings more sociable, enabling members to mingle before and after meetings. Jenny also emphasised that the club has been successful in raising funds, raising awareness and working in partnerships with the community and other organisations to improve the lives of women and girls both locally and in Tanzania. She reminded everyone that the club needed members to step up to fill roles on the Executive as well as to lead/coordinate projects. Salisbury Women's Refuge Caroline Probert, Chair of Trustees at Salisbury Women's Refuge, spoke to the club prior to being presented with £520 from the proceeds
#IWD2024 Inspiring Inclusion

#IWD2024 Inspiring Inclusion

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Sigbi asked us to provide photos for IWD2024 in advance, to be incorporated into their video released on the day. We assembled on the steps of the Guildhall with the Mayor and Deputy Mayor for a photo shoot. We had a quick coffee in the High Street and went on to the Cathedral Cloisters where the annual pancake races were being held in the dry - the endless rain making it too wet to hold them outside. It was great to see children of all sizes running with frying pans and pancakes! We also took the chance to take a few more photos! On 8 March a group of us met up for a meal at Tinga, before walking to the Arts Centre for a performance by Louise Jordan called 'Her Stories'. In song and speech she told the stories of a variety of women,
Celebrating Women

Celebrating Women

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Digital fun Our February meeting began with some digital fun. We all tried out slido.com which allows everyone in a meeting to collaborate in answering questions posed to the group or as a quiz format. We tried both! The question pops up on your phone and you input your answer - it appears on the group screen for everyone to see! For the quiz, ours was about contemporary women, the questions and options appeared on our phones. Everyone could select their answer and send. The main screen showed how many people had selected each answer, then showed the correct answer. At the end everyone's scores were collated. It proved a successful experiment! STEM/Arts project Leonie talked about her project Zingera. This encourages the use of apps in education to promote STEM but also incorporate the arts. The aim is to encourage learning through diverse means
Oranging Salisbury

Oranging Salisbury

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November has been a busy month for Salisbury Soroptimists! Our Quiz Night was a great success thanks to a hard-working team. Our second meeting at our new venue was a lively occasion. We had three groups doing different activities. One group worked creatively on decorations for our 'Orange the World Christmas tree' entered in the St Thomas' Christmas tree festival. Lots of orange cardboard, wool, net and ribbons were cut, stapled and glued in place. We look forward to seeing the tree! Another group discussed a new project. We have thought for a while about a project having something to do with women's health - a huge topic, so some discussion needed to narrow this down to a manageable project. One possible area to explore is women with autism. The third group did some preparations for upcoming Orange the World activities and then did some
Quiz success!

Quiz success!

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Thanks to a hard-working team we pulled off another successful quiz night and raised over £1000 for our charities. Nine teams of between 4 and 6 competed over 8 rounds of testing questions, set by our quiz team. Team scores were remarkably close but the winners were The Jolly Jarcks with 78 points. They won a box of chocolate Christmas tree decorations each. We hope they enjoy! We also held a raffle which contributed nearly £300 to the takings. Many thanks to all those members and businesses who donated prizes. We changed the catering this year which involved more preparation - a big thank you to all those who helped in the kitchen and in preparations prior to the event! The feedback about the supper on the night was positive, so well done everyone! The profits will be split between Salisbury Women's Refuge and EdUKaid.