Club news Archives | SI St Albans and District

Soroptimists Welcome St Albans Community Pantry and Mary’s Meals

2 weeks ago in

marys meals

Members of Soroptimist International St Albans and District were delighted to welcome two great speakers on 23 June. The headline was for them to tell us about their work addressing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 2 “Zero Hunger” https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal2. and they completely engaged the audience by covering that and so much more! First up was Raihaanah Ahmed, founder of the St Albans Community Pantry https://stalbanscommunitypantry.org/, followed by Molly Leigh-Moy from the charity Mary’s Meals https://www.marysmeals.org.uk/. Two charities supporting vulnerable people in different parts of the world, with a lot in common. DONATIONS: There was no charge for this special event and if you wish to make a donation to these two wonderful charities then details of how to donate are on this page of our website: https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/donate/. Please understand that there is no pressure to do this. All donations will be split between the charities.

Tricia Gibbons The Green House St Albans Presentation to SISTA 9 Jun

The Green House came to the St Albans Soroptimist Club Meeting

4 weeks ago in

Great Big Green Week

On Mon 9 Jun 25 St Albans and District Soroptimist Club Members were delighted to welcome Tricia Gibbons from the Green House in St Albans, to give a presentation and inform everyone about this wonderful place and what it does. We were marking World Environment Day which had been on 5 Jun and we were very fortunate that Tricia could spare us the time in “Great Big Green Week”. Tricia was invited by Helen Byrne and the Club’s “Planet Team” and it is appropriate that face-to-face Club meetings are held in the Community Eco-Hub at the St Albans United Reformed Church – Greenwood. Tricia and Helen are pictured here as “book ends” for the display board and resources for the Green House that Tricia had brought for us all to browse. This is the website for the Green House https://thegreenhousestalbans.org/ – if you can then

Busy Week – Recycling Books and Mock Interviews at STAGS

2 months ago in

Harpenden Sustainability Market

Members of SI St Albans and District, plus one daughter, ran the Club’s Charity Bookstall at the Sustainability Market Harpenden, organised by Sustainable St Albans on Sun May 18. https://sustainablestalbans.org/sustainability-market/. We had loads of second-hand novels and children’s books to sell. This was a Soroptimist “orange day” – to raise awareness and take action to end violence against women and girls. As a bright and optimistic colour, orange represents a future free from the scourge that is violence against women and girls. We were also promoting our Orange the World campaign – 16 days of activism from 25 Nov to 10 Dec – click here to read more https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/2024/orange24/ Money raised was for the SAHWR Refuge supporting victims of domestic abuse https://sahwr.org.uk/. We also gained some exposure for our Club and raised awareness of our Orange the World Campaign. Soroptimists sent a big thanks to

Ann Beatty speaking at Soroptimist Conference Edinburgh

Ann Beatty – Steve Sinnott Foundation Education projects and UN CSW 2025

2 months ago in

Ann Beatty

SI St Albans & District Member Ann Beatty was the speaker at the Club Meeting on Zoom on Mon 12 May. Many of our Club Members were unable to attend due to unforeseen circumstances, so we decided to hold meeting on Zoom. It worked really well as an informal session which was more like a conversation with friends. Ann is the Chief Executive of the Steve Sinnott Foundation https://www.stevesinnottfoundation.org.uk, a charity working on education projects around the world, supported by the Club, Soroptimist Yorkshire Region and now by our umbrella organisation, Soroptimist International. She gave us an update on the work of the charity, in particular projects supported by the Soroptimist International Foundation https://www.soroptimistinternational.org/soroptimist-international-foundation/. Ann also told us about her experience of attending the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) online this year. The Steve Sinnott Foundation (SSF) has the strap-line “Changing Lives

In Memory – Jean Eaton 1942-2024

2 months ago in

jean eaton

We lost our dear friend and sister Soroptimist Jean Eaton on 29 December 2024. Because Jean had so many friends, overseas as well as in the UK, Soroptimist International St Albans & District we held a special “Remembering Jean” Zoom event on Monday 28th April. Please click here to view the video (1 hr 10 mins): https://youtu.be/As8VSAcVvw4 SI St Albans Club Members were joined by Margaret Van Laan Martin from SI Chico in California, Sylvia Vornhecke and her husband Axel from SI Muenster in Germany, Jean’s friend Barbara Pittam from Canada, Liz Perry long-time friend of the Club and Manager of the SAHWR Women’s Refuge and Kate Belinis President of SI London Chilterns Region. Helen Byrne chaired the meeting, Jane Slatter shared photos and everyone shared warm, happy memories. Things that were commented on were Jean’s wonderful wide smile, her laughter and zest for life,

Tree Dedication to Jean Eaton and Tulips Orange the World

3 months ago in

Civic Rose Garden

On Wed 23 April a group of Soroptimists and friends gathered with volunteers from the Civic Rose Garden Regeneration Project, Neil Kieran from St Albans City and District Council, Councillor Jacqui Taylor and Chloe Sykes Social Value Officer from Morgan Sindall. This was two events in one. There was a tree dedication and installation of a plaque in memory of Jean Eaton as well as an “Orange the World” event showcasing the recently planted orange tulips in bloom. The cherry tree was planted last year as part of the garden regeneration and was subsequently dedicated to Soroptimist and “St Albans Community Champion” Jean Eaton: In Loving Memory of our Soroptimist Sister Jean Eaton 1942-2024 Soroptimist International St Albans & District planted this tree for Jean, a great friend to many people and an inspirational community champion. Please click here for memories of Jean Eaton https://sigbi.org/st-albans/jean-eaton The

