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After the summer break, we were pleased to meet up with old friends and it was nice to see some new faces too. We have had two excellent speakers so far. Margaret Bullock shared her experience of a trek along the Great Wall of China. Her graphic pictures and descriptions left us in awe of her achievement. Jolyon Maclaine came back to give us part 2 of his life as a helicopter pilot. Jolyon worked in Oman, where conditions and climate were often extreme. He then spent six years in the Midlands as a pilot for the Police Support helicopters. Our future programme is packed with interesting speakers.
This week six members went to the Autumn Council Meeting in Stafford. The hall was full of WI ladies who had come to hear Michael Portillo. He did not disappoint. It was a special event for us because our W.I. Quiz Team received the Knighton Shield for winning the annual quiz in February, and Elaine Toon received the Helen Clayton Trophy as joint winner of the baking competition. During the summer months we carried on with our Centenary Challenges. We had tea on a steam train in Derbyshire, we visited cafés, other WI meetings, watered sunflowers and filled matchboxes. Helen Barnett arranged a Group Walk around Rolleston and we met our challenge of 100 miles between us. Since the last Rollestonian, we have hosted a coffee morning to raise money for a school bench.
Many of our members helped with the Gala and entered various exhibits. We would like to thank Sue Fraser for organising the schedule and finding the judges and stewards over the years. We will be having a Scrabble Competition soon and our Art Group is thriving. Our Christmas meal is booked for The Winery and we will once again be enjoying our own Christmas Party. Our weekend away will be in sunny Manchester on 20th/21st February. This is always good fun. Thinking about Christmas, we would like you to come along to our Christmas Fair at 2pm on Saturday 21st November in Rolleston Club. There will be presents to buy, games to play and tea and cake. You may be able to buy some decorations and the children can see Father Christmas. On Saturday morning, 30th January, we will be holding a Coffee Morning at Rolleston Club. Our aim is to support one of our young people who is doing a World Challenge expedition and needs to raise funds. Please put the date in your diary and come along. The WI has had a fantastic Centenary year. Our ladies have supported causes, faced challenges and cared for fellow members when needed. If you would like to see what we are like, please come along to one of our meetings at the John of Rolleston School at 7.15 pm on the first Monday of the month.
You can ring the secretary on 530824 for details or look on the village noticeboard. You will be very welcome.
The National Federation of W.I.s is celebrating its Centenary this year and “one hundred” has been featuring in our own programme in Rolleston.
During a lovely week in early June, Verity Conner and Helen Barnett had the honour of representing us at the Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace. They looked splendid in their summer dresses and hats. We also dressed up and watched the W.I. AGM which was being screened at Rolleston Club. We had a wonderful buffet, a toast to the W.I. and enjoyed the proceedings with our friends. The celebrations continued into July with a group tea at the Scout HQ. Our speaker was Karen van Hoff, who makes contemporary jewellery. She has had an interesting and eventful life and shared many amusing anecdotes with us. The Centenary theme continues through the summer. Sue Willmot has devised some cunning challenges to keep us on our toes. We collected bras for recycling and hope to visit 100 cafés and tearooms. There will be a Group Meeting in October when we will be marking the 600th Anniversary of Agincourt and on Saturday 24th October there will be a coffee morning at the Club to raise money for a local project. Please come and support us.
In May we held the Cath Gamble Plate competition for craft work. There were a good number of entries and the winner was the talented Annette Styne who won the crochet and the bookmark class. The summer was slow to get going but we have taken advantage of a few good days. We visited a NGS garden in Uttoxeter, the Tower Brewery and a Vineyard in Linton, where we sat under a gazebo in the sunshine, sipping wine and eating our picnic. Bliss! We will be sponsoring the cookery section at the Gala so we hope to have lots of entries. We plan to have tea on a train and visit the theatre before too long. We have enjoyed various speakers, including John Sterling who runs a donkey sanctuary He was a child actor and is well acquainted with celebrities and has even met the Queen.
