Doing good all over the world: What it's like to be a Soroptimist

This is what it means to be part of Soroptimist International according to members Trish Mellor and Jackie Prince.

They both belong to the Cannock & District branch of the global volunteer organisation, which is dedicated to improving the lives of women and girls.

From collecting books for children to raising awareness of domestic violence, the club works on projects that benefit their local community and also those further afield.

Founded in 1921, Soroptimist International has a network of around 72,000 club members in 121 countries who work to educate, empower and enable opportunities for women and girls.

Trish has been a member of SI Cannock for 23 years but she admits she didn't know anything about Soroptimists before she attended her first meeting.

"Somebody invited me to a meeting and I went there to find out what it was about. It's women helping women and it's got a quite a reach. It's not just doing things locally, you can also reach others globally. I knew it was something I wanted to be part of," she explains.

Since then has undertaken a range of executive roles including president and vice president for the club.

Jackie, who was club president in 2021/22, joined SI Cannock six years ago after moving from Tipton to Cannock.

"I was working full-time for West Midlands Police. Everybody I knew here in Cannock were friends of my husband's. I decided to take early retirement but before that I realised I needed to build a network of friends locally rather than just having my friends back in Tipton.

"I was reading the Chronicle and there was a story about Soroptimists. I wanted to find something where I could make a difference like I had done in my previous job.

"I went along to a couple of meetings and it was exactly what I wanted. I could make friends and I could make a difference to women and girls in our local community and the wider community," she tells Weekend.

The club currently has 31 members who meet every two to three weeks for business meetings, speaker meetings and events.

Alongside these official get-togethers, they will be working on different projects to serve the community, raising awareness of important issues and lobbying.

"We make sure that every club member can be involved in the way they want to be involved or are able to be involved," says Trish.

The club has recently been involved in the annual international campaign - 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence. They 'adopted’ a tree - courtesy of local businessman Fred Pritchard - in Cannock Town Centre outside the Whitehouse, High Green.

The tree was swathed in orange - the colour that symbolises 'a brighter future, free of violence' - and decorated with ribbons and hearts that contained messages of encouragement and support.

Members also filled storyboards in Hednesford Park with information about the campaign together with where to get help and advice.

Trish said they hoped the tree would provide comfort and inspiration to anyone who needed it. "Someone who is need of some help could stop and look at the tree, see the messages and know where they could get that help."

Another project that they are particularly proud of is Your Body, Your Rules, which was launched in five local schools.

The anti-sexting project aimed to raise awareness of the risks, both legal and emotional, of sending naked or near naked images.

The club ran training sessions for year 11 and 12 pupils who were encouraged to become ambassadors and share the information with their peers.

Your Body, Your Rules won the Soroptimists International Great Britain and Ireland (SIGBI) Programme Award for Best Practice in the Field of Education at the annual conference in Liverpool.

"One of the things we try to do is to be relevant and look at current issues," says Jackie.

The club has also played a part in helping Ukranian refugees who have found a home in the district to feel welcome

Families living with hosts in the area have been invited to attend weekly coffee mornings and, in partnership with Cannock Rotary Club, have received practical support to make them feel more comfortable and secure.

"It gives them the chance to meet with each other, because they wouldn't have known each other before they came here, and they can talk in their own language," explains Trish.

In recent months they have also supported Rotary Books4Home which brings the joy of reading to children who do not have books of their own at home.

They launched an appeal for pre-loved books to be taken to four libraries in the area that kindly accepted them on their behalf.

More than 1,880 were taken to to the Books4Homes charity where they will be distributed via schools to children in time for Christmas.

And to mark World Food Day in October, Cannock Soroptimists organised a collection of non-perishable food items to be donated to the Cannock Food Bank.

Future projects will focus on women's safety after they carried out a survey to find out how safe women in the district feel when out and about.

Both Trish and Jackie say being a Soroptimist is very rewarding and they enjoy working alongside like-minded women.

"What I love is the sisterhood," says Jackie. "I find it so inspiring and I feel supported there."

"It's the power of women working together," says Trish. "When somebody brings an issue to the club, the response is: 'what are we going to about it?', not 'should we do anything?'.

"We do, and have made, a difference to people's lives."

*To find out more about SI Cannock & District, visit the club’s website sigbi.org/cannock-and-district, their Facebook page facebook.com/SICannock; or email soropscannock@gmail.com.