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Friendship Links
S.I. Nottingham has Friendship links with the following clubs:
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Bendigo (Australia)
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Karlsruhe (Germany)
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Oslo (Norway)
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Philadelphia (USA)
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Kingston (Jamaica)
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Mid Eastern (Jamaica)
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Twente (Netherlands)
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Roskilda (Denmark)
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Kandy (Sri Lanka)
Shown here ar some photographs of our Friendship Weekend held in 2006 to celebrate S.I. Nottingham’s 70th Charter Anniversary. More than a dozen friends from our link clubs in Karlsruhe, Twente and Oslo were able to join us.
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Women’s Refuge Support
For a number of years, we have been providing a number of items to one of Nottingham’s Women’s Refuges. These include:
Welcome Packs: Basic toiletries and essentials for those who arrive with nothing.
Moving on Packs: Mops, buckets etc for those moving from the refuge into their own accommodation.
Food: Tins and packets kept at the refuge to help new arrivals.
In addition, over the years we have been able to undertake larger projects, such as provision of both indoor and garden furniture, a disabled-access shower, and a summerhouse. Club members also helped to create an allotment at the refuge to help the women and children get involved with growing their own food
For the past two years, the club has also collected gifts for the women and children in the refuge over the Christmas period, and in both years, the generosity of Nottingham people led to toys and gifts being delivered to a number of women’s refuges in the City, not just the one usually supported by the club. Shown below are members of the club with the toys and gifts wrapped and distributed in December 2007.
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What we do
Our club meetings are held on the first and third Monday of the month (except August). We meet from 7.15 - 9.15 p.m. at the University of Nottingham. Meetings are varied, and include:
- Speakers from all walks of life
- ‘My Job’ talks from new and existing members
- Social and fundraising events
- ‘Programme action’ sessions, where we discuss and plan our volunteer help and fund-raising service.
In addition, the evening schedule is relaxed enough for us to chat over a coffee, develop business contacts, and welcome new and prospective members.
Visit our Diary post for forthcoming meetings and other activities.
Helping others
However, coming to club meetings are only a small part of being a member. One of the rewarding aspects of being a Soroptimist is the ability to make a difference at local, national and international levels. We call this work our ‘Programme Action’, and this takes many forms. Click on the links below to find out more about each project.
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Women’s Refuge support
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Mock Interviews
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Nottingham Child Contact Centre
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Supporting S.I. Kandy
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Supporting Project SIerra
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Other fundraising projects
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S.I. Kandy
A book stall at SI Nottingham meetings provides the funds to pay the Capitation fees (membership fees for all Soroptimists) for the members of SI Kandy, Sri Lanka, who find it very difficult to send money out of their country. The money this saves their members is used by SI Kandy to help their local community - the club has in the past provided tutoring, books and games at Jayawickrema Home for Girls in Kandy - shown above. They are now looking at a new project, which will improve living conditions at a nearby women’s prison.
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Other Fundraising
With so many varied interests within the membership of the club, there are often a number of one-off projects with which we are able to get involved and support. Here are some of the projects which the club has supported over the years.
Millennium Millions Appeal
S I Nottingham initiated and facilitated the Millennium Millions Appeal in 1998. With the help of other local women’s organisations, the appeal raised £925,000 towards the building of a bespoke Breast Institute for the women of Nottinghamshire. Soroptimist members raised over £34,000 within the club as well as taking an active part in the overall appeal. The total cost of the scheme was £5.2m. Members served on the steering committee, which became the MMA Committee, as well as on the board of trustees. Soroptimist International granted SI Nottingham a Best Practice Award at the SIGBI Conference in Glasgow in 2002 in acknowledgement of this achievement. HRH The Prince of Wales opened The Breast Institute in July 2004.
Cancer Research UK
For a number of years members have raised money for Cancer Research UK by participating in the Race for Life and the Relay for Life.
School in a Box
Funds raised at a cheese and wine evening were used to fund a ‘School in a Box’ and a School Tent for Pakistan.
Silent Auction
Every January, the club holds a Silent Auction, where members and guest are encouraged to bring unwanted Christmas Presents. Each year, the club chooses a recipient for the proceeds, which have included Pump Aid, a charity providing safe drinking water to African communities, and the purchase of Aquaboxes, which provide the immediate aid necessary in the event of a disaster providing safe clean drinking water and basic hardware essentials for living.
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Mock Interviews
For a number of years, club members have been holding Mock Interviews with children of school leaving age at Ellis Guilford school in Nottingham, giving the children much needed experience of filling in application forms and interview technique.
The interviews take place over a fortnight in June, and participants are given feedback following their interview, and receive a certificate to show their participation in the project.
The feedback we receive from the school’s careers department shows how valued this project is. From our links with the school, club members working in Health and Social Care have also been invited to participate in school careers sessions.
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Fun and Friendship
Soroptimism has a serious message - we want to improve the lives of women and girls throughout the world. Luckily for us, working together in pursuit of this aim is not only incredibly worthwhile, but is also great fun.
