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Archival talk

Archival talk

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Our first meeting at our new venue we welcomed some new faces - we hope you enjoyed your evening and will come again! What is an archive? An archive is a collection of primary sources which people can refer to, be it documents, photographs or digital legacy. They are unique documents, unlike books, usually only one copy exists, hence the importance of preserving them! Archives are managed by archivists and we were lucky enough to hear from Emily Naish, archivist at Salisbury Cathedral. Learn about Emily on Her Salisbury Story!  Salisbury Cathedral archive is very old, going back to the early days of the cathedral, with many medieval documents. The original archive room was the Muniment room, the name of which derives from the latin muniere = fortify. The room was built to be secure with shuttered windows and complex locks on the hefty doors
Bluebell Award 2023 – the winner!

Bluebell Award 2023 – the winner!

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The inaugural Bluebell Award, instigated by Regional President Kay Linnell,  was presented on 22 October at the SIGBI Southern Area's AGM lunch at Folkington Manor, Folkington, East Sussex. All Southern Region SI clubs were invited to submit a project for the Regional PAC award. There was stiff competition as 8 clubs entered a variety of projects. Projects had to be service not fundraising and involve lots of club members. It was also hoped that the project might attract new members to the club. Each project gave a 5 minute presentation to the judging panel. It was a great opportunity for clubs to see what is happening in the region and share ideas. Watch our presentation here. We are delighted that our project 'Making our City Safer' was selected as the winner! The prize of £1000 will go towards continuing aspects of the project. Liz Batten
Where are we going?

Where are we going?

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Following the SIGBI consultation on the restructuring of the organisation we asked our members to discuss three topics: What do you think are the benefits of being part of a regional/national/international organisation? What led you to join SI Salisbury? What elements of Soroptimism enthuse you most? How would you like to see our club develop in the coming year(s)? Table discussions sent feed back to Peggy to collate. If you weren't at the meeting, feel free to send in your ideas! Members are also asked to complete the questionnaire sent out with the papers for the meeting asking which projects you are currently, or would like to be involved in. Also please suggest any new projects you would like to see us tackle.   Making our City Safer A major project that we have been working on, Making our City Safer, has been selected as
Scientist recognised!

Scientist recognised!

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On Wednesday 7th September the Salisbury Civic Society and Salisbury Soroptimists unveiled a blue plaque to Dr Marina Seabright at the Old Salisbury Infirmary on Fisherton Street. Guests included former colleagues of Dr Seabright who came from far and wide to honour her memory. President of Salisbury Soroptimists, Jenny Hair, recalled working with Dr Seabright when she was a young HR executive. Marina had not wanted to follow rules and procedure, but urged Jenny to find a way to get what she wanted to happen. We later heard from John Harvey that his rapid promotion may have been one of those issues! Mayor of Salisbury, Atiqul Hoque, and Dame Rosemary Spencer, Patron of the Civic Society, did the honours and unveiled the plaque. The invited guests were welcomed into the community lounge of Pembroke House for refreshments and a presentation about Dr Seabright. Dr Christine
Striving for equality in CoE

Striving for equality in CoE

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Our guest speaker, the Right Reverend June Osborne, spoke about the challenges that women have faced, and still face, in the hierarchy of the Anglican Church. Until recently, June was Bishop of Llandaff in the Church of Wales. In 1994 she was one of the first women to be ordained in England. She moved to Salisbury and served as Canon Treasurer until her appointment as Dean in 2004. She remained in Salisbury until her consecration as Bishop of Llandaff in 2017.  June was subjected to an investigation following an allegation of bullying, but the allegation was later dropped. June also discussed the challenges faced by other women in different spheres of life. The Right Reverend June Osborne speaking to our July 2023 meeting President Jenny welcomed Leonie Maclay as a new member of Soroptimists International. Jenny repeated her plea to members to come forward to
Uplifting Support!

Uplifting Support!

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On Monday evening 20 Soroptimists and friends met to count bras. Yes, the annual Bras and Bubbly! The evening began with the great unloading of bundles, bags and bags of bras collected from all over Salisbury and surrounds (and some donations from farther afield!). Let the counting begin! A system quickly emerged: count piles of 10, pass to 'bagger' who counted 10 piles of 10 into a bin bag and tied the top. Penny wrote out the labels so that Afreebra know there are 100 bras from Salisbury Soroptimists in each. Any neighbours who heard us talking about putting bodies in bags..... we were talking about lingerie!! Kind donations which were not quite usual bras. We hadn't anticipated four-legged help, but Helen's dog had other ideas. Once the hard counting was over there was time for socialising over a glass or two and some nibbles.
June raffle

June raffle

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Sad that we are already past the summer solstice, our June meeting cheered us up by welcoming three new members to our club! Welcome to Kathryn Furnell, Mandy Ford, and Janet Draper. We also held a small raffle to raise funds for the President's Appeal. Each year the President of Soroptimists International chooses projects around the world, one in each federation. This President's Appeal is called Opening Doors to a Brighter Future and projects are taking place in Cambodia, Uganda, Georgia, Trinidad and Tobago, Paraguay and Malawi. We watched a short video in which Maureen introduced the projects. In our section getting to know each other, we heard from Peggy Jackson about her life before, as and after being a female clergy in the Church of England. Peggy Women's Safety initiative update Club members conducted an Ask Angela test - otherwise could have been called
People in the Park 2023

People in the Park 2023

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Members of the Club had an enjoyable and rewarding day at People in the Park on Saturday 20 May in Queen Elizabeth Gardens while showcasing the Making our City Safer project on their stall. The weather was fine and warm all day and there was a lot of interest from locals and visitors alike who called by for a chat. Thanks to Eleanor, Virginia, Sue, Rebecca, Janet, Annette, Jenny and Michele for their help. The Club used the opportunity to launch their latest survey of views about safety in Salisbury, which will provide an update to the opinion survey carried out by the OPCC last year, as the questions are broadly similar. Altogether a successful day, with lots of interest in the work SI Salisbury members are doing to help make Salisbury a safer place for women and girls. Please do add your views to
AGM 2023

AGM 2023

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AGMs are formal affairs but we wanted to also celebrate all that we have achieved this year, and there is quite a lot to remember. Our meeting was opened by President Jenny Hair introducing the order of proceedings. She then thanked those who had served on the Executive Committee, many of whom took on new roles this year. In particular she thanked those who had provided stability and experience on the Committee. Jenny noted that while we have lost some members this year, we have welcomed more, two of whom were inducted at the end of the meeting. Welcome to Glynis and Hilary! Jenny said that one of the most difficult things about her role is balancing the varying needs of all the membership. She noted that not everyone can get involved with projects, but that the club needs to cater for all members. Our
Blue Plaque Triumph!

Blue Plaque Triumph!

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Her Salisbury Story has been an amazing journey for Salisbury Soroptimists and on Thursday 13th April we witnessed another milestone, the unveiling of a Blue Plaque celebrating Frances Hale on New Street. This is only the 5th plaque to celebrate a women in Salisbury out of over 25. Our president, Jenny Hair, who also managed the project, spoke to the gathered crowd before the Mayor Tom Corbin and Jane Howells jointly pulled the scarf to reveal the plaque.  This was a joint ceremony with Salisbury Civic Society who sourced the plaque and arranged for installation. The invited guests walked to Salisbury Museum to see the Her Salisbury Story exhibition, which sadly had now closed due to renovations to the museum. If you missed it, see how it looked below. You can see the inspiration board on which visitors left their messages about women who have