68th AGM – Refuge Update and Reflections on a Brilliant Year for the Club

3 months ago in

Barbara Saunders OBE welcomed everyone to the 68th Annual General Meeting of Soroptimist International St Albans & District. We were delighted to be able to welcome guests Liz Perry from the SAHWR Refuge and Kate Belinis DL, SI London Chilterns Region President. Barbara asked us to spend two minutes in silence at the start of the AGM as a moment of reflection to remember past Members Jean Eaton, Christine Farrington and Jean Jolly who had all sadly passed away in the last year. All Officers Reports including the Accounts and the Financial Report had been distributed to members in advance of the meeting. Club Members should refer to these for full details. We started with a financial update from our Treasurer Sarah Lichman. When we looked back we realised what a huge amount we had achieved in just one year! We donated a total of

Oranging the Soroptimist Charity Quiz Night

4 months ago in

#OrangetheWorld

Soroptimist International St Albans and District’s Charity Quiz Night on Sat 22 March was a a great success raising more than £1400 for the St Albans and Hertsmere Women’s Refuge and other charities supported by the Club. This is always the Club’s last big fundraiser for the Club’s end of year in April so it was brilliant to be so well supported. Barbara Saunders, co-President of the Club was the MC for the evening keeping everyone to time and and keeping scores too. The Quiz Master was Barbara’s husband, Derek Palmer who challenged everyone’s brain cells on the night with some really interesting and varied rounds – all with multiple choice answers meaning that everyone has a chance to answer the questions. Barbara did a brilliant job supporting Derek as well as organising the event. Ian Byrne organised and ran the music round which meant accessing another

February and March – volunteering, inspiring, plus International Women’s Day

4 months ago in

Soroptimist

Where has the beginning of the year gone?! It’s the old adage – “if you want something doing ask a busy person” and Soroptimists are always busy! On Monday 10 February we had a face-to-face Club Meeting in the new Community Hall at St Albans United Reformed Church Greenwood https://stalbansurc.org/ . Club Member Anna Barratt, who was instrumental in the development of the new hall, gave a presentation about the background to the building and its eco-positive structure and features. Sarah Lichman, Club Treasurer, explained our commitment to the charity and microfinance organisation “Lend With Care” https://lendwithcare.org/ which is part of “Care International”. Sarah explained that we lend to groups of women, mainly in Africa. The project started in 2019 with the Club lending £200 in relatively small amounts which the recipients repay to the best of their ability. She identifies projects run mainly by

Beatriz Chadour-Sampson – a Career Curating Jewellery Museums

5 months ago in

Beatriz Chadour Sampson

Soroptimist International St Albans and District hosted a special talk on Mon 24 Feb by their esteemed Club Member Beatriz Chadour-Sampson. “THE LIFE OF A JEWELLERY HISTORIAN, CURATOR, AUTHOR, LECTURER CURATING MUSEUMS AND HOW IT ALL BEGAN” Soroptimist Beatriz Chadour-Sampson is an international jewellery historian, curator, author and lecturer. Beatriz was consultant curator to the redesigning of the William and Judith Bollinger Jewellery Gallery and guest curator of the ‘Pearls’ exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum. London. She curated the Alice and Louis Koch Collection in the Swiss National Museum, Zurich and Gübelin Gem Museum in Lucerne. She spoke to us about her experience as a curator, her passion for jewellery, and art, and how her career has developed, working in historic locations and on-line. Beatriz kindly allowed us to record her talk so please click here to view the video recording – it

Induction Sue Rayment and Nono Nyathi with Helen Byrne and Jane Slatter

New Year, New Venue, New Members, Greener Together and More!

6 months ago in

Greener Together

This was the first Club meeting of 2025 and it was great to be in brand new meeting hall back at St Albans URC Greenwood. Helen Byrne, facilitator of the Planet Team chaired the meeting because of the really interesting speaker the team had booked (see below). Helen had to start the meeting on a sad note because of the passing of our dear Soroptimist sister Jean Eaton – please click here for more information https://sigbi.org/st-albans/jean-eaton The next part of the meeting lifted our spirits, because it is always a special event when we officially welcome a new Member to our Club, and the evening was even more special because we gave a warm Soroptimist welcome to two new Members – Nonhlanhla Nyathi (Nono) and Sue Rayment. The pictures are of Jane Slatter leading the induction, and of Helen Byrne with Sue, Nono and Jane

St Albans Soroptimists Season’s Greetings

7 months ago in

Home-Start

Members of Soroptimist International St Albans and District would like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and peaceful 2025. Instead of sending Christmas cards we are making a donation to the Soroptimist International Foundation soroptimistinternational.org/si-foundation Soroptimists are feeling festive now after a busy December volunteering and raising money for a few of the amazing charities we support. Please scroll down to find out more! Gifts for the SAHWR Women’s Refuge On the Friday before Christmas 2024, St Albans Soroptimist Barbara Saunders said that it was her “privilege and pleasure to deliver the presents Soroptimist members had collected to SAHWR.” With 16 presents lovingly wrapped, and 10 x £20 gift vouchers, she delivered the gifts for children to give to their mothers on Christmas Day. Natasha, the Child and Family Support Worker said “it is just wonderful to see the presents under the tree

Soroptimists Orange The World 2024 -16 Days of Action to End Violence Against Women

