The February meeting had been our 100th Birthday Party with a 1920’s theme but this month, in a very crowded village hall, we heard the usual business and the competition results were announced, with a trophy and cash given as prizes. We are looking forward to the theatre trip in April and Quedgeley WI will be hosting the Group Party in August and the theme will again be the 1920s.

Our speaker was Chris Edwards with his talk and slides on the history of the RNLI. So many people had been losing their lives to the sea and rivers and the idea of a rescue organisation began in 1824. The first lifeboats were rowed by the crew and launched into the sea by a team of horses, very different from the sleek and speedy boats that are used today. There are 5,200 volunteers who all give their time and risk their lives for no payment. The RNLI have their Headquarters and a Training College overlooking Poole Harbour which acts as a Conference and Events Centre with hotel rooms for anyone to use when they are in the area. The talk ended with a short film showing how the many boats are used and the different situations when the RNLI rescues and helps anyone who needs it. The speaker did not charge a fee so many donations were given towards this very worthy cause. Next month will be a talk on Fraud Awareness and if anyone would like to come along to this or any other meetings they will be made very welcome.