As a WI we are allowed to support local charities, doing work for local people. Our 2014 Charity is Merton and Morden Guild.
Knitted Squares
While we wait for evenings to be lighter why not knit some more squares for blankets. We will be saving some for next year’s Get Your Knit On and some will be made into blankets for our charity Merton & Morden Guild.
Instructions:
Size 8 (4mm) needles, 33 stitches of double knit wool – preferably work in garter or moss stitch (not stocking stitch as it curls at the ends) until you have a 6″ square. Wool available to knit and would welcome any donated wool.
A thank you from the Get Your Knit On Team
Dear All
We would like to extend a HUGE thank you to everyone who took part in the Get Your Knit On! project. We received over 2,000 knitted squares from all over the country, and even some from overseas. I think the furthest travelled knitting was from Japan! This enabled us to make around 40 blankets which have now been given to Age UK Lambeth to distribute to vulnerable older people in Lambeth, the borough Southbank Centre is based in. It’s wonderful to be able to help our neighbours in this way, and really heart warming to think that around fifty people contributed to each blanket.
Thank you to each of you for your contribution, if you knitted squares or helped sew up the blankets, you all made a valuable contribution and have helped to keep older people warmer this winter and beyond.
We hope to repeat the project next year and will be in touch nearer the time.
Best wishes, Jessica and Hannah
Hot Topics January 2014
Our Charity of the Year
99 members and 3 guests were present to hear and participate in a highly entertaining and interesting presentation by Anne Donaghy and Hamish Duncan from our Charity of the Year – Merton & Morden Guild http://www.mandmguild.org/(based in Morden).
Hamish explained the background to the setting up of the Charity for older people well over 50 years ago when the key concerns had been transport and heating. Nothing much changes does it? The Guild’s work includes lunches, shopping trips, bingo, dancing, exercises classes, as well as friendly get together e.g. over coffee. Because of funding cuts, the Guild very much welcomes being our chosen Charity of the Year – whatever we could do to raise money would help them continue with their work. Anne talked about the fitness classes started 15 years ago when there was increased evidence of older people not going out because they were afraid of falling. The first session had 1 customer but this had increased by the last financial year to some 16,000 attendances at classes aimed at keeping older people fit and mobile. Some now had sufficient mobility to brush their hair, do up buttons/zips, make cups of tea and put on socks/tights. We joined her in a “gentle” seated group exercise session as an example of the sort of work done with frail people. Even those who exercised regularly felt that we’d had a work out! They left leaflets for us about the Guild (reference copies on the Notice Board during 2014).
Bring & Buy Sale
Clearly much inspired by what we’d heard, we’ve raised so far the massive total of £210.20p (including the monies from the chosen Charity voting in October) for the Merton & Morden Guild. A big thank you all for your wonderful generosity with goods for the sale and for digging so deep into your pockets. Thank you too to Jennifer and Fiona for coping with the stall and the rush of eager buyers! Well done everyone – let’s keep at it for the rest of the year. Any items left over went with Hamish and Anne to use for their own charity raising events.
The One Show
25 of us visited the BBC studios in London on Sunday. We were welcomed by our two guides Ben and Russell who proved to be both knowledgeable and fun. They told us about what went on at the centre and we had the chance to watch the workings of the news room from the viewing balcony.
Then things really got interesting as some of our group got to read the news and give a weather forecast. We went on to a recording studio and the studio when the one show is recorded. We all sat on the famous settees as we watched a video recoding of the one show hosts telling us about the show.
Last of all in a special recording studio volunteers were called for and several budding Thespians stepped forward to record a short play complete with sound effects also provided by our own special effects person.
It was a very interesting and fun trip.
Fiona.
2014 Useful Dates
| 7 March | Surrey Federation: Annual Council Meeting |
| 7 June | NFWI AGM Leeds |
| 21 June | Wimbledon Village Fair |
| 20 October | Surrey Federation: Autumn Meeting |
Hot Topics December 2013
There were 64 members and 1 guest present at our December meeting where we were treated to mulled wine and mince pies, and some seasonal singing led ably by Michaela. Thank you to all concerned with organising the evening.
Agnes welcomed members to the meeting. Following our 5th Birthday celebrations in November, she had received thank you messages from Sally & Jill (both from Surrey Federation) and from Debbie at Carers Support Merton (our 2013 Charity of the Year) http://www.csmerton.org/. Copies of their messages were on the Notice Board. A short article had appeared in the Residents Journal with some photographs of our activities over the last 5 years.
Ann said that our planned Denman Designer Day in April had been cancelled due to insufficient interest. She said there were currently 2 opportunities for members wishing to attend Denman being organised by Surrey. These are
- Surrey Federation Denman Workshop Day 24 March – 2 taster courses. Closing date 31 January
- Surrey at Denman 12-15 June 2014 – Closing date 17 January
Information and Application forms available to members from the Secretary on secretary@wimbledonwi.org.uk.
Bouquets of flowers were presented to Janice and Eileen (as retiring Committee members) in recognition of their work on behalf of our WI, and to Gillian for the numerous activities, refreshments etc she helps organise for us all.
Members present took part in voting on the selection of resolutions for consideration by next year’s NFWI Annual Meeting. Our members voted as follows:
- Increasing Organ Donation – 17 votes
- Funding for Women’s Centres to cater for the specific needs of vulnerable women at risk of offending – 9 votes
- Campaign against female genital mutilation – 23 votes
- Provision of non-acute hospital beds – 9 votes
These will be returned to Surrey Federation who will collate the results from all their WIs and provide them to NFWI so that the Board of Trustees can finalise the list of resolutions for the Annual Meeting in June, based on the number of selections from WI members throughout the country.