8 months ago in

#16daysof activism

Soroptimist International St Albans and District #OrangeTheWorldHerts campaign 2024 was brighter and louder than ever! Everyone who joined in committed to CALL IT OUT ! saying NO! to violence against women. Click here for more about how to take action and CALL IT OUT ! : https://sigbi.org/st-albans/callitout Mon 25 Nov – Tue 10 Dec Soroptimists join the United Nations Orange The World campaign – 16 Days of Action to End Violence Against Women. As a bright and optimistic colour, orange represents a future free from violence against women and girls. www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/unite/orange-the-world #OrangetheWorldHerts 2024 This year’s theme is CALL IT OUT! – please click here for more: https://sigbi.org/st-albans/callitout moving from awareness raising to a call to action. The High Sheriff of Hertfordshire, Annie Brewster is behind our campaign – see the photo here of Annie with our selfie frame with Herts Police and Crime Commissioner Jonathan

St Albans Museum High Sheriff Annie Brewster Bishop and Mayor of St Albans

CALL IT OUT | End Violence Against Women | Orange the World Herts

8 months ago in

#16daysof activism

CALL IT OUT ! CALL IT OUT ! CALL IT OUT ! Click here to view a 2.5 minute video with all the wonderful images from the 2024 campaign: https://youtu.be/TGCeu7NQCe8 #CALLITOUT #OrangeTheWorldHerts #EndViolenceAgainstWomen For ease of printing/sharing you can download a single page here with the information from below: Orange The World CALLITOUT 1 pager What can you do? – COMMIT TO CALL IT OUT ! Intervene if it’s safe to do so. Talk to the abuser if you know them Report the behaviour if at work or college. Call the police. Call the Herts Domestic Abuse Helpline who can direct you to more support. Orange is to make others aware. Orange is a bright and hopeful colour, shining a light on the scourge of Domestic Abuse and on a future where it doesn’t exist. Useful numbers/contacts Herts Domestic Abuse Helpline – 08 088 088

Is Exercise the Miracle Cure? – Women, Health, Exercise and The Economy

8 months ago in

Prof Scarlett McNally

Soroptimist International St Albans and District organised a special event on Zoom on Mon 28 Oct when *Professor Scarlett McNally spoke on the subject of “Women, Health, Exercise and the Economy – Is Exercise the Miracle Cure?” The recording is available to view here: The slides from Professor Scarlett McNally’s presentation are available to download here – Exercise Presentation 28.10.24 SCARLETT McNALLY Scarlett has been very generous with sharing all of this information with us. Due to time constraints she was only able to touch on some of the material so please go through it in your own time. She is a passionate advocate for exercise and has clear evidence to back up what she is saying which you can see from the statistics and the papers she has included here in her slides. Summary: I have attempted to summarise just some of the key

Charity Night at Abbey Theatre and a Hectic Oct Club Meeting

9 months ago in

#wmhd

Autumn is always busy for the St Albans Soroptimist Club – keep reading to find out more! The Abbey Theatre in St Albans generously gives local organisations and charities the opportunity to sell the tickets for the first performance of their productions. Thursday 10 October was World Mental Health Day so the play “The Father” was a poignant reminder of the stresses of living with dementia both for the sufferer and the people around them. Members of Soroptimist International St Albans and District were able to sell tickets and hold a raffle raising £500 to be shared between the Alzheimer’s Society and Herts Viewpoint (working for better mental health). Soroptimist Barbara Saunders organised the event and spoke to the audience at the end of the play “thanks so much to everyone who has supported us, and for their generosity to these charities for the excellent work that they do. We have

Orange The World CallItOut Annie Brewster High Sheriff Herts

Busy September for St Albans Soroptimists

9 months ago in

#CallItOut

Our Soroptimist Club had a great September Club Meeting focused on its new Sustainability Policy. The event was led by Helen Bryne and the Club’s Planet Team. Our guest, Life Coach Kerry Trevett, facilitated some meaningful discussions about motivating yourself to live a more sustainable life. Another session will be arranged soon to finalise the policy. The outcomes from the discussion will be incorporated into the Club’s Sustainability Policy which will be issued and adopted by the Club to help the Club and it’s Members make a difference. Soroptimists throughout the world have responded to environmental calling through mitigation and adaptation through awareness, action and advocacy. As we work towards the achievement of Agenda 2030 for more sustainable environmental work with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals as guides. We were able to launch this year’s SI St Albans & District Orange the World Campaign

SISTA Summer Outing St A Museum and Gallery

Inspiring Summer Outing to St Albans Museum and Gallery

11 months ago in

#OrangetheWorld

What a super Soroptimist Club Social/Summer Outing we had on 15 August! Ten of us arranged to meet at St Albans Museum and Gallery to see the “Passion, Determination, Vision” exhibition that had been put on by “Eastern Region Textile Forum”. The exhibition was of textile art celebrating individuals who have made a real impact in St Albans, the wider eastern region and beyond. The textile works showed the impacts and consequences of diverse individuals’ lives – across time, place, space and occupation – from each artist’s unique and creative perspective. There were textile portraits representing local people including Saint Alban, Stephen Hawking, Francis Bacon, Ebenezer Howard, Louis Wain, George Bernard Shaw, Kathleen Kenyon, Michael Morpurgo, Pauline Gower, Lady Constance Lytton, Tim Rice and many more. We were particularly keen to see the piece by Maggie Hands which was inspired by St Albans Soroptimist Peggy Hodges

