WIZO UK Group Event News

Longstanding Scottish WIZO personality Jennifer Speculand was unable to attend the Rebecca Sieff Day event in London to receive her Woman of Worth Award, recognising outstanding service and commitment to the charity. But she was belatedly presented with her hugely-merited accolade at a tea she hosted in July for her Glasgow Western WIZO group to celebrate member Colleen Harrison’s 95^th birthday.

Jennifer’s WIZO involvement spans a staggering 75-plus years. It was in 1948 that the then seven-year-old wrote postcards to Glasgow Western supporters promoting upcoming activities.

Having served as Glasgow’s first Aviv co-chair, she went on to lead Western WIZO and regularly visits WIZO projects in Israel. Jennifer’s granddaughter has a social work degree from Haifa University, based on the pioneering early work of WIZO and as was mentioned at the birthday tea, her granddaughter has been volunteering at a WIZO house in Sderot.

The event raised £200 but fundraising is ongoing!

In July, PWL WIZO enjoyed perfect weather for its summer tea, held at the home of Pat Jacobs. The 30 guests included Brenda Hyman, who many years ago, was Honorary Secretary to Brenda Katten, the former WIZO UK chair. Including the proceeds of a raffle, the tea raised £550

June was a productive WIZO month in Yorkshire as Leeds Women Leading the Way and Leeds Aviva WIZO both staged successful activities.

A full house at Leeds Women Leading the Way heard Juliet Shenderey’s inspiring story of overcoming challenges to establish and develop her Shenderey Events business, whose clientele covers the entertainment, corporate, charity and private sectors. Juliet spoke with great humour and offered lots of useful advice.

Guests also had the opportunity to discover their personality type through an interactive test and hopefully now feel more confident to make life changes that take them out of their comfort zone. The meeting raised £250 but, more importantly, advanced this growing  group of women who are keen to attend events and learn more about WIZO.

There was a fashionable flavour to Leeds Aviva WIZO’s coffee morning as Annabel Shaw Creations displayed some wonderful bags and scarves. Jackie Bush was the host and Hilary Jackson and Gill Caplin the guests of honour. £1800 was raised.

In London, a hot ticket was the midsummer lunch held by Southgate WIZO with TV presenter and campaigner against antisemitism Rachel Riley as guest speaker in conversation with Marilyn Brimmer.

The lunch was held in memory of Shirley Levinson – a long-time dedicated and much loved supporter of WIZO – and the proceeds will benefit the charity’s Legacy Garden in Beit Hakerem, Jerusalem, a cause that was close to Shirley’s heart.

Newcastle WIZO Cabaret Afternoon Tea

Summery orange roses in China teapots adorned the tables for the Newcastle WIZO Cabaret Afternoon Tea, held on a sunny Sunday afternoon in late June. As guests took their places and chatted with old friends, vintage professional singer Claire Louise dressed in ‘50’s-style frock took to the stage in readiness for her set.

Covering a wide range of musical eras from ‘20’s to 40’s and beyond, Claire performed familiar songs ranging from the music-hall classic My Old Man to wartime favourites such as Pack up Your Troubles and Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, whilst the audience listened intently, clapped along or joined in the chorus.

Then tea was served, platter after platter of miniature bridge-rolls with delicious toppings, tiny cakes of all varieties and slices of kuchen appeared as if by magic, although of course they were the result of much hard work by the Newcastle WIZO Collective team. As you would expect at such a gathering, the atmosphere of convivial chatter and general enjoyment soon filled the room.

The second half of Claire Louise’s set moved into the era of Swing and the 60’s and 70’s, with well-known hits such as Mac the Knife, Downtown and Que Sera, Sera. This took most back to their youth (or at least, younger days), and with many in the audience singing or clapping along, the entertainment ended on a high note.

Newcastle WIZO event coordinator, Sue Doberman, welcomed Guest Opener Adrienne Ross and thanked her for all her years of WIZO support. She also thanked the team and helpers at the event, the generous sponsors, NRS for hosting the event, and finally Stuart Young for donating all the delicious cakes.

There have been very few Newcastle WIZO events in recent years as the community has diminished, but the team had worked very hard over many weeks to ensure that the event was a great success. The magnificent sum of £2,000 was raised for WIZO’s emergency appeal at this hugely enjoyable and entertaining afternoon.