June 2010 Newsletter

Hello and Welcome to our June newsletter. Hopefully we will be able to update you on anything you have missed over the last month or so.

June Meeting
We had a really positive and productive meeting this month

NFWI AGM at the CIA.
After welcoming the members to the meeting, Emma gave a report on the NFWI AGM which she attended as representative for our link WI’s. She was able to give very positive feedback. Lots of very interesting speakers,

Fundraising
We discussed the need to raise our funds and after some discussion it was agreed that we should use our September meeting to hold a social evening, inviting other WI’s members for a reasonable admission fee. We intend to spend some time at our July meeting discussing possible themes for the evening, and will hold the August meeting (against tradition) so that all members can be involved in finalising arrangements. Most WI’s have the tradition of arranging a summer trip in place of the August meeting, but under the circumstances, we are planning both meeting and day trip, details of the trip given on the last page

Raffle. Continuing on the theme of funding and costs, Emma explained that while we are still a small group, raffle prizes are likely to be quite small. We discussed the necessity for a raffle and decided it should continue from the fun aspect. This month’s raffle winner was Lynne Harris.

Competitions. Emma asked if members wanted to reinstate the monthly competitions that we have had in the past, either on the same theme or something different. There was very little interest and it was decided not to re-establish the competition at this time.

Our speaker - Jan Lewis gave us some very interesting information about hats and other headwear over the last century or so, including the falling interest in plastic rain hats. As she talked us through different periods of time, those of us old enough to remember fashions from 50’s and 60’s joined in with tales of the things we wore during that era – giving the younger members of our group lots to laugh about. Jan then gave us a treat by inviting us to try on the numerous hats she had brought with her, many quite glamourous. The information and the collection of hats was very impressive.

Supper Club
Six members enjoyed the supper club this month. Despite there being confusion resulting in a table not being booked, staff at Trattoria managed to find us a table even though they were extremely busy. As usual, good food at reasonable cost.

Reading Circle
The book for July meeting is “The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold. Reading circle starts at 6:30 and is likely to be restricted in time this month because of the Cheese and Wine evening at Morganstown being on the same evening.

And in General
Don’t forget this is your WI, so please feel free to let us know of any suggestions you might have for new groups, new activities you think we should try, and generally anything that you think might be of interest to your fellow members.

YAWI website.
All our newsletters are available on the website. Is there anything you want to catch up on, or was there are recipe that you fancied and forgot to save. It will be on the website. Any questions you have or any ideas you want to share, or any comments you want to make, try the web site. There is still work to be done on the website, but we are getting there slowly.


Report from the NFWI
Emma had a fantastic time at the NFWI which was held in the CIA in Cardiff. Thousands of ladies from across the UK were present and the atmosphere amazing. The NFWI had organised some great speakers including Lee Durrell (the wife of Gerald Durrell), Gwen Parry Jones (the first female director of a nuclear power station) and Tim Smit (founder of the Eden Project). There was a live link-up with John Bercow The Speaker of the House of Commons, who had crept out of Prime Minister’s Question Time to speak to the ladies and to top it all off they were serenaded by the dulcet tones of Welsh choir ‘Only Men Aloud’. Ruth Bond reported on the growth of the WI over the last 12 months (there are now approx. 207,000 members of the WI) with plans afoot to try and increase membership to 250,000 by 2015. Another interesting fact was that you will soon be able to buy WI cakes in your local supermarket! The WI have done a deal whereby they get royalities for each cake sold. Measures have been taken to ensure that all cakes are (nearly!) up to homemade WI standards. If you have any further questions about what went on at the NFWI please ask Emma and she wil be delighted to tell.
Next year’s NFWI will be in Liverpool and all members are welcome as observers for a small fee. Keep your eyes open for further information in the future.

Recipe for the Month

Quick and easy chicken receipe this months – sure no-ones wants to be spending time over a hot stove when they could be relaxing in the sunshine (hopefully)

Summer Traybake Chicken
Ingredients
4 Chicken Breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
250g cherry tomatoes
4 tablespoon pesto

Method
Put the chicken breasts in a large shallow roasting tray and drizzle with olive oil. Grill for 10 minutes then add cherry tomatoes and grill for another 5 minutes until chicken is cooked. Drizzle pesto over the top and serve.