The Online World, A Force for Good…with care

12 months ago in

Cosima Wiltshire

Mon 22 Jul our speaker on Zoom was Cosima Wiltshire. She is an amazing young woman, who has been working on online safety since she was 13! Make a note of her name, because we feel sure you will be hearing more from her in the future. You can view her presentation by clicking on this link Cosima Presentation. As we suspected this event proved popular and we had Soroptimist guests from as far away as Cornwall and Perthshire! The event was recorded and you can click on this link to watch her presentation: https://youtu.be/DkqZz_cX-QI. Here are some notes that were taken at the event – they are only a summary: Cosima introduced herself: she’s 18 and just finished her A levels and hopes to go to UCL in September. She said she would be talking about meaningful youth engagement and safety online. She started

Bookstall Soroptimist International St Albans 2024 90 for 90 books Helen Sarah Denise Nicky Jane

Orange Charity Bookstall Sustainability Market Harpenden and 90 for 90

12 months ago in

90 for 90

On Sunday 21 July lots of Members of SI St Albans and District, plus one husband and one daughter, ran the Club’s Charity Bookstall at the Sustainability Market Harpenden, organised by Sustainable St Albans https://sustainablestalbans.org/sustainability-market/. We had loads of second-hand novels and children’s books to sell. This was a Soroptimist “orange day” – to raise awareness and take action to end violence against women and girls. As a bright and optimistic colour, orange represents a future free from the scourge that is violence against women and girls. We were also promoting our Orange the World campaign – 16 days of activism from 25 Nov to 10 Dec – click here to read more https://sigbi.org/st-albans/orange24/ We made £275 for the SAHWR Refuge supporting victims of domestic abuse https://sahwr.org.uk/. We also gained some exposure for our Club and raised awareness of our Orange the World Campaign. Soroptimists

Soroptimist Gill Clegg Reports Back from her trip to Zambia at the end of 2023

12 months ago in

Gill Clegg

Revisiting Zambia It was great that so many of our Members were able to join us on Mon 8 Jul at our Club Meeting to hear Gill Clegg’s first hand account of her most recent trip to Zambia. You can click here to read about when Gill gave us a presentation on Zoom in 2023 about her time working in Zambia in 2019: https://sigbi.org/st-albans/zambia In November 2023 Gill and her husband Jon revisited Katete in the Eastern Province of Zambia. Gill showed us printed and laminated photos to pass round at our Club meeting, which brought the stories she was telling to life. It was a lively interactive session with Club Members asking Gill lots of questions about every photo, and Gill answering warmly and openly. Gill started by using maps to show us where Watete in Zambia is. Zambia is a large land-locked African

Harpenden Health and Wellbeing Fair and a Picnic in the Chiswell Green Community Garden

1 year ago in

#OrangetheWorld

It was great for St Albans and District Soroptimist women’s group to participate in the Harpenden Library “Health and Wellbeing Fair” promoting “Orange the World” to End Violence Against Women – asking how will Harpenden people, organisations, businesses turn orange for the 16 Days of Activism 25 Nov to 10 Dec? https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/orange-the-world/ Other organisations were The OLLIE Foundation, Age UK Hertfordshire, Communities 1st, Hertfordshire Health Walks, Harpenden Learning For Leisure, Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care Compassionate Cafe, The Harpenden Trust and Pets As Therapy with Lexa the Labradoodle (pictured on the poster). Jane Slatter and Helen are pictured here on p47 of the 27 June issue of the St Albans Times with Hannah, a volunteer with the Herts Domestic Abuse Helpline. On Thu 27 Jun the Club had a social event at Chiswell Green Community Garden. The evening was arranged by Helen Byrne and the Planet Team.

Soroptimist International with St Albans Women's Cricket Team

Soroptimists win over the St Albans Womens Cricket Team

1 year ago in

#OrangetheWorld

On Monday 10 June we had a lively and interesting evening with 3 members and their coach from the St Albans Cricket Club Women’s Cricket Team. Our Club sponsors women’s cricket in Hertfordshire as a lasting legacy in memory of our Member Audrey Collins OBE – Audrey was an inspirational past member and teacher at STAGS, who played cricket for England. click here to read more https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/projects/cricket/. See below for a photo of the St Albans Women’s Cricket Team wearing the shirts with our logo. The evening proved to be a great opportunity for the St Albans Cricket Team to find out more about our Club’s projects and for us to hear about the challenges and successes of our local women’s cricket team. Our wonderful visitors told us how they had got into playing cricket and what kept them playing. Then India Newman, the Team

Steve Sinnott Foundation for Education – Celebrating 15 Years of Success

1 year ago in

Ann Beatty

It was wonderful to hear from Ann Beatty, Chief Executive Officer of the Steve Sinnott Foundation, on Zoom on Tue 28 May. Soroptimist International St Albans and District are proud to have Ann as a Member of the Club. As the Steve Sinnott Foundation celebrates its 15th year, Ann Beatty gave a presentation and we also heard from one of the Foundation’s Partners in Gambia, Marie Antoinette, who attended on Zoom. They told us about the Foundation’s unique way of working in partnership to support access to education for all. They explained that the education charity develops programmes together with people, and not for them. As a Partner, Marie Antoinette is working on the ground to change the lives of women and girls. We had 22 people on the call, including Foundation Ambassadors Helen Porter from the Winchester Soroptimist Club and our own Ameeta Sabharwal.

