Our Chairman’s Message – December 2023

Here I am doing the last message of 2023 and the first of 2024 in the reign of a new monarch, King Charles the Third. Looking back, as I am sure many of you will in your own WIs, it has been quite a year. Many of you in Northumberland have celebrated significant birthdays and indeed six of you have celebrated your 100th year. Just a couple of weeks ago I went up to Hepple WI where they held a party to celebrate 85 years.
We are now approaching the final events of the year and I do hope to see many of you at the Service of Celebration at Newcastle Cathedral on 7 December and those who do attend will recognise one of the choir members that are going to sing for us as Federation Secretary, Nancy Gash is a member of Northern Praeclassica.
The Committees have been working hard putting together their programmes for 2024 and you can read about them in the rest of the Newsletter. There is also a proposed two night / three day trip to RHS Bridgewater in the North West arranged, stopping in five star accommodation at the Holiday Inn hotel Media City Manchester.
Those who attended the Annual Council Meeting in October will remember Moira Bengtson reminding members how much support and work is done by WI Advisers and asking WIs to do something in return by making a donation, no matter how small, towards the running of the Federation. We all know that a small home has a big appetite and our Federation “home” Cresswell House is no exception. As Moira mentioned the boiler has recently been replaced and many other things need doing and are on our maintenance schedule. I am delighted and indeed overwhelmed at your generous response with donations already received from Bardon Mill, Bellingham, Cramlington, Gosforth Central, Rochester, Seaton Valley, Shotley and South Gosforth. Thank you so much ladies and I can promise you that we will spend the money wisely on your behalf.
Still on the subject of thank yous and also of WI Advisers, many of you will now know that two of our Advisers are retiring and hanging up their metaphorical hats at the end of December. Jo Dickson trained with me several years ago and despite officially standing down a while ago she has continued to help the Membership Support team out for some time doing Annual Meetings when no other Adviser was available. She has now decided the time has come to really retire from the job and our thanks go to her for all the help and support that she has given to individual WIs and members over the years. This brings me to someone who needs no introduction to so many of you, especially those WIs in the northern part of our Federation, Prudence Marks, current Chairman of Membership Support, member of Eglingham WI and a former member of the Board of Trustees. She has been an Adviser for well over twenty years and has not only supported members and WIs but has been the go to person for help for all the other Advisers over the years. She has run training courses in public speaking which have helped many advisers over her years in office. She will be a huge miss especially in the north where she has more or less carried out all the Annual Meetings for some years now and I know that along with myself and all the Advisers she will leave a big void.
On behalf of all the members of Northumberland Federation I wish both Jo and Prudence a well earned retirement from Adviser duties.
It only remains for me to wish all of you, your families, friends and loved ones a wonderful and joyful Christmas period and a Happy, healthy and peaceful New Year wherever you and they are. See you in 2024.
Marj x