surreyfed

THANK YOU FOR MAKING A DIFFERENCE

The following letter addressed to Trustee Ruth Williams and Federation Chairman Carol Gartrell was received from Sally Varah, MBE, DL, chair of the Michael Varah Memorial Fund which supports the Our Time artists at HMP Send:
This is a very quick note to thank you and your entire SFWI team for offering the sales tables at your Autumn meeting at Dorking Halls.
I have delayed writing with our gratitude until I could let you know a total raised, which was over £350 and included the sale of one of the paintings by the artist who has recently been released from HMP Send, and who did such extraordinary work on your Send Inspired WI when she was a member.
We are also immensely grateful to June Green for the coverage she has given the merchandise once again this year in the magazine, which is already prompting orders.
The support that we have from your Federation members makes such a positive difference to the ‘Our Time’ artists and their social enterprise and they are also so grateful to you. — Best regards, Sally.
* A reminder to those who ordered calendars in March that they are now available to purchase (see November SWIN). We would also like to thank those members who continue to support the Send women artists.

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THE PLAY’S THE THING …

Has your WI got any play sets you no longer need? If so Godstone WI can give them a good home. They are on the look-out for play sets for their play reading group, which has been going for 16 years.

If you can help please contact Lyn Jones at lynmoorcroft1@gmail.com or 01883 742215.

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RESOLUTION SHORTLIST AND THE SELECTION PROCESS

WI MEMBERS nationwide have been writing, editing and submitting resolutions to the National Federation. In the Autumn representatives from WIs around the country met to narrow down the proposed resolutions to a manageable number and a shortlist was prepared.
Now every WI member in the country has the opportunity to be part of the process by selecting the resolution that she would like to go forward to a vote later in the year.
To enable members to make an informed choice, the NFWI has produced information about each proposed resolution. You can find it in WI Life and on MyWI. All members are encouraged to read the information to enable them to gain a better insight into which resolution they would like to select.
January WI meetings are a good time for members to discuss and select their individual preferred resolution (preferably by secret means). Individual selections are then collected and forwarded to the Federation office by the given date.
The Federation forwards your WI’s selections to the Public Affairs department at NFWI, to be added to the rest from across the country.
Once this part of the process has been completed we will be presented with one or two resolutions favoured by the most members. WIs will then vote on the one they wish to go forward to the NFWI Annual Meeting in June.
Please encourage as many members as possible to take part in the selection process to keep the results representative of all members.
The proposed resolutions are: 1. Save our water; 2. A new leaf in the life of women tea workers; 3. Online gambling harm: Time for action; 4. Clean rivers for people and wildlife.

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WHAT’S NEW FROM HQ

PLEASE could all WIs make sure the Annual Form, Financial Statement and Information Form are completed accurately and returned to us by no later than Friday, December 9 as these forms contain a lot of information which has to be updated to ensure you get the right resources.
Even if there are no changes, please let us know by inserting “no changes” on the Information Form. Thank you very much for your help with this.
Bank Transfers: When making bank transfers from your WI account please make sure you include your SUR No. (Surrey No.) in the reference and as much information as possible (you will find this on the President and Secretary List that is sent to all WI secretaries in January each year).
For individual members making bank transfers, please make sure you enter the name of the event or workshop in the reference: i.e. for the Christmas is Coming event enter “Christmas” or for a workshop enter “Treasurer” or “365 training.” We have some instances where we have had difficulty in tracking who the money has come from or what it is for.
Please note: Christmas closure: The Federation office will close at 4pm on Friday, December 16 and re-open from 9am on Tuesday, January 3.
The admin team would like to take this opportunity to wish all members a very merry Christmas and a happy and healthy 2023!

Karen Whitehead
Federation Secretary

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December’s Surrey WI News is now available for you to read online.  It is available to view on your phone, tablet or computer via Flipsnack@ December’s Surrey WI News.

