The WI: Inspiring Women

Seven Hills WI's Lindsay, Kim
 and Vicky with Sue Gilroy

Each month the fabulous Seven Hills WI committee meet to discuss everything from forthcoming events to how we can make the next meeting extra special for our members, and this meeting was no exception! With Stephanie from Survivors of Depression in Transition (SODIT) and our surprise guest speaker, Sue Gilroy MBE paralympic table tennis superstar, joining us for our September meeting, we knew we would be in for a night to remember.

We began the night in true SHWI fashion, laying out our gingham tablecloths, hanging our handmade bunting and making sure the tea cups were ready for our members, only to find out that our meeting room no longer has disabled access as the ramps had been thrown away!

So in the style of Challenge Anneka, Sarah Willoughby and I ran around the streets of Sheffield to find a suitable venue, which was nearby and could accommodate 70 women at short notice.  The odds were against us, but we did it! (even if it did cost £60 for 30 minutes - The Circle obviously weren't feeling very charitable).

When we had finally settled into our temporary home for the for the first part of the meeting,Sue began her inspirational story. Sue is a busy Mum with two children, who works full-time as a primary school teacher in Barnsley.  During her talk Sue shared her personal pictures from the Victory Parade, discussed how she felt when she won gold at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester and her surprise when she found out she had been awarded an MBE.

And it didn’t end there...after Sue's talk we hotfooted it back to our usual meeting venue to hear Stephanie from SODIT's moving story of how she became involved with the charity, the services they provide to women and details of their drop in centre.

The WI slogan is 'Inspiring Women'...they certainly are and they definitely did at this meeting!

Kim 

SHWI Secretary