Transfer Member Ayushi Kundu with Jane Slatter

Lovely Club Meeting with 90th Birthday Celebrations and a new Member

1 year ago in

Ayushi Kundu

What a lovely Club meeting we had on Mon 13 April. We welcomed Ayushi Kundu as a new Member of our Club, she has transferred from SI Calcutta. We felt very fortunate to have Joan Williams with us, our longest standing Member who was celebrating her 90th Birthday! We also had a lively discussion with ideas for the Club Programme in the year ahead – you can click here to save the dates in your diaries! sigbi.org/st-albans/club-programme It is always a special event when we officially welcome a new member to our Club. Ayushi has followed her mother’s footsteps into being a Soroptimist and has been a Member of SI Calcutta since 2014. Ayushi describes herself as a “young and passionate Soroptimist, working earnestly to transform the lives of women and girls!” She held the position of Soroptimist International President’s Appeal Coordinator 2019-2021 for the

Successful Soroptimist Muenster Friendship Link Visit to St Albans

1 year ago in

friendship link

You will notice from this news item that Friendship Link visits involve a lot of time for socialising over food and drink – always a great way to get to know one another and to build on one of the Soroptimist objects to develop “international good will and understanding” – well that’s our excuse anyway! This Friendship Link visit was organised by the Soroptimist Friendship Link co-ordinator for Muenster, Sylvia Vornhecke and the co-ordinator for St Albans, Jean Eaton. SI Muenster President, Brigitte Borchard was travelling with her husband, Raphael and daughter Felina, plus another Member Irmgard Klotz. Eva Hoffman and her daughter Mia flew in with Sylvia, and Sylvia’s husband Axel flew in on Saturday to join the group and make it eight. Different Soroptimists were able to join the group from Muenster for different parts of the programme over the weekend which was

SISTA AGM 24 New Member Deirdre with Denise and Barbara

Busy AGM – New Member, Refuge Update and Reflections on Another Great Year for the Club

1 year ago in

On Monday 15th April the Club held its 67th Annual General Meeting. It was held at Cottonmill Community and Cycling Centre. New Member Induction: We were delighted to start the AGM by officially welcoming new Member Deirdre Millar to our Club. Deirdre found out about Soroptimists when Denise Powell asked the choir they are both members of to wear orange for our “Orange the World” campaign last November https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/2023/orange23/ Denise is pictured here left of Deirdre and Barbara Saunders who was leading the meeting is on the right. Most of Deirdre’s working life has been spent in social care in local government, some front line, but mostly Commissioning future services and quality marking services and managing teams of people who do this. Deirdre is looking forward to getting to know Soroptimists and they are looking forward to getting to know her. We are sure that

Charity Quiz Night a Great Success for St Albans Soroptimists

1 year ago in

Quiz Night

Soroptimist International St Albans and District’s Charity Quiz Night on Sat 23 March was a a great success raising £1150 for the St Albans and Hertsmere Women’s Refuge and other charities supported by the Club. This is always the Club’s last big fundraiser for the Club’s end of year in April so it was brilliant to be so well supported. Barbara Saunders, co-President of the Club was the MC for the evening keeping everyone to time and and keeping scores too. The Quiz Master was Barbara’s husband, Derek Palmer who challenged everyone’s brain cells on the night with some really interesting and varied rounds – all with multiple choice answers meaning that everyone has a chance to answer the questions. Barbara did a brilliant job supporting Derek as well as organising the event. Ian Byrne organised and ran the music round which meant accessing another part

International Women’s Day – an important date in the Soroptimist calendar

1 year ago in

#InspireInclusion

As always Soroptimists have been busy around International Women’s Day – a really important day in the calendar for women’s rights campaigners all over the world. The two themes for IWD this year are #InspireInclusion, and the United Nations theme: #InvestInWomen – see below for more information. Jane Slatter was interviewed for MIX 92.6 – you can click here and listen to the 10 minute recording that was played during shows in the week of International Women’s Day https://mix926.com/highlight/soroptimists-iwd/ On Friday 8 Mar three Members of Soroptimist International St Albans & District, Debbie Tankard, Linda Middleton and Jane Slatter were at St Albans Girls’ School for their International Women’s Day Inspiring Women Careers Event for Year 8 and Year 12 Students. The photos of the event were taken by the school. The students are told that the purpose of the careers networking event is to provide them with the opportunity to

Important Herstory – The Women’s Land Army in WW1

1 year ago in

Alex Amos

Everyone learned some important “herstory” about British women in World War 1 on Mon 26 Feb. Soroptimist International St Albans and District were delighted to welcome Alex Amos to speak about “The Formation and Organisation of the Women’s Land Army in WW1” – this is of particular interest to Soroptimists because the organisation was founded in 1921, soon after WW1. The Women’s Land Army changed British women’s lives forever, and was vital for the outcome of the war. Members of SI St Albans and District were joined by friends of Members and guests from Soroptimist Clubs as far afield as Bridgend and Lincoln – technology is a gift for connecting people. Diana Kingham introduced guest speaker Alex Amos who is a researcher with the Luton Hoo Walled Garden Volunteer Project – where Diana is also a volunteer. Alex is pictured here on the Zoom call. We can’t

Steel Magnolias Abbey Theatre Charity Night Feb 29 2024

1 year ago in

Abbey Theatre

Thanks to the generosity of the Abbey Theatre in St Albans, Soroptimist International St Albans and District were proud to co-host the charity night’s performance of the fabulous play, Steel Magnolias, on Thu 29 Feb. Our partner host was the Hertfordshire Federation of Women’s Institutes. The play’s run is to 9 March www.abbeytheatre.org.uk which appropriately takes in International Women’s Day on 8 March. Soroptimists were raising money for SAHWR, the local women’s refuge service, plus other charities supported by the Club. The event raised an incredible £1630.40!! There was a fundraising raffle on the night and a bucket collection at the end of the evening after Soroptimist co-President Barbara Saunders (pictured here) had thanked the audience and the theatre for their support and spoken about the funding shortfall faced by the Refuge. Soroptimists were completely blown away by the generosity of everyone who came – thank