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CAROL’S ADDRESS FROM THE AUTUMN MEETING

IT IS lovely to see so many friendly faces and I am so pleased that you have come today despite the many current challenges that have deterred others from attending.
Since our Autumn Federation Meeting a year ago, when we met in large numbers celebrating what we saw as the end of Covid, we have certainly moved into a post-Covid era. But what a world, not at all what we had expected of the hoped-for new start. Instead, we have been rewarded with huge rises in the cost of food, fuel and housing and the war in Ukraine and its terrible consequences.
The Federation, having survived Covid with finances secure and a fine-tuned staff team, had many wonderful ideas of what we might offer members. The reality has been rather different.
On the positive side three members have recently joined the Board as Trustees. Please welcome Jan Jenner, Ann Robertson and Shirley Wood. We also welcome Dorinda Brittle as our Publicity Officer. It’s great to have members taking on Federation roles, coming with new ideas and skills and asking probing questions, ensuring that the Federation constantly re-appraises its mission.
A key issue that has been identified, though occurring largely as a result of external forces is the fall in membership, and consequently the number of WIs.
The current Federation membership stands at around 7,000 with 158 WIs. The retention of current members, and the recruitment of new ones, is therefore high on the agenda.
But perhaps, even more critical than this is the need to recruit more Trustees, particularly as Chris Butterfield and I step down in March 2023, Chris after more than a decade as a trustee.Thank you Chris.
The Federation is also in need of members to sit on its sub-committees and to take on Federation roles. Positions that need filling include the Chairmen of Events, Leisure and Fundraising and the Home Economics, Craft and Gardening sub-committees, although they are currently being most ably run by Lynne Simpkins and Meriel Sexton — thank you.
We are also seeking a Federation e-newsletter Editor and people to train as Independent Financial Examiners. Expressions of interest are most welcome! This lack of volunteers is not I believe an indicator of apathy, but often of illness, encroaching years, work commitments and family and caring responsibilities.
A second challenge is the lack of participation of members in Federation organised events and workshops. Look around you. In the past we have filled this 700-seater hall. Today we have only 250 members here, the balcony is closed and the aisles have been widened in a bid to create a more intimate environment.
But why? Today we have an excellent and varied programme of speakers and performers chosen to reflect the range and scope of the WI objects covering education, campaigning, entertainment, and featuring a women, AJ, who has broken into a man’s world.
Why such a low attendance? Fear of Covid, cost in these turbulent financial times, distance, health, other calls on time or simply making up for lost time?
This is where you come in. Please let us have your ideas. Talk to a trustee or an adviser. Drop a message to the office. What do you think are the inhibitors to participation? Let us know what the Federation can offer you. We have an attractive and varied programme of events and workshops coming up — please will you spread the word?
I see the same issues emerging in charities and organisations that depend on volunteers across the county. Our current experience is not unique. Will this change? Can this change?
The objects of the WI: education, sustainable development and advancing health through campaigning and local engagement in our communities, within a welcoming environment of friendship and fun, puts the WI in a unique position. No other women’s organisation can claim the WI’s heritage and the legacy it leaves behind.
The WI speaks on behalf of women, about the issues that uniquely affect them, and consequently has the ability to make a real and positive difference to the lives of women.
Today we may be relatively few in number, but we are big on influence. We have a voice, an enthusiasm and I venture to say the passion to inspire others.
When you go home, celebrate and share your experience, motivate fellow members to get involved and take an active part. Be visible in your community, sing the praises of the WI wherever you go. The future of the WI is in our hands. Together we can make a difference, we are women, we are the WI, we are the inspired!

