Lymington WI

Between meetings we enjoy Crafts, Darts, Drama, Reading, Skittles, Socialising and Walking.

We continue with our lively meetings and sub meetings, keeping ourselves fit and our brains updated! So if you think you would like to come along and join our WI, you would be very welcome.

If you would like more information about the Lymington WI just email: lymwi2@gmail.com or pop along to one of our monthly meetings, visitors area very welcome.

Lymington WI Beach and Cliff Top Clean at Hordle Cliff

Following on from the Women’s Institute National Federation Resolution to stop plastic soup in our seas, on Saturday 7^th April from 10.00am to 12.00 noon a group of around 100 enthusiastic people comprising a band of Lymington WI members and  the general public met for a Beach and Cliff Top Clean at Hordle Cliff, just west of Milford-on-Sea.

The event took place on a blustery dry morning and was undertaken in co-operation with the Marine Conservation Society.  NFDC provided rubbish sacks, pickers and high visibility volunteer vests.

MP Sir Desmond Swayne came along to lend a hand, collecting rubbish on the beach including a traffic cone!

President Joan Horton-Fawkes made her beach hut the HQ for the morning from where tea/coffee and rock cakes were served to the eager volunteers. Sarah Bunce a Boldre WI member also made her beach hut available with refreshments.

Over 20 bags of rubbish were collected, full of plastic debris including bottles, bottle lids, rope, fishing netting, plus small detritus easily swallowed by fish.  Items too large for the rubbish sacks included several broken beach umbrellas, long lengths of metal and two car tyres!

The morning concluded with a gathering together of all the rubbish sacks and other items which made for a considerable mound, to be collected later in the day by NFDC.

The event took a great deal of planning and proved extremely worthwhile.

MP Desmond Swayne helping

Ending Plastic Soup

On Saturday 17^th February from 10.00am to 12 noon, in response to the national resolution to end plastic soup, Lymington WI held a table top display in the foyer of M&S Lymington. The event was registered with the Marine Conservation Society whose literature was used to raise awareness of the issue and the huge problem we face. Local MP Sir Desmond Swayne came along to lend his support, Lymington Times attended and members of the public showed great interest in the microplastic fibres issue and how we can all help address this problem.

The table top display is to be followed by a Beach and Cliff Top Clean event at Hordle Cliff (west of Milford-on-Sea) on Saturday 7^th April from 10.00am to 12 noon, again supported by the marine Conservation Society. The event is open to all, many hands will make light work, New Forest District Council will provide plastic gloves, bags, some grabbers and will collect rubbish later. The WI banner will be flying from Joan Horton-Fawkes’s beach hut between the steps, which will be HQ for the day on the sea front serving tea/coffee and rock cakes.

Day trip to the Bombay Sapphire Distillery Laverstoke 2017

 On Wednesday 22^nd November 2017 twenty two enthusiastic members boarded the 8.45am coach from Lymington to the Bombay Sapphire Distillery in Laverstoke. On arrival we enjoyed hot drinks served in the Mandydown cafe, a converted green and white double decker bus in the grounds of the Laverstoke Mill site.

Our tour of the Distillery began in the Laverstoke Mill Heritage Room displaying the history of the site. Following our very informative guide we moved on to the Botanical Dry Room and Dakin Still House where the exotic botanicals meet the spirit and the London Dry Gins are made within the historical Dakin Stills. It was fascinating to sample the aromas of the botanicals and make choices for our later gin cocktail tasting. The magnificent Botanical Glasshouses hold examples of the live growing botanicals and the stunning arched glass architecture was appreciated by all. Although a chilly day it was a pleasure to view the River Test up close and witness its crystal clear waters, being one of the purest chalk streams in England. From the nearby court yard we saw India House, built in 1916 to make banknotes for the Bank of India, now used to house two large Vapour infusion stills. We enjoyed browsing in the Gallery where over 250 years of distilling Gin are celebrated.

We gathered around the Christmas Tree outside the pretty flint covered old workers cottages for a group photograph before going into the Mill Bar to be served with our complimentary finely crafted cocktails to suit our individual tastes.The trip concluded with a visit to the Gin Shop where we could purchase Bombay Spirits, cocktail making equipment and various books about the Distillery.