Christy Mitchell from Grow Chiswell Green with SISTA Helen Byrne

New Member and Grow Chiswell Green and the Pancake Race

1 year ago in

Christy Mitchell

It was another inspiring Club meeting on 12 Feb when we welcomed new Member Linda Middleton, and heard from Christy Mitchell of Grow Chiswell Green. New member induction: Linda Middleton It is always a special evening when we officially welcome a new member to our Club. On Monday 12 February all Club Members were proud to welcome Linda Middleton. Jane Slatter, the Membership Officer for the Club, was leading the meeting and is photographed here presenting Linda to the Club as its newest Member. Linda has lived in Harpenden for 30 years, having been brought up in Hong Kong and then Northamptonshire. Work wise, Linda has worked in social housing field either for the local council or housing associations until the last few years. Linda moved into the Transformation and Business Improvement areas and has also spent a spell in Customer Delivery at St Albans Council.

Judith Leary-Joyce – “Beginner’s Guide to Eco Renovation” – inspired to reduce emissions from our homes

1 year ago in

#retrofit

On Monday 22nd January, Soroptimist International St Albans and District hosted an important talk on Zoom with Judith Leary-Joyce, author of the “Beginner’s Guide to Eco Renovation”. Judith is a great speaker – energising and motivating – a real inspiration. You and your builder can help save the planet – the why and how of making your home more energy efficient and sustainable. At the end of the event we heard from Amanda Yorwerth from Friends of the Earth about the important and very relevant “United for Warm Homes” campaign – please scroll down for more information. 40 people attended the Zoom with Judith – from far and wide, Soroptimists and non-Soroptimists. The guests from Taiwan were from the furthest away, and we also had guests from all over the UK including Yorkshire, Cheshire and Devon. Since 21% of emissions in the UK come from

Soroptimists at the St Albans Girls School Year 11 Mock Interview Day

1 year ago in

Soroptimist

On Thu 18 Jan it was St Albans Girls School (STAGS) Year 11 Mock Interview Day for GCSE year students. St Albans Soroptimists Bev Keech, Helen Atkinson, Linda Middleton, Jane Slatter and Debbie Tankard (pictured here l to r) were five of the thirty + interviewers there for the morning. They found the girls and the event really worthwhile and as inspiring as ever. As part of the careers programme at St Albans Girls’ School, they offer a mock interview to every year 11 student on one morning. Each student has a 20 minute interview based on CV’s they have prepared in school and receive verbal and written feedback. We were welcomed to the event by Margaret Chapman, Executive Head, and Paul Kershaw Head of School. Jessica Flint, Assistant Head Teacher and Careers Lead made sure that the event went smoothly and thanked everyone for their time.

Soroptimist Orange the World 2023 montage

Soroptimists Orange The World 25 Nov for 16 Days of Action to End Violence Against Women

2 years ago in

#16daysof activism

Soroptimist International St Albans and District Oranging the World and saying NO! to violence against women in 2023 #OrangeTheWorldHerts – Ending Abuse is Everyone’s Business The Global, United Nations Orange the World Campaign is 16 days of activism to end gender based violence from 25 Nov, the International Day to end Violence Against Women to 10 Dec, Human Rights Day www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/unite #OrangetheWorldHerts 2023 – this image is a montage of photos from the 2023 campaign and you can scroll down for the slide show of all the images. This year we have had great media coverage from the St Albans Times see p78 of the Nov 23 issue: https://issuu.com/stalbanstimes/docs/st_albans_times_issue_43 and pages 3 plus 44-46 of the Nov 30 issue: https://issuu.com/stalbanstimes/docs/st_albans_times_issue_44_1_ Welwyn and Hatfield Times: https://www.whtimes.co.uk/news/23969311.orange-world-herts-raise-awareness-gender-based-violence/ Hertfordshire Mercury - "The orange glow of optimism" My Local News - St Albans - www.mynewsmag.co.uk/we-pledge-chief-constable-shares-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-in-st-albans/ Herts Advertiser www.hertsad.co.uk/news/23985752.st-albans-soroptimists-sing-station-womens-refuge St Albans Council issued

St Albans Soroptimists Season’s Greetings

2 years ago in

sahwr

Members of Soroptimist International St Albans and District would like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and peaceful 2024. Instead of sending Christmas cards we are making a donation to the Soroptimist International Foundation soroptimistinternational.org/si-foundation Soroptimists are feeling festive after delivering a magnificent pile of gifts donated and wrapped by Club Members for the SAHWR Women’s Refuge . Our member Jean Eaton is pictured here displaying the stash before it was all delivered safely to the Refuge. We know the women are thrilled at Christmas to know that we’re thinking about them and we hope it brings them a little bit of Christmas cheer and hope for a happy new year! Members have also donated tea, coffee, toiletries and other goodies. Liz Perry one of the Refuge managers said “thank you for all you do for us”. Our festive singing at St

