Joining the Big Help Out
Regional Meeting Saturday 8 June, Queen Elizabeth Country Park, Horndean PO8 0QE, 9.30am for 10am start until 1530
As our Regional Meeting falls during the weekend of the Big Help Out we have decided to take on two main pieces of helping out – one is to hear from – and hopefully help out – Jane Walker MBE Founder and CEO of the Purple Community Fund. Many of you will already know Jane and many Clubs already support this excellent charity, based in our Region, which works with women and girls living in extreme poverty in the Philippines.
The objective of The Big Help Out is to raise awareness of volunteering throughout the UK and provide opportunities for people to experience volunteering and make a difference in their communities. It is not a profit making or fundraising initiative. So, after lunch we are going to do some hands on helping out/volunteering with an environmental theme!
Keynote Speaker: Jane Walker
You may know that the community that Jane works with in Manila suffered a devasting fire in December and no doubt many of you also donated to their crisis fund. Before Jane had had a chance to write the report on how these donations were spent, another fire broke out in the early hours of Friday 22nd March.
The charity had just finished helping rebuild 101 homes and given every household a portable gas cooker, water, food and bedding for the December fire survivors and now they are facing one of the largest fires seen in the last 22 years. Over 700 households representing 3,400 individuals watched everything they own burn to the ground and are now living in several evacuation centres. 23 PCF students and hundreds of children have lost their school uniforms and backpacks in the fire.
We have invited Jane to come and talk to us at our Regional Meeting to bring us an update and as you might expect, to bring us an urgent request for help. As you’d expect funds are needed and we propose to invite members to help, but we have asked Jane what items members might be able to donate.
She says: “In terms of collections, I can take the ring pulls from canned drinks. I am going back mid June – so I can take some items with me in my suitcase what we need at the moment are adult nappies, there is 1 woman who is bedridden, she lost everything she owned in the fire and according to our social worker the family are unable to buy adult disposable pants for her, so not sure if anybody would have any of these but I can easily take them back with me.. Other than that we always need hygiene kits, toothbrushes, toothpastes and soap or flannels.”
Lunch
This will be a buffet in the meeting room at a cost of £15 per person.
After lunch activities
Given this is a country park, there is a lot of woodland and walking is key.
There will be two main activities:
Woodland walk/bird spotting
For those who are happy to go woodland walking there is an opportunity to learn/experience bird spotting and surveys. As this takes place in less congested areas, it is away from car parks and truly in the woods. The suggestion is the group drives to one of the more wooded car park areas (3mins) and walk from there. Obviously suitable footwear is required for this, weather permitting.
Pond dipping
For those who are less mobile they can join at the pond area for pond dipping, this is located a short walk from the Visitor Centre and should be manageable for most. They do have a motorised transport in this area for those unable to walk this distance.
The idea is that the woodland walk would be for the majority as they can only accommodate a smaller group at the pond. Please specify on the booking form which activity you would prefer, given the descriptions in the invitation. There are also toilets and a kiosk selling ice cream and refreshments (to pay for) at the woodland car park.
Location
Queen Elizabeth Country Park, Horndean PO8 0QE
The park is signposted off the A3, three miles south of Petersfield in Hampshire and lies within the South Downs National Park. Park in the main Visitors Centre car park. Please make sure you register your car at reception on arrival to ensure you are not charged for parking. If you do not do this, you will be charged!!
There is a main car park at the Visitor Centre where the meeting room is located, but also another at the back of it. Please bear in mind that as this is a public park, a Saturday and if the weather is nice, it will be a very busy place.