The journey home was trouble free until we reached the traffic lights in Lyndhurst when there was a loud bang and the coach driver carefully manoeuvred the coach into the car park, where he discovered that we had a serious puncture. There followed several phone calls to family and friends at home in Lymington to rescue the party of twenty two ladies! A fantastic and fascinating day was really had by all.

Christmas Lunch 2017

On Wednesday 5^th December 48 members enjoyed a delicious lunch at Passford House Hotel, where the log fires and Christmas decorations created a cosy festive atmosphere on a cold winter’s day. The meal was accompanied by much chatter and laughter as members caught up on each other’s news and the events of 2017. The chefs were roundly applauded by the members for the wonderful meal they had produced.

Festive Food: The Lymington WI Christmas Tree 2017!

Craft Group members guided by Pat Hooper, made a variety of festive food decorations to adorn the Lymington WI Christmas Tree. These included felt and knitted Christmas Puddings, Mince Pies, Ginger Bread Men, Sugar Mice, Battenberg Cakes and a range of vegetables including Sprouts!. This was one of the trees decorated for the St Thomas’s Church Christmas Tree Festival to raise funds for various organisations. The trees were available to view by the public from 8th December to 12^th December.

Lymington WI at the Lymington Town Carnival 2017

The July Lymington Carnival day dawned dry and warm as the twelve ladies from the WI gathered at the start of the procession. The theme of the carnival was Musicals and we chose Mary Poppins as our WI theme. Two members carried the Lymington WI banner and ten ladies dressed splendidly as Mary Poppins walked behind, wearing stunning white pinafores, red bow ties, hats accessorised with cherries and carrying wooden handled black umbrellas with the WI logo proudly emblazoned on them. Members took it in turns to push the “Mary Poppins Nanny Agency” pram which contained the CD player playing songs from the musical. Buckets were shaken at the happy crowds lining the streets and money collected for the Rotary Club Town Charity. A lively procession through the streets enabled us to celebrate our busy WI Group and a fun morning was had by all!

Walking Group

Meets the third Wednesday of the month in the morning.

Lymington Summer Spectacular 2016

Sunshine and a great crowd made for a fun and successful WI stall at the Lymington Summer Spectacular 2016. Members had excelled in their cake baking and making creative craft products, which filled the stall at the start of the day and were quickly snapped up by those attending the event.

Sparkling Strawberry Clotted Cream Tea

On 17th August 2016 members gathered in the garden of Joan Horton-Fawkes President of Lymington WI, to enjoy a Sparkling Strawberry Clotted Cream Tea. The glorious sunshine made for a relaxing and fun afternoon as members enjoyed strawberries, cheese biscuits and Prosecco, followed by sandwiches, scones with jam and clotted cream and slices of delicious cakes, with plenty of tea to drink. Many members had dressed up their hats for the occasion and the prize for the best hat went to a wonderful beach themed creation sporting a crab and a seagull ! The event included a free raffle with great prizes and concluded with an amusing brain teasing crossword competition, altogether a lovely August afternoon.

A Creative Christmas Workshop Afternoon  

Members past and present met for a creative festive event in Lymington. The atmosphere was relaxed and fun as members shared their craft and floral skills in a variety of workshops running throughout the afternoon. These included Christmas floral table arranging, miniature Christmas tree making by folding a paper back book or small catalogue, Christmas tree decorations made from buttons, napkin folding for the festive tables and Lymington WI Christmas Tarts baking. Participants enjoyed sampling the delicious tarts along with a refreshing fruit punch. The creative activities were accompanied by much conversation and laughter, making it a very happy festive occasion. Members left for home carrying their varied creations and with new seasonal ideas.

Jam and Jerusalem: The Lymington WI Christmas Tree!

Craft Group members guided by Veronica Powell, made a variety of festive decorations to adorn the Lymington WI Christmas Tree. These included tiny jars of home made jam and sweets, felt beaded baubles, snowmen and Christmas puddings. This was one of the trees decorated for the St Thomas’s Church Christmas Tree Festival to raise funds for the Church Cupola Renovation Fund. The trees were available to view by the public from 9th December to 13^th December. Money raised from auctioning the trees will go towards the Cupola Appeal.

At our meeting on 12th April 2017 we celebrated our 32nd birthday with a magnificent selection of splendid cakes, sherry, prosecco, tea and coffee. Our newest member Lynne cut our birthday cake and the morning was enjoyed by all.

