Weren't they great?

A not-very-good photograph of our actresses who performed at our Annual Council Meeting in Cheltenham Town Hall yesterday. Jennie and Co enlightened many with their dramatised reading and I heard many favourable comments about their performance of "History and Mystery" from members in the audience.

What should they do now? Would you like them to perform at your group meeting? Would you like to be able to have the script so that you can perform it yourselves? Let me know and we will see what we can do!

So many thoughts and ideas spinning in my head as a result of such excellent speakers, too.

A very special occasion indeed

Last night was the birthday celebrations of our oldest WI, as Fairford celebrated their 90th birthday with a party in the Palmer Hall. Fairford WI was opened on the 3rd March, 1917, when Madge Watt was present and a gentleman chaired the meeting.

How times change!

90 years later, the gentlemen were helping in the kitchen and the (lady) Mayor of Fairford, Christine, joined in the celebrations too. There was a splendid cake to cut, scrapbooks to peruse and many memories to share. Of course, we stood for Jerusalem - a fitting end to a wonderful occasion.

All congratulations to Fairford WI on such a magnificent achievement!

Leckhampton WI 60th birthday lunch

What a splendid time we had at the Renaissance restaurant in Cheltenham, when Margaret (Clarke) and I were delighted to share Leckhampton WI's celebration of their 60th birthday. Lunch was delicious and it was almost 3pm when we left! President Anne (above) gave everyone food for thought too, as she reminded us of our responsibilities towards the women who started that WI in the immediate post-war years, who worked so hard to establish strong foundations for this WI which continues to thrive.

Women of Importance

We have always recognised the importance of our Presidents in Gloucestershire Federation, and thought it was time to invite them to a day at our college. The programme for the day included an inspiring workshop with Joy Greasley and some fun in the form of a belly dancing taster session with Denman tutor Bev Sabatini. Lots of chatter, plenty of time to network and to get to know one another - even those who were new to the role left feeling inspired and full of confidence!

About a third of our Presidents were able to join us on this occasion and we are committed to at least two further days to accommodate those who were unable to make it this time round. Thanks, Rosemary and Barbara for organising the event!