Festive Singing for the Refuge at St Albans Station

2 years ago in

16 Days of Activism

Shake Rattle and Sing! Soroptimist local women’s group with friends (including some members of local choirs), sang festive songs at St Albans City Station raising a much needed £261 for SAHWR Women’s Refuge. Singers were wearing orange to continue with our campaign to #OrangetheWorldHerts ! https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/2023/orange23/ One commuter who stopped to made a donation said “you’re too good to walk through!” – praise indeed. Soroptimist Jane Slatter said “we all had a great time – donations were less than last year, but that’s not really surprising with the financial situation and rail strikes too!” Funding cuts and increased demand mean that Refuges really need money from our fundraising so we were grateful to everyone who donated on the night. If anyone wants to make a donation after the event please email us at sistalbans@hotmail.com This event is timed on the closest Monday to Human Rights Day

Becca’s Life-Changing Jamboree Journey 2021-2023

2 years ago in

Becca Britton

It was wonderful to be able to welcome Becca Britton back on Mon 13 Nov to tell us all about her “Jamboree Journey 2021-2023” – a life-changing experience. Please click here to download and view her presentation Becca Britton Girl Guide – PP after World Scout Jamboree Korea 2023 When Becca visited our Club in May 2022 she was fundraising to go to South Korea for the World Scout Jamboree in August 2023. All Scouts and Guides from the UK had to raise £4000 to attend. https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/2022/9may/ If you were following the news in August you would have seen what a disaster the event was https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-66425588 We were mesmerised listening to Becca’s first-hand experience as events unfolded in South Korea. Before Becca went she met with the East Anglia group of Scouts and Guides in Norwich for team building and preparation. The original premise for

St Albans Soroptimists at Conference London 2023

2 years ago in

#SoroptimistLondon2023

Next year is SIGBI’s 90th Anniversary! The Conference will be 1-3 November, 2024 in the Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh – so put it in your diaries now!

Club Meeting – learning about the St Albans Healthy Hub

2 years ago in

Our speaker Andrea, from Citizens Advice (CAB) St Albans introduced us to the work of CAB and the Project she is working on to raise awareness of the St Albans Healthy Hub and its partner organisations https://www.stalbans.gov.uk/healthy-hub – based at the Civic Centre (where St Albans CAB is based). Andrea is pictured here with Barbara Saunders who chaired the meeting. Andrea is holding a copy of the St Albans Healthy Hub Handout which available to download as a PDF by clicking here St Albans Healthy Hub handout. Andrea began by explaining the work of Citizens Advice (CAB) – you can read more by downloading their annual review https://citizensadvicestalbans.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Annual-Review-2022-23.pdf . The services cover St Albans and surrounding areas – Harpenden, London Colney, Redbourn, Wheathampstead. They have 91 volunteers and 28 staff and last year they helped 9,900 people with 24,000 issues, helped clients gain £1.5 million

Sarah Mitcherson – an Inspirational Leader Facing the Challenges in Secondary Education

2 years ago in

education

Can everyone achieve? What are the challenges facing Secondary Education leaders? Soroptimist International St Albans and District invited Sarah Mitcherson, Head of Ridgeway Academy in Welwyn Garden City https://ridgeway.herts.sch.uk/ to talk on Zoom about the challenges facing the Head of a Secondary, Co-Ed school with 900 pupils. The school’s vision is “Everyone Can Achieve”. This first video is 37 mins long. Part 2 is in the second video. We often invite inspirational women to speak at or Club meetings, and can honestly say that Sarah is beyond inspirational, we were all in awe of what she says and does. Her positivity, energy and commitment shines though. We are sure Sarah has a really bright future ahead of her – so look out for that name in the future. Our Member Liz Tillett is Chair of the School Governors at Ridgeway Academy and has been keen

Club Meeting in Lovely New Venue – Cottonmill Community and Cycling Centre

2 years ago in

On Monday 11 September we held our inaugural meeting at our new Club Venue – Cottonmill Community and Cycling Centre, 12 Old Oak, Cottonmill Lane, St Albans AL1 2EF. You can see from the photos what a lovely room we are booked to meet in now (2nd Monday of most months – always check the programme for details – https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/club-programme/), and we had lots of positive feedback. Being September many of our Members were away, and often meetings with smaller numbers are more intimate so the group really enjoyed a evening together to catch up after the summer break. Sarah, Jean, Janet and Denise reported back enthusiastically about their experiences at the Soroptimist International Convention in Dublin in July – click here to read more https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/2023/dublin/ Barbara and Sarah are pictured here holding up our “Orange the World Project” poster that was on display in

St Albans Soroptimists Sponsor Women’s Cricket in 2023

2 years ago in

Cricket

After several years of supporting the development of girls cricket in Hertfordshire, Soroptimist International St Albans and District agreed to sponsor the St Albans Cricket Club Women’s Team shirts in 2023-4. See the photo of the team looking fantastic wearing the shirts. This has provided us with an opportunity to help the development of the women’s game and promote the work of Soroptimists in the local area. The development of leadership skills through sport has been a topic of interest first promoted by a member Audrey Collins OBE, who played cricket for England and taught at a local school. We continue to assist with funding where we can and were happy to help on this occasion at the request of some of the St Albans Cricket Club Women’s Team who valued the support they had received from us in the past. Please click here to