If you are looking for an evening of interest and companionship, please come along to one of our meetings. We next meet on 7th September at 7.15pm at the primary school. Please ring the secretary on 530824 or look at the village noticeboard for details.
Jen Phillips
Our Annual Meeting in March sees the beginning of a new season at Rolleston W.I. Our committee was re-elected and Sue Fraser was voted back as President. The National Federation is celebrating its Centenary this year and we are not far behind with eighty years under our belt! We had an Anniversary Meeting in February. A fish and chip supper was followed by Carol Swift’s excellent cake, ceremoniously cut by Elsie Wraight, our oldest member. Richard Stone talked about the River Trent and the Barbara Reynolds Plate for knitting was won by Barbara Woolley. We formalised the birthday by a dinner at the Dovecliff Hall Hotel attended by our new County Chairman. There will be a special W.I. Garden Party in June at Buckingham Palace and Verity Conner will be representing us. That week the AGM is being streamed live from the Royal Albert Hall and we should be able to view it in Rolleston Club.
Our Quiz Team marked our special year by winning the Knighton Challenge Shield at Stafford Showground. Our second team came 6th out of 98 entries. Well done to both teams. Several members went to the Spring Council Meeting where we were presented with our 80th Certificate and Pat Edwards and Barbara Woolley got theirs for 50 years of membership - a fantastic achievement.
Our weekend away in Liverpool was enjoyed by all; lots to do and a lovely hotel plus an unscripted guided tour by Kevin Murphy. We have several outings planned for the summer: a picnic supper, a garden visit, a tour of a brewery, a trip to the theatre, tea on the train and a day at the W.I. Centenary Fair in Harrogate.
Our members love cooking and craft. We are making cakes for St Giles and practising our crochet, sewing and drawing for the Cath Gamble Plate in May.
Our new programme of speakers promises to have a variety of topics to suit everyone. If you would like to come as a visitor to a meeting on the first Monday of the month you will be very welcome.
Ring the Secretary on 530824 or look on the village noticeboard for details.
Jen Phillips
As you read this, Christmas seems a long way away but at Rolleston WI we did enjoy the festive season. The Christmas Fair at the Club was well attended and Santa arrived early. Thank you to everyone who supported us. Our speaker in December was Barbara Marshall who showed us how to make inexpensive decorations and gifts from recycled materials. We enjoyed mince pies and wine and finished by singing carols, accompanied by Nick Willmot and made a collection for St. Giles. Our Christmas Party was a home grown affair. The Lively Girls came back by popular invitation and we enjoyed our own catering and games including table decorations adorned with, guess what, recycled materials.
Members have been to see a production of Jersey Boys, and others went to the
Nutcracker Mansion at Tatton Hall.
We have had one meeting this year and our speaker was John Redfern. John has
researched the leisure pursuits of local people a hundred years ago including
dances, theatre, parades, an air show and even a visit by Buffalo Bill. We have
lots of interesting subjects on our new programme, including talks on the River
Trent and the W.I. at War.
We will be holding a coffee morning at the Club on the 24th January in support of local Guides who are aiming for the Queen’s Guide Award. In February we will be entering the W.I. Quiz in Stafford. Many of us will be off to Liverpool at the end of February to stay at the Radisson Hotel for the weekend.
It is our W.I.s 80th Anniversary in February. Our First Meeting took place in Rolleston Club and we are marking it by a Birthday Dinner at the Dovecliff Hotel, with special guests and transport home. This year marks the National Centenary of the W.I. so we are in good company.
At our next meeting on 2nd February we will be awarding the Barbara Reynolds Plate for knitting. All the tiny vests will be donated to a charity and we may have one of Barbara’s daughters to judge them.
If you are interested in visiting our W.I. please come along to any meeting at the John of Rolleston School, Chapel Lane, on the first Monday of the month at 7.15pm. Details of each meeting can be found on the village noticeboard or ring the secretary on 530824.
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Last updated: 30 December 2015