Six members of the club attended the recent Federation Conference in Barbados.  The group very much enjoyed the opportunity of visiting the Caribbean and enjoying the local hospitality (and the rum punches)!  During the conferencer they also met up with members of the Banjul Club which is a friendship link. Four members then went on to Grenada where they were welcomed by the local club which is also a Friendship Link.  Luckily the visit coincided with the monthly meeting which they attended and then they spent a memorable day with club members visiting various projects around the island.  Grenada is also known as the Spice Island so they were able to stock up on some of the local produce too.

An afternoon of Swing with plenty of old favourites and a few newer ones was the order of day at Dorney Lake on Wednesday 10th October when Slough Club organised a Concert.  A talented group of musicians entertained over 100 guests who enjoyed both the music and the spectacular views of the lake in the sparkling sunshine.  A delicious tea was available during the interval and over £500 was added to the President’s Charity.  Thanks to Jean for organising the event and to Angela for the tea.

Over 80 participants arrived at St Luke’s Parish Church Hall to pit their wits against the question-master.  As usual the contest was keenly fought.  A fish and chip supper boosted the brain power too.  A most enjoyable evening raised over £500 for the President’s Charity.

The Annual Summer Event for Older Citizens of the area was organised by the Working Together Group on Saturday 13th September.  An afternoon boat trip from Runnymede attracted over 60 participants.  The Working Together Group includes, Windsor Rotary St George, Windsor Rotary, Windsor Lions, and Soroptimist International of Slough Windsor & Maidenhead.  This group has been working together for 10 years and generally organised two events per year.  The Mayor of the Royal Borough also attended together with the Presidents of all the groups.  Age Concern organised transport to and from the event.

The winner of the 1987 travel scholarship award, Rosie Sayers, fulfilled her promise to talk to the club about her time in Peru at the last meeting.  Miss Sayers spent her Gap Year working in Peru. The Soroptimist Travel Scholarship was set up in memory of Sheila Rooney who instigated the concept during her presidential year.  Her husband, Patrick, was present to hear Rosie speak and the photograph shows, (l to r), Patrick Rooney, Rosie Sayers, Judy Nixon and Clare Dunn.

Jackie Paling recently won a photographic competition with her stunning picture of an elderly Afghan man.  The prize includes an enlargement of the original photo, a camera and £50.  Jackie always travels with a camera and has now visited Afghanistan several times. Following her latest visit in the Spring she gave an updated talk to the club at its last meeting concerning the current situation and its impact on women in Kabul and the surrounding area.  Sadly this war-torn country still desparately needs help and the women still struggle to find work.  Jackie has been helping a Belgian charity ‘Mothers for Peace’ which provides aid to women in a village north of Kabul.  Jackie has given handicraft classes and organised supplies of fabric and wool.  She also organised the provision of unwanted electric sewing machines from the UK but sadly the power supply is not

A jumble sale was held on Friday 15th August at St Luke’s Church Hall in Maidenhead to boost funds for the club’s General Charity. The event was very well attended and £150 was raised. This fund is used to provide donations to various local charities at Christmas.

Two groups of members visited the nearby country house, Dorney Court,  at the beginning of August.  The home of the Palmer family is an unusual property which is often used for scenes from Midsommer Murders.

Around 80 members and guests attended the Garden Party held at Clock Tower House on Sunday 20th July. The garden was a mass of tables, chairs and gazebos with a busy book stall and tombola. Everyone tucked into a delicious lunch which had been organised by Angela and was greatly appreciated. Two Regional Presidents attended from London Chilterns and Southern England together with guests from Kingston Club, London Mayfair, Windsor Rotary and Inner Wheel. President Jean thanked everyone for coming and for contributing to her charity for the year: Slough Contact Centre.  The event raised over £1000 for the Slough Contact Centre.

At the March meeting of the club a special present to mark a significant birthday was made to founder member Pamela Robotham. Sadly Pamela is the only remaining founder member of the club. The gift of honorary membership is bestowed rarely but is greatly deserved by Pamela who has been a hard working member of the club. The photograph shows President Lucy with Pam.