Little Bridge House opens its doors to their supporters once a month to give them an insight into children’s hospice life and thank their donors and volunteers for all their ongoing support. The first Monday in March members of the Torquay & District Soroptimist International took a road and rail trip to visit the hospice in Fremington, near Barnstaple.  Members were unsure of what to expect and the atmosphere of the hospice wasn’t how you would imagine it, we soon realised that the staff do everything to help make the most of every moment a very sick child has with their family. Little Bridge House helps build precious memories and is a place where sick children and their families can come for a much needed break. There were no planned family stays during the open days so we didn’t hear the usual noise and laughter

A group of ladies met up to see Joseph and His Amazing Technicolour Dream Coat. The weather was atrocious and we were blown into the Princess Theatre at the mercy of the gale! We were followed in by a horde of little, windswept squealing school children. We all finally settled down and enjoyed a great show. I think the audience and the performers felt happy and uplifted. The children were so well behaved it felt good to congratulate them and their teachers and that made an even happier ending. (It took a couple of weeks to stop singing!) Linda Churchward

Barry Meteyard is Chairman of the Torquay Child Contact Centre. He came to give us some insight into this Charity. The group provides a local, special place for children to meet and maintain their relationship with parents and family members after parental divorce or separation. Volunteers arrive in the meeting room at Central Church every Saturday morning to help and support visitors where necessary and this has been in action since 1991. It is a sad and sorry fact that each year in the UK there are estimated to be 100,000 children who lose touch with a parent. Barry answered all our questions and the facts were quite depressing. However, we realised the work at the contact centre is very positive and the good results must be heart warming. We cheered up with tea and cakes. The charity is keen to welcome new volunteers to

Babies in need in Uganda have recently received boxes of hand knitted clothes from the Torquay & District Soroptimist International. Jane Davidson who runs the Homes of Promise charity in Uganda delivered some of our handiwork to the hospital and found a lady sitting outside who had just given birth. Jane was able to experience firsthand how much pleasure they bring when, to quote, ‘she squealed with delight as I handed it to her.’ Jane first visited Uganda in 2013 to meet a child she had been sponsoring through a local charity and seeing their work with poor families living in rural areas in the south west of the country, she soon realised the plight of so many young boys living on the streets there and getting dragged into a terrible way of life. Such was the effect on Jane that she decided to return

Members of the Torquay & District Soroptimist International were delighted when they recently visited the Rowcroft Distribution Centre and were given the opportunity to see what goes on behind the scenes in the warehouse on Brunel Industrial Estate, Newton Abbot.  Rowcroft charity shops rely on the generosity of the local community, and welcome good quality saleable items, by working alongside warehouse staff we saw what happens to these donations. Wrapped in our winter woollies the day began with a talk from Manager Paul O’Callaghan who explained that the Distribution Centre had given them the ability to centrally sort and send stock to shops that previously might not have received a high level of donations through the door.   The Centre gave them a much greater knowledge and awareness of what items were being donated to the shops and which shops are most appropriate to send that

We invited Norman McNamara to lunch at Rosegarth but first of all he had to give us a talk! We were keen to know about the idea of becoming Purple Angel Ambassadors. He gave an overview of the beginnings of the Torbay Dementia Action Alliance and how things have developed worldwide, far beyond anyone’s original vision. His idea of Dementia Friendly Communities and Purple Angel Memory Cafés has been taken on in forty two countries. There are over six hundred ambassadors so far, each with their own teams. Ambassadors don’t need robes and regalia just a willingness to help make a difference to the lives of those with dementia and also to their carers. Sometimes it might be enough to sit and listen. Norman was messaged on Facebook recently; from America! A lady with dementia was agitated and in need of help. Norman put out

A very warm welcome from all of us at the Torquay & District Soroptimist International which we are all leading this year.   Each of us are taking a turn to wear the President’s regalia and  believe that a job shared is a job halved, so we are in a win win win situation! The main focus of our work is Programme Action, through our work we support a variety of projects, at home and abroad.  We have all been touched by cancer and agree that no one should face cancer alone so Macmillan, FORCE, Bowel Cancer & the Breast Cancer Awareness campaigns all have our support.  Our ladies regularly take up the Sleep Walk challenge to raise money for the local Rowcroft Hospice. We provide practical help for the many people suffering from dementia by knitting twiddlemuffs and blankets, members regularly help at the

Venue: Rosegarth, Tor Church Road, Torquay Club Meetings 7.30pm – first & third Tuesday of the month House Committee Meetings please check times – second Tuesday of alternate months January President Gill Wood 10th  House Committee Meeting 6.30pm 10th  Business Meeting 7.30pm 17th  Whitfields 7.30pm 25th  Rowcroft Distribution Centre 9.30am 31st  Speaker Meeting – Torbay Dementia Action Alliance, Norman McNamara 12.00 noon then lunch   February President Lesley Proctor 7th Business Meeting 7.30pm 14th House Committee Meeting 10.00am 21st  Speaker Meeting – Barry Meteyard Torquay Child Contact Centre   29th-13th March Fairtrade fortnight   March President Carole Ashley Ovarian Cancer Month 3rd World Book Day 6th Visit to Little Bridge House 7th Business Meeting 7.30pm 8th International Women’s Day 14th  Rosegarth House AGM 7pm 18th World Rocks Against Dementia – Hannahs Seale Hayne 21st  Speaker Meeting – Brian Smith Storybook Dads 22nd World Water Day

December 21st Anode Food Hampers Anode is a charity that provides a host of services to help individuals through challenging times. They encourage self belief, independence and responsibility. Their Motto: Changing Lives, Giving a Voice and Fighting Poverty. Eight ladies from our club answered the call from Anode to help pack food hampers for people in need in Torbay. It was very well organised and our ladies got going straightaway. They worked in pairs as if on their own conveyor belt. All the items were clearly marked with a number and displayed in this room and that. There were tins of fruit, soft drinks, chocolates, sweets, mince pies, jam and marmalade, bread, cereals, soup ……. and frozen chicken and mince from the kitchen! Everything was there for a super Christmas meal. Each couple was faced with a large box containing fresh vegetables and away they went.