Source: Good Food Magazine August 2006

Things to come.

Friday 18th June 2010 – Creigau WI Cheese and Wine Evening – Join our link WI’s for the evening.

Wedneday 23rd June 2010 – Reading Circle at 6:30 at Gelliwastad Road Club.
Morganstown Cheese and Wine evening 7:30

Thursday 4th July 2010 – Supper Club at La Trattoria, High Street, Pontypidd – 6:30.

Wednesday 14th July 2010 - July monthly meeting

Wendesday 28th July 2010 – Reading Group

Saturday 7th August 2010 – Cotswold Tour and Meal – see next sheet for full details.

Don’t forget
You can call Emma on 07762493928 or Erica on 01443 409959 if you want any information about any of the groups etc or if you have any ideas you want to run by them. Leave a message and they’ll get back to you if they can’t come to the phone when you call.

It’s your WI – don’t be shy in having your say.

May 2010 Newsletter

Hello and Welcome to our May newsletter.

Hopefully we will be able to update you on anything you have missed over the last month or so.

May Meeting
Welcome to our new member, Carole, who joined us this month.

AGM Resolution - This month we discussed and voted on the AGM resolution: The mandatory clear labelling on food with true country of origin. This meeting urges HM Government to introduce clear and mandatory country of origin labelling on all meat, poultry and fish products sold in this country. Janet gave us a basic explanation of the idea behind this and following discussion we had a unanimous vote for the resolution to be taken forward.

Our speaker, Marga Quince makes regular visits to Africa in connection with her involvement with Pont – a project linking Rhondda Cynon Taff with a region of Uganda (Mbala). Marga is involved with the road project there, but gave an overall and very interesting talk about a variety of aspects of the venture. The main purpose is not to provide funding, but to help the local people build on the skills they already have.

Membership Our thanks to Amanda for pointing out that the membership cards which can be found in the membership handbooks can be used to get discounts in various places. With this in mind this month’s printed Newsletters will be personalised to give you your Membership number which will be shown at the end of the newsletter. If you have not received a membership handbook, please speak to Erica who will be able to let you have one.

Supper Club
Again a very enthusiastic response from members who enjoyed their visit to Trattoria this month. If you haven’t tried it yet, please come and join us. The food really is very good and we take advantage of the “Early Bird Special”, so the cost isn’t too prohibitive either.

Reading Circle
No book chosen for this month – please read something of your own choice to share with other members

June Meeting
Jan Lewis will give us a talk on “Hats through the ages”.

YAWI Committee
We still need members to join our committee – if you don’t want to take on a specific role, we do still need Committee Members. We also need people to take charge of groups – so if you have any particular interests that you would like us to take on, you may be the best person to take charge of forming a group.
Your committee needs you !!! AND WE WILL SUPPORT YOU IN EVERY WAY POSSIBLE

And in General
Don’t forget this is your WI, so please feel free to let us know of any suggestions you might have for new groups, new activities you think we should try, and generally anything that you think might be of interest to your fellow members.

YAWI website.
All our newsletters are available on the website. Is there anything you want to catch up on, or was there are recipe that you fancied and forgot to save. It will be on the website. Any questions you have or any ideas you want to share, or any comments you want to make, try the web site. There is still work to be done on the website, but we are getting there slowly.



Recipe of the Month

Looking ahead to what will hopefully be a good summer where we can think about sharing open air meals with friends and family – BBQ, etc, perhaps an easy pudding recipe would be appropriate.

Eton Mess

Ingredients
285 ml whipping cream
3 tbsp orange liqueur (Cointreau, Grand Marnier)
350 g punnet strawberries, washed hulled and chopped
75 g meringues or meringue nests, crumbled.

Preparation
1. Lightly whip the cream then fold in the orange liqueur. Stir in the strawberries and the crumbled meringue and fold in lightly.
2. Transfer the mixture to individual sundae glasses and serve at once.

Source - http://www.ivillage.co.uk


Things to come.
It is difficult to realise how far into the year we are already. It will soon be necessary for us to think about making a booking for any Christmas festivities – yes it really will. If you have any suggestions that you might like us to consider please speak up and share them with us.
We are also hoping to arrange a day out during the summer. As a small group we are not enough in number to arrange a trip of our own, so the plan is to look at organised trips on offer from local bus companies so that we can join them. Again – if you have any ideas, please share them with us.

