The 16 Days of Activism against Gender based Violence take place between 25 November and 10 December each year. The theme for 2020 is “Orange the World: Fund, Respond, Prevent, Collect!” As the world retreated inside homes due to the lockdown measures introduced to curb the COVID-19 pandemic, reports showed an alarming increase in the already existing pandemic of violence against women. “Accompanying the crisis has been a spike in domestic violence reporting, at exactly the time that services, including rule of law, health and shelters, are being diverted to address the pandemic,” stated the UN Secretary-General’s report, “Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19“. Club members wore orange at our recent Zoom club meeting to show our support for the United Nation’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Along with other Soroptimist clubs, we posted message on social

Thank you to all for joining SI Southport members at their annual Christmas Fair at All Saints’ Church Hall. There were stalls selling scarves, jewellery and perfume as a well as a laden bric-a-brac stand. Our talented members have spent the last few weeks in creative mode, crafting small decorations and gifts, as well as tiny knitted items to support the premature baby unit at Ormskirk Hospital. A bottle tombola was very popular and the home made cake stall was well stocked but quickly sold out. There were two raffles – one for a Christmas cake and the other for an enormous festive hamper filled with treats such as biscuits, Christmas pudding, truffles and smoked foods. For our younger visitors, we had a children’s corner with games and prizes. Coffee, tea and mince pies were provided throughout the morning. The proceeds from the morning will