Carol A. Gartrell
Federation Chairman

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CAROL’S COLUMN: LAUGHTER, TEARS AND JOY

Yesterday was our Autumn Federation Meeting and what a joy-filled day it was.
Who would have thought that a programme of Forest School antics, the ‘Walk the Walk’ Moonwalk Charity challenge, the Burlesque Bombshells Troupe, a Yeoman Warder and Surrey Serenaders could have filled the hall with so much emotion and laughter, even to the point of tears?
Whether or not you were aware of it, there was a message that underpinned the whole day: that if you accept a challenge, follow a dream, find your hand in the air, the world will offer you rewards and opportunities that will not only change your life but may have a significant and beneficial butterfly effect touching many. My mantra has always been to accept any opportunity that is offered to me for it is likely only to be made once in life. This has stood me in very good stead, so far.
What was it about yesterday that made it such an enjoyable day? For me it was seeing a room of women laughing together — infectious waves of laughter! If a member of your WI comes along to your next WI meeting with her coat buttoned up to her neck, be prepared for a surprise.
One member who had attended many meetings said that this was the best meeting she had ever been to, whilst another said that after two-and-a-half years of restrictions she “felt alive once more!” It really did feel like a party, a true celebration and seemed to anticipate the season we are approaching, of festivals and family, of food shared and traditions celebrated.
What will you do with your WI to celebrate the festive season? How will you celebrate with your family and friends? Are there any traditions that make your celebrations special or unique? We would love to hear.
My family celebrate Christmas. It lasts a day longer than most as my birthday is on Christmas Eve, hence my name — Carol. I wonder though, with the accession of King Charles III and our entry into the Carolean period, if Carol will become a popular name.
Mum was a little frustrated that, because I had kept her waiting for three weeks, my arrival meant that she was not allowed a Christmas lunch. How times have changed. Today she would be home and probably cooking it.
Traditions
Our Christmas is never without Great Grandma’s George VI sixpences being slipped into the Christmas pudding, supposedly unseen, but it never happens quite like that. And the matchstick-style Father Christmas who sat astride Mum’s Christmas tree at rather a jaunty angle. He now travels to wherever the family Christmas is, and we take turns to hide him for the children to find. My biggest challenge is finding him from one year to the next and doing the running repairs!
We as WI members must share many common traditions. Do you make your Christmas pudding and cake on ‘Stir-up Sunday’ with family members, stirring the mixture and making a wish? We do, but it’s always prompted by The Archers. I use the NFWI’s Centenary Fruit Cake recipe, it’s brilliant!*
Items that have also become a crucial part of my Christmas preparations are Betty Dominy’s tomato and red pepper chutney and Beryl Havers’ folded fabric stars. Both were learnt at Surrey Federation workshops and will grace anyone’s Christmas.
Do you decorate your house? I do but I had never really thought about the significance of bringing greenery into the house other than it looks lovely and smells wonderful.
The Druids, Celts and Romans believed that the ability of evergreen trees to keep their leaves was magical and held the promise that spring would return. Holly was subsequently adopted as a Christian symbol, with the berries representing Christ’s blood and the evergreen leaves as a metaphor for life after death.
The significance of mistletoe, although having similar pagan origins, has very different connotations. Revered by the Romans as a symbol of peace, love and understanding, the berries were believed also to be a symbol of fertility. Men were required to kiss the one they loved under the mistletoe to cement their relationship. In doing this it also protected them from witches and demons. Be careful who you kiss under the mistletoe!
This year I will have to cast my search more widely for greenery as the local forest that I have harvested my holly and ivy from for years has been felled to make way for new housing, whilst the brownfield site next to it is being flattened and planted with trees. Such appears to be the wisdom of the planners.
As you enjoy your celebrations this year, take a little time to think why we celebrate our festivals, beyond the razzamatazz. It is ultimately a time for family and friends to come together, something we missed desperately during Covid, and it’s never too late to create memories and instigate a new family tradition. Whatever festival you celebrate this year, do it with joy, something that has been in such short supply. Make it a season to remember for all that are important to you. Happy Christmas.

Carol A. Gartrell
Federation Chairman

*For the recipe go https://www.thewi.org.uk and put “Centenary Fruit Cake” in the search box.

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