May – Reading Group 26th

June – Supper Club 3rd
Meeting 9TH
Reading Group 23rd

July - Supper Club 1st
Meeting 14th
Reading Group 28th

Please feel free to pass these dates on to anyone you think would be interested in joining us

Don’t forget
You can call Emma on 07762493928 or Erica on 01443 409959 if you want any information about any of the groups etc or if you have any ideas you want to run by them. Leave a message and they’ll get back to you if they can’t come to the phone when you call.

It’s your WI – don’t be shy in having your say.

March/April 2010 Newsletter

Hello and Welcome to our March/April Newsletter.

Hopefully we will be able to update you on anything you have missed over the last month or so.

Supper Club
At the beginning of March we had our first Supper Club meeting when we met at La Trattoria in Pontypridd High Street. Good food, good service and good company were enjoyed and anyone who thought that because we started at 6:30 we would be home in time for an early night would be wrong. We were enjoying ourselves so much they nearly had to eject us from the place at 10:00 pm. The April supper club didn’t have such good attendance as the first but was still very enjoyable. Although we are staying with La Trattoria for the next supper club, the venue is open to suggestions should anyone have any alternative ideas, but so that you will know the dates for your diaries – Supper Club will be on the first Thursday of each month.

Reading Circle
The first book chosen for the Reading circle was The Island by Victoria Hislop Unfortunately Lynne and Erica were not able to join in the discussion because they had started reading Small Island by Andrea Levy an entirely different story! There was no book chosen for the April book club, but members were invited to read a book of their own choosing and share their thoughts with others members of the reading circle. For those who have not yet been to the reading circle, the title of the book for May will be available at the next meeting. The reading circle meets on the last Wednesday of each month at Gelliwastad Road Club.

Calendar Girls Theatre Trip
Emma still has tickets available should anyone want to go on Friday 30th July at 7.30pm. Seats are in the upper circle and tickets are £15.00. Speak to Emma if you would like a ticket, but please note payment must be made at the May meeting.

March Meeting
We had a very interested and entertaining talk from two lady magistrates.They gave us an insight into their experiences on the bench over the last 20 years. Although some of the tales were quite humorous, on a more solemn note their experiences illustrated desperate conditions that lead some unfortunate people into crime and that although there are strict guidelines, the inidividual circumstances of each case must be considered.

April Meeting
Marie Williams and her friend Angela joined us in April to tell us about the benefits of holistic therapies. Marie is a Reiki master and offers a range of treatments, including reflexology and Indian head massage. Angela talked about crystal therapies and explained the essence of the different minerals she brought along with her. Again a very interesting presentation and lots of food for thought if you haven’t considered these treatments previously, or if you just want help in relaxing.

Monthly meetings
From January (although the snow prevented us from meeting in January) we thought we would try an earlier start to our monthly meetings – with the darker winter nights it might have been better for people to get home a little earlier. However the 7:00 pm start had not worked out well after discussion with members at out last meeting the majority felt the later start was easier. So meeting times – second Wednesday of each month with a 7:30 start.

May meeting – 12th May
June meeting - 9th June
July meeting – 14th July
August – no meeting

Please feel free to pass these dates on to anyone you think would be interested in joining us.

Marga Quince will be joining us for our May meeting to tell us about volunteering and in particular about the work with Pont – a charitable organisation based in Pontypridd that does valuable work overseas in Africa.

YAWI Secretary
Regrettably, Robin our YAWI Secretary has had to step down for personal reasons. If you have an organised brain and feel you would like to volunteer for this post please let us know as soon as possible.

Your committee needs you!

And in General
Don’t forget this is your WI, so please feel free to let us know of any suggestions you might have for new groups, new activities you think we should try, and generally anything that you think might be of interest to your fellow members (not sure is “fellow members” is appropriate for a female group).

Our YAWI website – www.yawi.co.uk - is still rather “under construction” but you will find some information on there and all past newletters if there is something you think you have missed. And if you have anything to share you with your fellow members (there’s that fellow again) you can add your comments to the website. You can also email us at yawi@hotmail.co.uk.

