President Liz McConnell welcomed Soroptimists from all over the Region to the annual gathering of outgoing and incoming club presidents. [new_royalslider id=”1″] This is a popular event, enabling the two ‘chain gangs’ to get together. Presidents coming to the end of their term of office can meet up with colleagues and swap tales of their year. Presidents Elect can start to get to know their opposite numbers, put names to faces, and share some of their ideas for the forthcoming year. After the meal, and a Soroptimist-themed quiz, President Liz thanked everyone for their commitment to their clubs and to Soroptimism. She also reiterated that – should they have any query or problem – members of the regional team (many of whom were present) are always on hand to listen, discuss and offer advice.  

SI Widnes pulled out all the stops for a Show Case event – and the show went on, attracting visitors from the Region and beyond, despite heavy snow. Club members set up displays illustrating Programme Action work as well as a wide variety of other activities and events. There was even a gallery profiling the members themselves. Local press publicity was successful in encouraging members of the public to drop in during the day. For the evening session, guests from South Lancashire’s clubs included the Regional Vice President, Margaret Baker, of SI Bolton. The club was also delighted to welcome colleagues from SI Runcorn, Frodsham & District Club in the neighbouring Region of Cheshire, North Wales & Wirral. These included Helen Owen, one of SIGBI’s Global Impact Ambassadors. Guests heard from representatives of many organisations with which SI Widnes currently work – including the local Women’s Aid outreach programme,

Membership Officers from nine of South Lancashire’s Soroptimist clubs attended a workshop on the theme of ‘recruitment and retention’. Regional training events are always popular – ideal opportunities for targeted discussion, for updates and for the sharing of good practice. Margaret Davies, the Region’s Membership Officer, organised the event. One topic was the ‘time for reflection’ session which, ideally, should be included in each club’s annual programme. It enables each member to feel actively involved in her club’s development. Officers might wish to pave the way for the session by issuing a short questionnaire, which can be anonymous – to encourage members to be honest! Responses can be quite illuminating, and certainly would fuel discussion at the main session. Working in groups the officers looked at a variety of other topics including retention of members (making them feel valued and supported); the cost of meetings (and how to

Soroptimist International of Stockport hosted a Regional Burns Supper ‘with a twist’ at the Alma Lodge Hotel. In true Soroptimist style Regional President Liz McConnell and Club President Sue Wagstaff jointly took charge of a ‘night for the lassies’. All elements of a Burns Supper were observed, including the Address to a Haggis and the Toast to the Immortal Memory – the ‘twist’ being that many of these traditionally male tasks were performed by ladies. The exception was the Toast to the Lassies which Eric (President Liz’s husband) just about got away with – and which prompted a stirring Response from President Liz herself. The Pipes and Drums of the Scots Guards Association provided a superb musical interlude; and Keith Rogerson played keyboard to accompany the traditional songs sung by the audience. President Liz said, “I must thank my fellow club members in SI Stockport for

At the first Programme Action meeting of President Liz McConnell’s year, South Lancashire’s Soroptimists welcomed Frances Seth, Northwest Volunteer Co-ordinator for Save the Children UK, as their guest speaker.  After outlining Save the Children’s history, Frances homed in on some of the charity’s campaigns, both at home and abroad. These include the successful UK programme Families And Schools Together (FAST) which fosters child/adult interaction, improves the child’s ability to learn and has a positive effect on behaviour.  Save the Children UK is always looking for long-term benefits, whether through education, food security, relationships or the local economy.  Frances showed footage of her visit to Niger in western Africa, where she was able to find out at first hand about some of Save the Children’s projects. The charity may set up the programmes, but always aims to train local people to continue them so that they

A chance conversation between Margaret Baker (SI Bolton and Secretary, SI South Lancashire) and Jenny Stanistreet (SI Crosby) resulted in a Nepalese Soroptimist getting the chance ‘to see the sea’. Dipa Khakurel, a hydropower engineer, is a member of one of the youngest clubs, in Kathmandu. Margaret had travelled to Nepal when Federation President Maureen Maguire chartered the club, and had met all the new Soroptimists. Therefore, when Dipa came to the UK to attend the 2012 Federation Conference in Belfast, Margaret ensured that she was well looked after. It transpired that Dipa had never seen the sea, and Margaret wondered where to take her. The offer of hospitality in Crosby was, therefore, very welcome. Despite the chill wind the trio walked along the beach, collected seashells, and viewed Antony Gormley’s sculptures ‘Another Place’. This artwork consists of 100 cast-iron, life-size figures spread out along three

SI Widnes won SI South Lancashire’s 2012 Programme Action award for its work in support of the Brindavan Education Trust in Bangalore, India. This programme work has been nurtured over several years thanks to the personal contacts “back home” of club members Vathsala Ramamurthy and Radha Narayana. In February 2012 SI Widnes strengthened the project by forming a Friendship Link with SI Bangalore. Together, the clubs continue to support the trust’s work, particularly with girls. At the club’s recent annual dinner Regional President Denise Baldwin was delighted to congratulate President Dot Massey, Vathsala, Radha and all members on persevering with this important project. The trust was started in 1993 to bring children with various education needs into mainstream schooling. The main goal is to achieve school completion and functional literacy: “Every aspect of the education provided is designed to support the children as they meet

Past presidents of SI South Lancashire gathered at Statham Lodge Hotel, Lymm, for their annual lunch. Senior past presidents from as far back as the mid-1960s mingled with successive generations, as well as with those who are ‘in line’ for the regional presidency. This is always a happy occasion – good company in comfortable surroundings. Messages from past presidents who couldn’t attend was followed by the toast to “absent friends”. The current president, Denise Baldwin, introduced her guest speaker Elizabeth Williams, who is Vice-Chair of the Gaskell Society’s “Friends of 84 Plymouth Grove“. Elizabeth gave an informative and entertaining after-lunch account of the novelist Elizabeth Gaskell’s life and achievements. At the end of this relaxed and most enjoyable event the guests dispersed – as always, in friendship.    

“No one is beyond our help!” – this is the strapline of the Debt Advice Network. Introduced by Margaret Molyneux (Regional Programme Action Officer) Rita Walsh, one of the charity’s founders, opened SI South Lancashire’s autumn meeting. In a powerful presentation, Rita demolished some commonly-held beliefs about debt, before outlining the network’s aims and achievements. Debt strikes at all levels of society, so the network helps anybody, regardless of their income, without charge. Specialist advice, money-management courses, and much more – all achieved by the Debt Advice Network without government funding.  The second speaker at the regional Programme Action meeting was Joan Lunt (SI Southport) who reported on developments following the resolution on ovarian cancer passed at the Brighton Conference. Confirmation has been received from the Department of Health that ovarian cancer will be included in its symptoms awareness programme ‘Be Clear on Cancer’. In

Margaret Baker, SI South Lancashire’s Secretary, attended the Charter ceremony for SI Kathmandu, Nepal. Her account of what she calls “a superb privilege” makes fascinating reading. “I attended the ceremony with Federation President Maureen Maguire, and Director of Organisational Development Ann Hodgson. None of us had been to Nepal before so it was an exciting adventure for all of us. The Charter ceremony itself was very moving. It meant so much to the members present to have Maureen with them on their very special day – the day they became a true part of our global Soroptimist family. Their eagerness to find out more about the organisation was surpassed only by their eagerness to get on with their Programme work. They are already involved in several projects but are seeking to expand their work. It seemed at times that we were trying to dampen their