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SI Winchester’s Kisumu project – new name, new sign

SI Winchester’s Kisumu project – new name, new sign

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  In gratitude for the money the club raised for the Early Childhood Development Centre in Kisumu, the staff and parents invited SI Winchester to rename the school and we chose The Smiling School.  The logo features SIGBI’s “dynamic S” and, as we thought this might be hard to reproduce locally, we have had a signboard made.  Now we have to work out how to get it to Kenya undamaged! Click here to find out more about this joint project with SI Kisumu, Kenya.

Soroptimist Sylvia Fox edits new book on WW2

Soroptimist Sylvia Fox edits new book on WW2

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Not Forgetting The 9th – The War Diary of Sgt. Cyril Grimes, 1944-1945 Sylvia Fox has produced a fascinating book based on the diary of a soldier serving in the Far East during WW2 bringing us the personal memoir of an ordinary man living through an extraordinary time. Cyril Grimes was conscripted into the newly formed 9th Battalion of The Royal Sussex Regiment in the Summer of 1940 when he was in his mid 20’s. Towards the end of 1942 he found himself on a troop ship, bound for India. His Battalion, nicknamed the “Shiny 9th” was about to become part of the “Forgotten Army”, and the push to remove the Japanese invaders from Burma. Cyril’s first sight of action was in the Arakan in 1944 and for the whole of this and the following year, he made a daily entry in secret diaries.  One of his fellow Sergeants, Jim

SISE mourns the death of Margaret Lovell

SISE mourns the death of Margaret Lovell

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We are deeply saddened by the death of Margaret Lovell of SI Winchester on 28th May 2013.  We have lost a very special friend who really valued her fellow Soroptimists as the sisters she never had. Quiet but stubborn, deep thinking and highly principled, Margaret was a true and committed Soroptimist of many years standing.  The Region mourns the loss of a loved and esteemed member. SI Winchester is grateful for the condolences and the many tributes to Margaret received from fellow Soroptimists.  This one from Judith Naish (SI Epsom and District) sums up the general sentiment: Margaret had a great sense of humour and a wonderful flair for organising events. When I was President for two years in the early 1990s Margaret was an invaluable help, guide and mentor and one knew that you could ask her absolutely anything and she would give a

75 Years of Service to Bournemouth

75 Years of Service to Bournemouth

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  SI Bournemouth Members were delighted and honoured that Margaret Oldroyd, SIGBI President-Elect, joined the Mayor of Bournemouth, Rita Renton (President of SI Southern England), members of our Friendship Link SI Penrith and over 100 other Soroptimists and guests on 18th May to help us celebrate 75 years of service to Soroptimism and to Bournemouth. They were also grateful for the support of Soroptimists from  Ashford, Central and South West London, Kingston-upon-Thames, Oxford (including SIGBI Vice-President, Jenny Vince), Poole, Southampton, Stockport and Woking, former Soroptimists and Catherine Welch, Guide Commissioner for Dorset.   Since September 1938 members of the Club have given service to the local community as well as nationally and internationally and part of their celebrations looked forward to the next generation of women and to help people less fortunate than themselves. With only one in five girls opting for the whole range

Celebrating Science and 75 years of SI Bournemouth

Celebrating Science and 75 years of SI Bournemouth

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  WHERE ARE THE GIRLS? With only one in five girls opting for the whole range of science subjects, SI Bournemouth has issued a challenge, as part of the celebrations of the club’s 75th Anniversary this year,  to budding women scientists which could help people living in the poorest parts of the world. The STEM based challenge (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics), issued last autumn to teams of girls in Years 9 and 10 at local schools, was to design, build and cost a project to help people in the poorest parts of our world.  It had to be sustainable, fit for purpose and cost effective in a world where 884 million people lack access to clean water, nearly three and a half million people die each year from water, sanitation and hygiene related causes and every 20 seconds a child dies from a water related

Soroptimists are never too old! Sylvia skydives at 89

Soroptimists are never too old! Sylvia skydives at 89

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Update She did it and raised an amazing £5,320 in donations, far in excess of her target. On her Just Giving page Sylvia reports: I did it and it was brilliant! The sun shone and all my family came to watch. A big thank you to my tandem partner and other staff at Netheravon. SI Winchester member Sylvia Stops can always be relied on to initiate or join in club fundraising events wholeheartedly – even modelling corsets for a charity calendar in her mid-eighties. This time she is not raising money for a Soroptimist charity but we think her latest escapade deserves an honourable mention on our regional website. On 6th April Sylvia plans to jump out of an aeroplane in tandem with an experienced skydiver to raise money for Parkinson’s UK. She says “I’m getting a bit ancient now and I could not join

Women Walking Winchester

Women Walking Winchester

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They battled through blizzards, torrential rain and deep mud but the walkers now have the satisfaction of knowing that they have raised the magnificent sum of £3,481 for four Winchester charities who help the homeless and vulnerably housed.  Much of this amount will also attract Gift Aid so the total will be in excess of £4,000. Blog of The Walk Day 8: Ampfield, returning to Sparsholt From President Gill Steel: What a formidable group we are, we are!  After 8 days of hard walking we have between us circumnavigated the boundary of Winchester District and learnt how cold and miserable as well as delightful and fun it can be to be on the road. However, we all had homes to go to and baths to soak in. Now that we have completed our marathon it is with great pride and thanks that I say to