During the evening members were able to admire the efforts of some of our members:-
Christmas Tree Decoration Competition Thank you to all those members who helped to decorate our Christmas tree. We had 29 beautiful handmade decorations and congratulations go to Val Fone, Margaret Brotherton and Liz Clemow whose decorations were voted as the top three by members. Hopefully they might have inspired you to have a go at making something.
“Get Your Knit On” – squares to make blankets for vulnerable older people which will be distributed by Age UK Lambeth. 93 squares were on display on the night and more are promised – we should have well over 100 squares in the end. A great result and thank you everyone who contributed.
Thank you all for your generosity in donating items for the Food Bank http://wimbledon.foodbank.org.uk/. These supplies are particularly welcome to help feed local people in crisis this Christmas.
Get Your Knit On!
Some of our members knitting for the campaign
More information about the campaign can be found here
Hot Topics November 2013
There were 85 members, 2 new members, and 2 visitors present for our Annual Meeting and 5th Birthday celebrations. We also welcomed Sally Dampney, Jill Elliot, members from Fulham and SW19 and Bea Oliver of Morden.
The draw for our Denman College Bursary for 2013/14 was held and Alison Frow and Katie Worsley were successful. We hope they enjoy their time at Denman.
Members were once again generous with their donations to both the Food Bank and with Christmas gifts to our Charity of the Year 2013 – Carers Support Merton.
Annual Meeting
The Annual Meeting began with the presentation of the Financial Statement for the year, by the Treasurer (Janice Beale). This was adopted by members. Ann Dolphin (Secretary) read out the Committee’s Report for 2012/13 covering some highlights of our programme and activities. Agnes Fox as President addressed the meeting, thanking both the members for their support throughout the year, and the Committee for all the work and planning that goes into providing such a varied programme of events. She thanked Janice and Eileen Smith who were both standing down this year from the Committee. She also thanked Veronica Smith (for her organising of our Wimbledon Village Fair) and Angela Maher (for allowing us to use her premises for the preparations, and other activities).The Committee’s Annual Report was adopted.
Our new Committee members for 2013/14 were announced as follows:-
Margaret Brotherton (new),
Joanna Cardwell (new) responsible for our Website and Vice President,
Ann Dolphin – Secretary
Dulcie Edwards – MCS Representative,
Agnes Fox,
Fiona Gerdes-Hansen – Vice President,
Gillian Kitcherside – Social,
Christine Mayne (new) – Treasurer,
Daphne Monk – Catering & Theatre,
Jennifer Wright – Minutes/Agenda.
Agnes will serve as President for another year.
Tess Corrigan gave thanks on behalf of the members to the President and Committee for their work in the preceding year.
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- Our beautiful 5th Birthday Cake made by Dulcie and decorated by Jennifer
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- Busy kitchen
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- Presidents past and present with Sally who started us off 5 years ago
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- Agnes prepares to tuck in!
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- Every picture tells a story!
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- Gillian’s table as popular as ever in it’s new position in the warm
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- Gifts donated by members
5th Birthday Celebrations
Once business was out of the way, we moved onto our 5th Birthday celebrations. These included light refreshments and drinks (our thanks to Gillian and Julia Whiting and others who helped organise these).
Members had the opportunity to talk to each other and see/hear about some of the activities of our WI over the last 5 years. Dulcie and Eileen had prepared a slide show with highlights of our activities since our inception.
We were pleased to welcome guests from the Federation (Sally Dampney and Jill Elliott) and representatives from some of our neighbouring WIs, Carers Support Merton (our Charity of the Year 2013) and Merton & Morden Guild (our Charity of the Year 2014). The celebrations culminated with the cutting of a Birthday cake jointly by Sheila May and Lesley Challacombe (our 2 previous Presidents) together with Agnes. The cake made by Dulcie and decorated by Jennifer gained many plaudits – our thanks to them both. Sally, Sheila, Lesley and Agnes all said a few words. Sheila in particular gave a brief description of setting up our WI with the help from Sally, and encouraging us in future to become more involved with the local community.
Whitechapel Bell Foundry
We all met out outside the foundry, which in fact looked like a small Victorian shop and gave no indication of the industry behind.
Once inside we were shown round by a very informative guide who told us that this foundry was the oldest manufacturing company in Britain, having been established in 1570 (during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I) and being in continuous business since that date. It has made the bells for Bow, St Clements, Big Ben, the Liberty Bell and the very large bell used at the 2012 London Olympics at the opening ceremony.
We were told of the process of manufacturing bells, from casting the moulds to tuning the bells to ensure the perfect match in tonal and pitch quality for each individual project. By a wonderful coincidence the bells that had just been cast were commissioned by St John’s Church, Spencer Hill, Wimbledon.
I’m sure Wimbledon WI members will be following the bells’ progress and eventual hanging (Especially Dulcie, whose daughter is getting married in that church in the spring (? not sure of the date).
We were then shown round all the various departments including the area where they make the bell frames that the bells are hung from.
We were then taken up some very steep and rickety old stairs to the areas where the smaller handbells are finished and leather handles fitted.
Everyone had a very interesting and enjoyable tour and all came away very much more knowledgeable about bells of all sizes and the way they are made.
Thanks to Lou Collis for the description and photos