Recipe for this issue is a very versatile Thai Green Curry. Takes about 30 minutes in total to make and tastes as if you’ve spent hours preparing it. This is a recipe that was available some years ago when Tesco used to have recipe leaflets around the store. There is also something very similar in a Weight Watchers cook book (so healthy to boot) and once you have the basic ingredients for the curry it can be adapted as a meat, fish or vegetarian dish.

1 can of coconut milk
¼ pint stock*
1 clove of garlic
4 lime leaves or a few drops of lime juice
2-4 teaspoons of Thai green curry paste – adjust to your own taste#
4 shallots halves
4 oz fine green beans
4 oz cherry tomatoes halved
12 – 14 oz white fish
chopped fresh coriander.

Place the coconut milk, stock, garlic and lime leaves and curry paste in a pan and bring to the boil. Add the shallots. Allow the mixture to bubble for 10 minutes. Add the green beans and fish and cook for a further 5 minutes. Toss in the tomatoes and coriander and simmer for a further 2 – 3 minutes. Serve with boiled rice.

*This can be made just as easily with cooked chicken (great way to use any left over from roast), seafood cocktail fish mixture, quorn or other additional vegetables. Vary the stock you use according the ingredients.
# One recipe suggests 2-4 teaspoons of Thai green curry paste. 2 teaspoons gives a nice little bite, so it might be a good idea if you want to try this recipe you start here and increase the amount of curry paste next time you make it – and it’s so good you’re bound to want to make it again.

Bon Appetite!

Don’t forget
You can call Emma on 07762493928 or Erica on 01443 409959 if you want any information about any of the groups etc or if you have any ideas you want to run by them. Leave a message and they’ll get back to you if they can’t come to the phone when you call. Please note that Emma will be out of the country between 3-12th May and so it may cost you extra to call her at that time!

And here’s a thought seen at a local hairdressers which might be appropriate

If you like what we offer tell your friends
If you don’t like what we offer tell us – we’ll endeavour to improve.

Jan/Feb 2010 Newsletter

If you missed the last meeting the newsletter will keep you up to date with what is happening with our Ynysangharad WI.

This is our newsletter and your views and contributions are important. If you have any news items, comments, recipes, gardening tips or anything that would be of interest to our group. Please contact us at yawi@hotmail.co.uk or speak to Emma at the meeting

February Meeting
It seemed like an age since we last met as the January meeting had to be cancelled due to the inclement weather. However, it was great to see some old (in membership and not age terms!!) faces and also to welcome some newer members.

Important decisions needed to be made as the group decided on the Committee for the coming year. Thanks were offered to those who had worked so hard over the last year to establish the Ynysangharad WI and provide a firm foundation for the new Committee to build upon.

Information on the new Committee listing can be found later in this Newsletter. Glamorgan Federation Vice Chairman Carolyn Davies (Pontyclun WI) was kind enough to come along and guide us through our first AGM and the group is indebted to her for her patience and guidance. We also welcomed, and gratefully accepted, an apology from the Federation for the late provision of record keeping books and other literature which will help the Committee with the organisation and running of our WI group. These were not received by YAWI for some months after the groups’ inception but are now fully available to aid us in going forward.

Carolyn also delivered our yearly financial report which had been audited for us. We end the year with a not unhealthy balance of £638.80. However, we need to be mindful of the fact that we received a greater proportion of member’s subs last year and must include some fundraising in our programme this year to enable us to remain afloat.

Talking of subs…. These are still due for those of you who have not yet paid. Please bring £29.50 in either cash or a cheque with you to the March 10th meeting so that we can tick you off the list.

As well as all the important administrative business, we also had a very interesting speaker at the February meeting. This was Siobhan Scullion, Acting Director of Pontypridd Woman’s Aid. Siobhan delivered an interesting and engaging talk packed with facts and figures outlining the situation regarding domestic abuse in the UK. The umbrella of domestic abuse is now seen to cover not just violence but also psychological, verbal and financial abuse. We were intrigued to find out that the Pontypridd Women’s Aid remit covers not just women but also children and that they undertake several different forms of support: outreach and children’s services as well as the more recognised refuge provision.

