Call the office to pay over the phone. Tickets are limited and will be dealt with on a first come, first served basis. No refunds but tickets are transferable to another event. Join Emma for lunch and a truly fascinating insight into her work as a textile novelist. May 2024 65p Coach Day Trip Sunday 7th July The Castle has an interesting and chequered history dating back to the 15th Century. In the 1990’s, an American millionaire extensively restored the castle. A fascinating tour awaits you, covering hundreds of years of history. The gardens are a sheer delight – with formal gardens, a sunken garden, Dutch garden, waterfall, river walks and a 150-year-old wisteria arch. Don’t get lost in the famous maze! Bookings on a first come, first served basis. Ring the office on 01278 496400 There will be two coach pick-up points (timings and details later). Places are limited – so book yours without delay. inclusive of coach travel, entrance fees to the gardens and a 45 minute guided tour of the Castle. Cost £40 per member, non-members £42 Hampton Court Castle Hereford with Emma Mawston Former head of Design at Liberty Art Fabrics for 25 years Wednesday, 18th September 11.00am for 11.30am – 3.30pm at The Shrubbery Hotel, Ilminster TA6 4BU Tickets £30, Non-members £33 Two course lunch with coffee Before Lunch: 25 years as Liberty Art Fabric Designer After lunch: working with Will Bee of Salcombe and the RNLI Emma describes herself as a Textile Novelist, as her amazing designs tell a story, dominated by both flora and bees. Emma grew up in Hampshire where her love of nature and design was born. Formerly head of design at Liberty Art Fabrics for 25 years, Emma left London last summer to relocate to Somerton and is now a freelance design consultant working on high-end signature products. Projects include the RNLI 200 years celebration fabric as well as print designer for Will Bee, of Will Bees Bespoke in Salcombe (yes, Will Bee is his name!). Emma and Will originally met at the Chelsea Flower Show and now produce stunning collections of her nature and flora designs – with a strong focus on bees! Emma’s designs are printed onto luxurious soft velvet fabric and made into stunning cushions and delightful bags. SCFWI Annual Meeting Early Bird Price £13! £15 from June See page 3
2 May 2024 to Margaret Casey, Denise Riddels, Linda Lines and Sue Phillips from Hardington & Pendomer WI who helped to pack the April issue of County News. 200+ CLUB WINNERS APRIL 92, Lin Hargreaves Taunton Deane Divas WI £15 125, Susan Bellringer Sampford Arundel WI £10 171, Vera Rowlandson Sampford Arundel WI £5 FEDERATION OFFICE SCFWI, 344 Bristol Road Bridgwater TA6 4BU 01278 496400 COUNTY NEWS Editor Annie Makepeace Email [email protected] Advertising Assistant and Gallery Co-ordinator Laura Balkwill Email [email protected] Tel: 07860 531998 Editorial for COUNTY NEWS must be received by the 1st of the month preceding each issue, by Email if possible to the Editor or typewritten copy and printed photographs to the Federation Office address at top of this page Advertising and Gallery pictures Advertising and Gallery must reach the Advertising Assistant by the 1st of the month preceding each issue Lineage: Cost per word 18p for WI members 30p for non-members (or advertisements placed on behalf of non-members.) Display: Rates and sizes upon application to the Advertising Assistant SCFWI does not accept responsibility for goods or services advertised in COUNTY NEWS Tel: 07790 449529 Email: [email protected] www.thewi.org.uk/somerset OFFICE OPEN 9.30am - 3.30pm, Mon - Thurs The WI - Somerset wi_somerset Trustee Topics Can you believe it’s the fifth month of 2024 already? May is usually a month of beautiful blossom, especially on apple trees. The flower of the month is the common hawthorn (unlucky if taken into the house!) and Lily of the Valley (my mum’s favourite). The 11th is Somerset Day – the second Saturday is now an annual celebration of all that is great about Somerset. I’m a WI Adviser, and since 2020 have been on the Board of Trustees, and a member of the Events team. The Events team and the Food & Garden team have recently joined together to form FELT - Federation Events and Leisure Team – which, ‘for my sins’, I chair. There are just seven of us on FELT and we work together to organise different events throughout the year. Our aim is to enhance your membership with a