By joining a club whose members are from various backgrounds, walks of life, nationalities and ages, you get to meet new people who quickly become friends.
As well as all the hard work we do, we also arrange social events which ensure that we have time to get together and do what Soroptimists do best - eat, drink and talk!
Being a Soroptimist also brings opportunities to make friends all over the world - our annual Federation Conference brings Soroptimists together from throughout the Federation of Great Britain and Ireland, and our International Convention, held every four years, is an opportunity to meet fellow Soroptimists from all over the world.
Members of any Soroptimist club are also ensured a warm welcome at the meetings or events of any other Soroptimist club if they happen to be on holiday, or away on business. Most clubs also have more formal links with a number of clubs in other countries, which often lead to lasting contact, visits and even joint projects. For more information about S.I. Nottingham’s Link Clubs, click here.
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Child Contact Centre
Several of our members volunteer at the Nottingham Child Contact Centre. This is one of hundreds of contact centres across the country. The centre provides a safe, warm, dry venue for children to meet their non-resident parent. It has a playgroup atmosphere. Our centre opens for 3 hours each Saturday morning and 3 hours each Saturday afternoon.
Volunteers can choose the days they do their duty. The rota works out at, on average, one session each 6 weeks. We either do a morning or an afternoon. The tasks involved are either manning the coffee bar or sitting on reception to book families in and out.
It is very rewarding work, especially when little children run forward to greet their Dads. We are absolutely impartial. Tension sometimes surfaces between the parents but by showing a little common sense and lots of impartiality, feathers can be smoothed.
Please do not contact us with queries regarding the Contact Centre - please use this link to send your information to the National Association of Child Contact Centres, who will deal with your query.
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About SI Nottingham
Soroptimist International of Nottingham is a vibrant, dynamic organisation for professional and business women. Through awareness, advocacy and action at international, national and local levels, we are committed to helping women and girls to achieve their potential, realise aspirations and have an equal voice in creating strong and peaceful communities.
SI Nottingham is part of a global network of more than 3,000 Soroptimist Clubs worldwide. Members are active locally through service and fund-raising projects, and at national and international levels in partnership with other Soroptimist clubs and organisations, to improve the lives of women and girls.
Find out more about what we do…….
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Presidents’ message
Thank you for visiting our website.
The Soroptimist International of Nottingham Club is made up of over 50 women from several different nationalities. Our members are active in business, the professions and voluntary work and we are aged from 30’s to 90’s.
We may all come from different walks of life, but we have one thing in common, WE WANT TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO THE LIVES OF WOMEN AND GIRLS. We put our spare time to good use and feel passionate about all the projects we take on.
These projects are local, national and international. Issues we have covered in the past and some still supporting, include assisting a local Women’s Refuge, raising funds for mine clearance, assisting at a local Child Contact centre, conducting mock interviews at a local school, helping women survivors of war and (with other Women’s groups in Nottinghamshire) raising nearly £1 million for a new Breast Care Centre. We are now actively fundraising for Soroptimist International’s quadrennial project ‘Project SIerra’ and are building links with the Nottingham Women’s Centre. Our nominated charity this year is ‘Wateraid’
Our philosophy can be summed up by three words
ADVOCACY AWARENESS ACTION
This year’s theme is ‘Celebrating Achievement’. Our programme reflects this as our invited speakers have all achieved success in their field. We are also celebrating our OWN achievements as a club. Members have the opportunity to make good friends and be part of a support network that is second to none. The Nottingham Club is a member of the Midland East Region, as well as maintaining friendship links with a number of Soroptimist Clubs worldwide.
As a service organization we need members who are committed to providing women and girls both here and abroad with the opportunity to achieve equity and equality, live in a safe and healthy environment, have access to education and gain leadership and practical skills.
Would you like to find out more? Please contact us through this website.
We usually meet twice a month on Monday evenings from 7.15pm to 9.15pm at Willoughby Hall, University of Nottingham. At these meetings we listen to interesting speakers, discuss issues that concern us and enjoy a chat over coffee. Why not come along to a meeting or event, and see if it’s something you would enjoy.
Barbara McDonald and Sue GoodleySend SI Nottingham a message
Club Officers
Women Working Together
Joint Presidents Barbara McDonald and Sue Googley began their year of office at the club AGM in April 2009. Shown here are Sue and Barbara along with Immediate Past Presidents Wendy Nicolle and Sue Bembridge, Presidents Elect Yvonne Glass and Sue Warriner, and Vice President Helen Dobbins.
Club Officers 2009 - 2010:
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Joint Presidents - Sue Goodley and Barbara McDonald
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Joint Presidents Elect - Yvonne Glass and Sue Warriner
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Vice President - Helen Dobbins
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Joint Immediate Past Presidents - Sue Bembridge and Wendy Nicolle
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Treasurer - Yvonne Glass
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Joint Programme Action Officers - Vivienne Pearson & Lynda Clifford
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Membership Secretary - Resil Jarrett
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Honorary Secretary - Irene Brown