SISTAs at the Mind Blowing Soroptimist International Convention Dublin 2023

2 years ago in

Dublin

Six St Albans Soroptimists were blown away by the Soroptimist International Convention Dublin July 27 – 29. Our delegates were (pictured here left to right) Sarah Lichman, Denise Powell, Jean Eaton, Jane Slatter, Janet Tansley and Helen Byrne. Although everyone had been to a Soroptimist International Great Britain and Ireland Conference before, only Jane had attended an International Convention and everyone found out to their delight that it engages and inspires on another level altogether. Please carry on reading to find out more, but it is difficult to get the immersive experience across on a web page. There is also a 2 minute post-event video to watch https://www.soroptimistinternational.org/soroptimist-international-2023-dublin-convention-after-movie/ An international SI convention allows Members to experience the highest levels of Soroptimism as well as the depth and breadth of the organisation. It is an opportunity to engage with other members from every corner of the

Book Recycling Success at Harpenden Sustainability Market

2 years ago in

Bookstall

Our Soroptimist Charity Bookstall on Sunday 16 Jul was another great success raising more than £200 for the St Albans and Hertsmere Women’s Refuge sahwr.org.uk and meant that hundreds of books were recycled to new homes! The Harpenden Sustainability Market is held on Harpenden Common, close to the town centre, on the Third Sunday of March, May, July, Sept, and Nov. Sarah Lichman (pictured in the pink) organised the event with the Club’s Planet Team and we had lots of helpers on the day – pictured above l to r on the “early shift” with Sarah are Helen Byrne, Diana Kingham, Denise Powell and Jane Slatter. Thanks also to Anna Barrett, and Nicky Bloom and her daughter who were on the later shifts. Nicky’s daughter does a brilliant job selling the children’s books. A big thanks to Harpenden Lion, John Powell who set up and dismantled

Health, Education, Development in rural Zambia – a personal journey

2 years ago in

Gill Clegg

Supporting Health, Education, and Development in Rural Zambia On Monday 10 June we were blown away by our guest speaker, one of our Club Members, Gill Clegg. She lived in Zambia for 6 months in 2018/19 and will be returning in October this year. Gill’s professional background is as a nurse working in paediatrics and occupational health. Please scroll down for the link to download and view her presentation. There were 19 of us on Zoom. It is always great to be able to welcome guests from farther afield, including SI Thames Valley, Central and South West London and especially good to see Margaret from our Soroptimist Friendship Link in Chico California. It is wonderful that technology could bring us all together to hear about Gill’s journey. Gill explained a little background on Zambia and it’s history. Katete is in the Eastern province and a

Homelessness – the Crisis on our Doorstep

2 years ago in

#fingerscrossed

On Mon 26 Jun Nicola from Herts Young Homeless and David Lane, Chair of Open Door St Albans joined Soroptimist International St Albans and District on Zoom for an enlightening and moving evening. Nicola talked about Homelessness facing young people across Hertfordshire and David told us about the direct action Open Door is taking to ensure no-one needs to sleep rough in St Albans. Some of the things we learned were happening on our door steps are deeply shocking. Nicola MacKinnon (Fundraiser) from Herts Young Homeless please click here to download and view Nicola’s presentation HYH – NMK basic presentation June 23 It contains a wealth of information so please take a few minutes to read. Nicola started by asking us to think about what the word ‘home’ means to us. She gives presentations at schools and said that children give similar answers to us –

Orange Weekend for St Albans Soroptimists!

2 years ago in

#orangecafe

On Sat 24 Jun we had a lovely time at the New Ground Summer Party (a cohousing development where Ann, one of our Members lives). Ann is pictured here with Jane (l) and Ameeta (r). This turned out to be an unexpectedly orange afternoon with nasturtiums in bloom and some of the residents wearing orange too – Jane was able to explain why orange is important to Soroptimists – a vibrant colour to represent a world without violence against women and girls. Please see the website from the New Ground visit to our Club in 2019 https://sigbi.org/st-albans-and-district/2019/wtd19/ It was after that we were first invited to visit, but COVID got in the way! On Sun 25 Jun Helen, Janet and Sarah had an Orange Walk and Cafe – wearing orange to promote the Orange the World campaign to end violence against women and girls. They braved the baking

New Venue from Sep – Cottonmill Community and Cycling Centre

2 years ago in

Cottonmill Community and Cycling Centre

NEW VENUE for St Albans Soroptimists from September Our new meeting venue from September will be the Cottonmill Community and Cycling Centre (known as CCCC). Our last meeting at the Greenwood Park URC will be the potluck supper on the 24th of July. This is because the URC have plans to rebuild their hall and so it will not be available to hire. You can see from the photos and website that there is a lovely community hall which will be a great meeting place for us (we will be using the larger section). We will have a direct hatch to the kitchen making our all-important coffee break really easy and there is a large spacious car park. Our member Janet Audley-Charles is the chair of the Sopwell Residents Association and was very involved with the Sopwell Community Trust campaign to build this wonderful community

Denise Powell and Helen Atkinson Induction

New Member, Refuge Donation and Orange The World Plans – another busy evening!

2 years ago in

#OrangetheWorld

It was another busy Club meeting on 12 June when we welcomed new Member Helen Atkinson, handed over £1800 to the SAHWR Refuge and shared some great ideas for our 2023 “Orange the World” campaign to end violence against women, 25 Nov to 10 Dec. New member induction: Helen Atkinson It is always a special evening when we officially welcome a new member to our Club. On Monday 12 June all Club Members were proud to welcome Helen Atkinson. Denise Powell, facilitator of the Peace Team was leading the meeting and is photographed here presenting Helen to the Club its newest Member. Helen introduced herself to the club. She lives in Harpenden and is originally from Bradford. Her interests have been around gender inequality and issues effecting women. She saw Jane’s letter in Good Housekeeping and wanted to know more about Soroptimists. Helen is a Management

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