varied programme of enjoyable and interesting activities, whilst at the same time, helping to raise some funds for the federation. Somerset is a large county and it is not easy deciding where to hold events whilst avoiding you having to travel too far. Finding suitable venues at reasonable prices also often proves very challenging. We do our utmost to keep ticket prices as low as possible, and it’s never straightforward selecting dates when both a speaker and a venue are available to us. This month we have a lunch with Andrew Prince, who designed and made the jewellery worn in the Downton Abbey series; a Music Quiz in June and a coach day trip on a Sunday in July. There’s also lunch with Emma in September – details on the front page. Her designs are truly amazing. In November we have a trip to Thursford to see the largest Christmas show in the country and we’re already planning exciting things for 2025. FELT really hopes you will support and enjoy our full programme over the coming months. I’m personally looking forward to seeing you at some of these events, especially at the Downton Abbey Jewellery Lunch. In the meantime enjoy May, and in particular the blossom, whether in your garden or when out and about in the county. Judy Glossop [email protected] Chair of Federation Events and Leisure Team Independent Examiner Training Independent Examiner Training will be held on 19th June at WI House at 10.00am. If you have a head for numbers, Hilary Miller is happy to train anyone wishing to become an Independent Financial Examiner and help with the auditing of WI end of year finances. Please ring 01278 496400 without delay if you are interested as this training session is limited to six.
May 2024 3 WANT TO ADVERTISE? Please contact Laura Balkwill [email protected] or telephone 07860 531998 Membership Chair: Anne Chadwick WI Groups WI Groups have been around for many years but did you know that they don’t actually come under the WI Constitution but are purely a social group within the organisation? There are no rules and regulations governing Groups. They started many years ago as a way to bring together individual, mainly small, rural WIs to socialise with members of neighbouring WIs and to enable the sharing of an expensive speaker. Each Group is run independently and in their own way. Some are very relaxed and organise events on an ad hoc basis, others have created their own officers and teams and like to work in a structured way. Some like to organise outings and meals and others just get together once or twice a year to catch up. There are no rights or wrongs in the way they are organised. In fact, quite a few WIs, particularly those with more members, have decided not to be part of a Group and prefer to remain independent. There is nothing wrong with this. It is certainly down to individual Groups how they run their affairs and the Federation does not get involved. However, each WI Adviser is allocated to Groups/WIs and can change from year to year. WI secretaries are informed of their own WI Adviser and BOT contact but not Group Coordinators. A Group meeting is an excellent way for your Adviser, if invited, to catch up with her WIs in one go. Please remember Advisers are all volunteers and have families and friends to juggle with as well! We can only stretch ourselves so far but we are always at the end of a phone or email. Groups are a wonderful way of coming together, sharing ideas and offering support; long may they continue, but they are not for everyone, so we must bear that in mind. If you have any questions on Groups, please give me a ring or email me. My details are in the Federation Handbook. Anne Chadwick GOLF CROQUET PAIRS TOURNAMENT Taunton Deane Sports Centre, Taunton Somerset TA2 6LP Friday 5th July 10:00am Please bring your own lunch. Tea, coffee and shortbread will be provided. Cost £12.00 per player Contact the office to book by 1st July APOLOGY In our April issue Trustee Topics, we inadvertently titled Hilary Miller as ‘WI Adviser and finance helper’. We have been asked to point out that this should have read ‘WI Adviser finance helper’. We apologise for this error. Duty Advisor MAY Anne Chadwick 01823 452469 [email protected] SCFWI ANNUAL MEETING 26th October 2024 Millfield School Butleigh Road, Street BA16 0YD We are excited to hold our 2024 Annual Meeting at Millfield School in the Johnson Hall, with speakers Captain Jessica Tyson, Deputy Harbour Master of Sedgemoor District Council, and Rosie Hather from ARC. Further details in June County News. Early Bird Tickets available now for only £13 ...will be £15 from June
