Ladies Circle

Shopping, wild animals, delicious food and wine in splendid surroundings – this was the experience encountered by over 70 Circlers past and present, when they gathered in the beautiful, high-ceilinged splendour of the historical Winchester Guildhall to enjoy the annually-held South East Area Luncheon.

The hosting Circle Area this year was Area 7 consisting of Winchester Circle and Cowes Circle. They were very honoured by the presence of the National President of Ladies Circle, Great Britain and Ireland, Niki Stocken. Niki spoke of the exciting growth in Circle numbers this year and the jam-packed year she has had as National President while still working full-time. Kate Jones, National Secretary and Vicky Perry, Media and PR also attended the event.

The Luncheon’s Master of Ceremonies was the William Martin, a previous Chairman of Winchester’s Round Table and now a 41-Club member. There was much laughter as he recited the first verse of ‘The Gnu Song’ by Flanders and Swann as part of his introduction to the speaker, Mr James Cretney, Chief Executive of Marwell Wildlife. Mr Cretney took his audience through a fascinating and thought-provoking journey around the conservation areas that Marwell Wildlife undertakes not just in the south of England but also with its partnerships in Tunisia, Kenya, Zimbabwe and the Sahara Desert.

Sandra Doig from Cowes Circle on the Isle of Wight, is the Chair of Area 7. She thanked the organisers of the event, Donna Brien, Audrey Gordon and Roz Webb from Winchester Circle for their hard work in organizing the event. Not only had they planned the luncheon, but they had also organized a charity gift fair of over 20 different stalls that day which was open to Circlers and members of the public. A percentage of the sales, along with the proceeds of the raffle went to the National President’s Charity of the year, the Meningitis Research Foundation, and also Cancer Research UK, with which Circle has been associated for many years. Over £600 was raised during the course of the day for these charities.

The event was a wonderful way of showcasing Circle’s motto of Fun, Friendship and Fund-raising, and if you are a young woman between 18 and 45 and are interested in finding out more, please visit your local Ladies Circle website or find out more from www.ladies-circle.org.uk 

Sunita Martin
Membership & Publicity
Winchester & District Ladies Circle No 18