Siobhan explained how our sister Pontypridd WI provide ‘Welcome Packs’ containing toiletries and other bits and pieces that are given to women on first arrival at a Pontypridd Woman’s Aid refuge (as often the women arrive with nothing). The group discussed the possibility of providing ‘Leaving Packs’ containing useful items when setting up home which could be given to women/families when leaving the refuge and it was decided to investigate this as an ongoing support to Pontypridd Women’s Aid.


New President and Commitee
The group were sad to see the stepping down of Lyn Daunton who has led the group so steadfastly during our inaugural year and who gave a lovely summing up of the achievements of YAWI over the last year. However, we were also glad to welcome our new President Emma Gwynnett who promises to lead us through with much enthusiasm during the coming year. We also welcome Lynne Harries as Vice President, Robin Seaton as Secretary and Pat Porch taking on the unenviable role as Treasurer. Special mention should be made of Jan Davies and Margaret Hill who made such a sterling effort to establish these roles under the last committee and who did their utmost best, at times with little information. Margaret Perry also sits on the new Committee and has been working hard with Pat to provide a new and exciting programme for 2010.

We are still a very small Committee, so if anyone would like to offer any assistance they would be gratefully received. The more members on the Committee we have, the less work for individuals so please help support your group!

YAWI 2010 Programme/Dates for the Diary
The draft programme is taking shape nicely and is expected to be ready for distribution by the March meeting. Please see the new ‘Dates for the Diary’ sheet which we will be providing each month. This has a rolling timetable of all the events coming up over the next few months (YAWI on one side and Federation on the other) and also deadlines for getting your name down/money in. See Emma if there is anything you fancy doing 

March events
For those of you who like their food, the new ‘Supper Club’ has it’s inaugural meeting on Wednesday 3rd March. We will be meeting at The Trattoria on Taff St. Pontypridd at 6.30pm. There is a special 2 course option available for just £7.95. No need to book your place, just turn up! After this first outing, the ‘Supper Club’ will be changing nights to a Thursday (at the request of members) and will be meeting the first Thursday of the month thereafter. If the reputation of The Trattoria is correct there should be no reason to change the venue but like all groups, members will be free to discuss and make changes.

Also, in March- this time Wednesday 24th March at 6.30pm, there will also be a meeting of the ‘Reading Circle’. The first book to be discussed will be The Island by Victoria Hislop and the meeting will take place at The Gelliwastad Club & Institute, which is right next door to our usual meeting place on Gelliwastad Rd, Pontypridd. Again there is no need to book a place, you just need to turn up and enjoy! Drinks and crisps will be available to purchase at the bar. Members will have the opportunity to choose future books for reading/discussion and also to influence the meeting day if inconvenient for a large number.

Calendar Girls Theatre Trip
We are trying to organise a trip to see Calendar Girls which is showing in the summer at the Wales Millenium Centre at Cardiff Bay. This outing will take place on either Friday 30th or Saturday 31st July 2010, with the first choice being the Saturday matinee. The date is dependent on numbers and availability of seats when booking (the final date will be checked with deposit paying members prior to booking). Bring £20 to the March meeting to secure your place.

Start Time of Meetings
It has been decided that the start time of meetings will be brought forward to 7pm. The reason for this is so that there is an increased amount of time for members to chat and socialise after business and the speaker. Please don’t forget!

Recipe of the Month
Due to the volume of information in this months’ Newsletter, Recipe of the Month will be back in March! Please submit your favourite dishes for inclusion.

And finally…Please remember that our next meeting is on Wednesday, March 10th 2010 at 7.00 pm. We hope that even if you have missed a few meetings you know that we would be delighted to have you back and we look forward to welcoming you at Temple Baptist Hall.

Our speaker will be Binkie Thomas who will be entertaining us with tales of life as a local magistrate.

Please don’t forget to bring your £29.50 subs and to have a good think about whether you’d like to join our Committee.

If you can’t wait that long, you can always pop along to ‘Supper Club’ on March 3rd and join us for a tasty gathering 

Website and Email Contact
The YAWI website address is www.yawi.co.uk and you can email us at yawi@hotmail.co.uk

You can also leave a message for Emma on 01443 662138 and she will endeavour to get back to you.