4 May 2024 Ashcott & Pedwell WI visited Will Shakespeare in Langport for a wonderful demonstration of Glassblowing. Members of Walton WI at one of their Ladies Who Brunch events, which take place each month at the Mullions in Street. Wookey Hole WI sent 60 poppies for the planned D-Day Memorial 'For your Tomorrow'. President Jill was pleased to aid the tributes as her father landed on Gold beach in June 1944. Sampford Arundel WI ladies enjoyed coffee and cakes for Reminiscense Learning. Members of Pawlett WI have knitted and crocheted approximately 130 poppies to be part of the D-Day 80th Anniversary Installation in Normandy. Some of the intrepid Dartmoor Walkers from Hardington & Pendomer WI. Members of Mark WI and Lympsham WI who are part of the Knoll Group enjoyed an evening playing skittles at the Lympsham Sports Club. Members of Chewton Mendip WI and Litton & Hinton Blewett WI knitted and crocheted 80 poppies for the D-Day commemorations. Members of Knoll group enjoyed making fabric tulips, bracelets, Easter cards and sugar craft items at their recent Easter Craft Day.
May 2024 5 Somerset WI at The Manor Resort The Somerset Federation of WI’s visited the Manor Resort in Okehampton, Devon in March. The Manor & Ashbury Resort is the only spa, sport, craft and golf resort in the UK. 49 of us made our way to the Manor and were greeted by our WI Team Leaders and supported in booking our activities. Once our room keys were handed to us we headed off to enjoy our first sample of the delicious food in a spot reserved just for us. It's here that many new friendships were formed, chatting and eating throughout the weekend. From here everyone made the most of the weekend doing a little or a lot of what interested them personally. Each day we came back together as a group for breakfast, lunch and evening meal and into the evening in the bar for those who fancied a tipple or two. It really was a weekend where you could do as much or a little as you wanted. Some jam packed the weekend with crafts and sports and others chose to enjoy the slower pace and sit and read in the bar area, or have a treatment in the spa. 12 ladies even braved the weather for a guided walking tour on Dartmoor. There was always something to enjoy in the programme of events and the additional fees for some activities was very reasonable. From pickle ball to glass work to reflexology – you name it, one of us gave it a go! We had a fabulous weekend and have loved hearing your stories and seeing your shared photos on social media. If someone went from your WI, please do ask them what they personally enjoyed throughout the weekend. We'd like to thank everyone who attended and made the weekend what Our 2024 trip was such a success we booked for 2025 straight away! Save the date 14th - 16th March 2025 and read on to find out more about how you can join in the fun. Due to popularity we've increased the number of spaces to 60. Make your own way there to arrive late morning and enjoy a two night leisure and activities break. Full board and twin or single accommodation available, not 4 star, but a clean and comfortable room. All food is included, delicious and plenty of it. Enjoy a range of activities to suit all with a small fee chargeable for some activities. Book yourself in for whatever you fancy and come away with something good to show for your efforts. We're delighted to confirm we've been able to secure the same prices as 2024 which is a great saving for you. Please contact the County Office at WI House to secure your space. The event was very popular and will be offered on a first come, first served basis so make sure you don't delay! it was. Whether you took a dip in the hydro pool, played your first game of curling or created something to take home, thank you for your company and making the event such a huge success. It really was a weekend where you could do as much or a little as you wanted! We're returning to the Manor and booking is now open! Non-member, two sharing a twin room £225 per person WI member single room £285 Non member single room £300 WI member, two sharing a twin room £195 per person A 50% non-refundable deposit will be required by Wednesday 31st October.
