At the penultimate monthly meeting of her year in office, President Pamela was delighted to welcome Val Williams as a speaker.  Mrs Williams talked about Goslar which is twinned with Windsor & Maidenhead.  Goslar is situated in the Harz Mountains in North Germany and has established a very strong twinning relationship with the Royal Borough.  The photo shows President Pamela with Val and her husband.

During the past year three longstanding members of the club celebrated their eightieth birthdays so this certainly needed a celebration.  Also the Slough Child Contact Centre which is totally managed and operated by SI Slough Windsor and Maidenhead received its accreditation for a further three years so it was decided to have a party at Christmastime.  The photo shows the Birthday girls with their cakes.

Six members of the club attended the Annual Conference held this year in the remarkable Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre in Glasgow affectionately known locally as the Armadillo!  This year was truly inspirational with a swathe of remarkable speakers.  The opening morning provided Jo Fairley (the founder of Black & Green chocolate), Dame Stella Rimington (first woman director of MI5) and Sarah Montague of the Today programme talking about their careers and lives.  In addition HRH  Princess Anne dropped in to talk about Save The Children and accept a cheque from the Disaster Appeal.  The three speakers also took part in a panel which was deftly chaired by past Federation President Joan Smythe when they answered a mix of questions sent in by members.  A fabulous morning and a great start. The afternoon was devoted to the Annual Meeting and the choice of Federation Project

A very successful Barbecue was held at the home of Angela and Russell on 16th August when the sun shone and everyone enjoyed the fabulous food and proved that they were not very good at recognising wine varieties!

Margaret Lenton is passionate about the Magna Carta and has been delighted to have succeeded in ensuring that the 800th anniversary of the sealing of the first Magna Carta has increased awareness of this vital document and its importance to us today.  She was a very special speaker at the monthly meeting and pointed out the far reaching effects that a very reluctant King John has had.  The USA and all the commonwealth countries incorporated  important elements of the Charter into their own Bills of Rights. Margaret also upset a few other myths about our medieval kings pointing out that King Richard I probably only spent about six months in England during his 10 year reign.  King John though was a thoroughly unpleasant person and seems to have deserved his poor reputation. The photograph shows Margaret with immediate past president Angela and a modern copy

Club members were given a presentation about the activities of the new facility at Wexham Park Hospital dealing with strokes at the May business meeting.  The Unit is to be the charity supported by President Pamela this year and it was impressive to hear about the work undertaken at the unit.  Members were urged to remember that the first four hours following a stroke are vital in terms of having a good chance of a successful outcome for the patient.  Members were shown how to recognise the key symptoms of a stroke and told to summon medical help immediately. It was interesting to hear about the needs of the unit which particularly relate to providing more facilities for families and friends in the Day Room and Garden.  Members were able to see that funds raised for this charity will be very well used. President Pamela