The Life of a Correspondent

At the 24^th March 2017 Spring Lymington Group WI Meeting, over 100 ladies gathered at Lymington Community Centre to hear Kate Adie talk about her life and career as a correspondent in journalism and broadcasting. Joan Horton-Fawkes President of Lymington WI introduced Kate as someone all of us had heard in our homes over so many years. You could indeed have heard a pin drop as she spoke in her distinctly recognisable voice so familiar to us all, with humour for an hour. She explained that she is a member of Cerne Abbas WI and finds the WI relevant, alive and enormously respected with its up to date resolutions. She recalled how the hymn “Jerusalem” had the alternative title of the “Womens Suffrage” hymn.

Kate reminded us that with the end of World War 2 working women were being replaced by men returning from the war, so career aspirations for women were very limited at that time. With the support of her headmistress Kate studied Swedish and Old Icelandic at Durham University and after graduating began her career in Durham local radio a new venture for the BBC. As a Weerside girl she quickly learned her biggest lesson in being a correspondent is that the audience have interesting lives, that they know and care about things which make for the richest source of topics for broadcasting. The radio station tried out all sorts of new things with varying success including using a radio car and “phone ins” and one night unbeknown to Kate, her mother phoned in and at the end of the conversation asked her on air what she would like for dinner!

From radio she went into regional TV in Plymouth and then Southampton working there just before the Equal Pay Act. She was one of the first women to enter these new professions and frequently needed to reinforce her equal status amongst the men she worked with, explaining to us that that there was often an automatic relegation of women to the roles of “maids” despite their new professional status.

From regional TV Kate joined national television at the London National Newsroom and became a worldwide correspondent. She told us that news is “the unexpected” so broadcasters have to send the reporter available at that time with often no choice of who it will be. Kate’s definition of a reporter is” an eye witness on the ground” so her career involved lots of travel because places with news often did not have television broadcasting departments. Getting the facts was not easy when people were shocked scared and angry. Kate emphasised that there is no such thing as a “war zone”, as the effects of war ripple outwards with no boundaries and involves everyone. She explained that she needed to approach people carefully, ask what happened and listen and verify the facts. She did not seek out the War Lords and Big Wigs as they have their own agendas, she found ordinary people to tell her what was happening, trying to get as near to the truth as possible. When they first filmed news situations there was often nowhere to develop the film and so complete strangers were approached at the airport and used to volunteer to take the film with them on their flight back to the UK and the BBC would send someone to their home to collect it! When video came along she could then say “tonight this happened” as it was transmitted in real time down the phone lines.

Kate recalled being sent to Saudi Arabia to cover the first Gulf War and as the only woman amongst tens of thousands of men ensuring she did not “whinge” about the poor conditions and facilities. She made us roar with laughter recounting how she convinced General Sir Peter de la Billière, Commander-in-Chief of the Gulf British Forces, that if she was captured by the Iraqis with the satellite dish, she would tell them she was a cook and the satellite dish was her wok; he duly gave her permission to use the dish for broadcasting!!

She described herself as an optimist and that in her experience even in the worst of circumstances people are kind and give you information and make jokes. She recounted a very moving story of how after the 1988 Armenian earthquake, an elderly lady caring for her husband and two children in a scene of total devastation, offered to share with Kate and her cameraman the meagre meal she had prepared. Similarly reporting from the1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, it was the ordinary local Chinese people who took care of her and her team, hiding them from the authorities, at great risk to themselves.

 Kate explained that with the coming of 24 hour news, journalism is now a presentational type of job inevitably involving repetition, speculation and opinions, rather than just new factual information. She reminded us that journalists often put themselves in great danger and this is exacerbated by the availability of alcohol and drugs to people with guns. Also that many journalists are killed doing their jobs and the most frequent cause of their deaths is being killed by their own governments.

A vote of thanks to Kate for her inspiring and interesting talk was given by South Baddesley WI, who remarked that we were fortunate to have Kate talking to us after she avoided Vikings and chemical warfare!

Kate’s speakers fee and expenses were all donated to “Footprints” Kate’s chosen charity which mentors ex-offenders when they leave prison, helping to reduce reoffending.

Kate’s talk was followed by a fabulous afternoon tea which was enjoyed by all.