6 May 2024 Forthcoming Events for your Diary EVENT DATES VENUE CLOSING CN ISSUE Downton Abbey Jewellery Lunch 15 May Canalside, Bridgwater 1 May March Kate Lynch, Rural Artist 22 May Burrowbridge Village Hall 8 May February Music Quiz 15 June Walton Village Hall 31 May P6 Golf Croquet Pairs Tournament 5 July Taunton Deane Sports Centre 1 July P3 Hampton Court Castle Trip 7 July Hereford First come, first served April The Historic Knit 15 July The 37 Club, Puriton 1 July February Emma Mawston Talk 18 Sept The Shrubbery Hotel, Ilminster To be advised P1 SCFWI Annual Meeting 26 Oct Millfield School, Street To be advised P3 Thursford Christmas Spectacular 9-11 Nov Thursford First come, first served January PLEASE COMPLETE BOOKING FORM (available from your secretary) AND RETURN TO 344, BRISTOL ROAD Tickets at £5 per head are sure to be in great demand, so purchase yours from WI House in advance please on 01278 496400 An evening testing your knowledge of various genres of music over the decades, promising to be filled with fun and laughter and presided over by a very experienced quizmaster. Friends and family are welcome in teams of four to six Walton Village Hall Meadow Lane, Walton, BA16 9LA Saturday 15th June Doors open 6.30pm for 7.00pm start Bring your own drinks and nibbles!
May 2024 7 Community Projects Ambassador: Hazel Hillman Our first ‘Social Stitch & Knit’ was held in WI House on Thursday 14th March. Lots of chatting and hopefully some new skills acquired. We were delighted with the number of members who turned up, hopefully they went away enthused! We heard that two of them were planning on setting up a similar group with their own members…which was the idea behind this. We will continue to run these sessions on a monthly basis for as long as there is an interest. Please ring the office (or Jo Stewart on 01984 636538) if you would like to join us. The next sessions will be on Thursday 11th April 2024 and Thursday 9th May. Same time, same place. Patterns are available from WI House for members who want to make things for Community Projects, knitting, crochet or stitching. Although Christmas feels like a long way off our thoughts are beginning to turn to Shoeboxes. Main collection points will be at the Annual Meeting and WI House. Details to follow of other collection points, and suggestions for items to go inside. ONCOLOGY Litton & Hinton Blewett Chewton Mendip Combe Florey BLANKETS Puriton & District Woolavington Combe Florey Bishops Hull & District Litton & Hinton Blewett HAND PUPPETS Litton & Hinton Blewett TWIDDLE MUFFS Woolavington Horton & District BEANIES Evercreech Litton & Hinton Blewett BABIES TOYS AND CARDIGANS Litton & Hinton Blewett Chewton Mendip WALKING FRAME BAGS Combe Florey Thank you to the following WI's for the lovely contributions to those in need Chair: Jo Stewart Hello ladies, I hope you have all had a good Easter and Bank Holiday with family and friends and hopefully some sunshine! I have had lots of lovely things from you which as you can see have been found ‘good homes'. Well done and THANK YOU. Keep fit and well and enjoy the summertime. Hazel DELIVERIES I have visited Breast Care at RUH Bath, the Dementia Ward at WMH, Glastonbury and Breast Care and Head & Neck at WGH, Weston super Mare
8 May 2024 with Andrew Prince Wednesday 15th May at the Canalside, Bridgwater 2 course lunch with coffee 12.30pm sit down with speaker at 2.00pm Tickets £30 members, £33 non-members Tickets are limited! Don’t delay, book today! Downton Abbey Jewellery & Fashion 1890 - 1929 Kate will share her charcoal drawings, pastels and paintings, created to celebrate traditional rural work in Somerset. She will share her stories and demonstrate her skills. Wednesday 22nd May, 10:30am, Burrowbridge Village Hall. Joyce Meader will share her knowledge of military and historical knitting. Her collection ranges from 1817 to the present day. Monday 15th July, 1:00pm - 3:30pm at The 37 Club, Puriton. Tickets £12 members, £15 non members. Contact the office to book by 1st July. Tickets £12 members, £15 non members. Contact the office to book by 8th May. KATE LYNCH, RURAL ARTIST