Activities

West Witney WI members like to enjoy themselves. we are a sociable and friendly group

During the summer we had an excellent visit to Friars Court

Our Next meeting is on Wednesday 13th May. We will be discussing the 2015 WI Resolutions and running a plant stall. You are most welcome to join us at our meeting at the Methodist Church, High Street, Witney in the Lower Hall at 7:30 pm.

If you would like to come along to one of our sociable meetings or wish to find out more about our programme of activities, please contact our Joint President, Gill on 01993 705366

Recent Activities in 2014

In January we welcomed our speaker, Margaret Auty of Minster Lovell WI whose talk was entitled 'A Journey through My Dressing up Box'.

Margaret entertained us, by telling us how she and her husband enjoy their hobby of dressing up in Victorian costume and visiting conventions, exhibitions etc. dressed as ladies and gentlemen of the period.  She illustrated her talk with costumes she had adapted herself from clothes she found in charity shops. WI members were' volunteered' into modelling the costumes which added to the enjoyment.

Whilst Margaret insisted that she is not a speaker, members agreed that she gave an excellent presentation and is a loss to the speaker's panel.
 
Normal business was discussed, and two new members and three visitors were welcomed.
A report was heard on our Christmas coffee morning at Aston Potteries which was enjoyed by members.

Forthcoming events include our monthly coffee session, at The Blue Boar, Annual Meal at Witney Lakes, visit to Brize Norton and a tour and cream tea at Aston Potteries. The Craft and Book groups will also be meeting this month.

At our November's meeting was Lee Butler who was warmly welcomed by members. His talk was entitled The Philosophy and Practice of Chinese Medicine. Lee explained the origins of Chinese medicine and outlined the theory of Ying and Yang on which it is based.
He explained how many of these ancient remedies could be applied to multiple medical conditions in society today. He succeeded in dispelling various myths surrounding alternative treatments.

 in September our speaker, Diane Partington, was welcomed by members. Her talk -The Camera never lies or does it? was about her work as a photographic restorer and image manipulator. She reminded us how important photographs are in our lives and what stories and memories they can evoke.
Normal business was discussed and three visitors were welcomed.
Reports were heard on the Coffee morning at Norton's, Hereford flower festival, Science lecture and Pub evening.
Twenty six members thoroughly enjoyed a trip to Friars Court, Clanfield. Charles Wilmer, whose family have farmed there since 1917, gave us a guided tour explaining the history of Friars Court and how it has diversified in order to allow continued success. We were then treated to a homemade cream tea in the Garden Room.
Forthcoming events included a coffee morning Witney Hospital, Kirtlington walk, and trip to Agrivert Recycling centre in Cassington.

In August we had an inspiring watercolour workshop, led by Brian Marshall, who produced some simple and quick designs.

At the  July meeting, members warmly welcomed our speaker; Malcolm Nelson, whose talk was entitled; '40 years of catching smugglers'.

We were all intrigued as he regaled us with the many incidents that he had been involved in during his long career with the Border Agency. His talk was both entertaining and informative, but he also made us all realise just what a difficult and often dangerous task our Customs officers face every day.

Normal business was discussed and reports on various events were heard Members attended a coffee morning at Witney Hospital, Summer Auditions for new speakers and a Glimpse of Britain through 25 quilts.

 A group of members had thoroughly enjoyed a guided Morse Tour of Oxford. Our guide, Alistair's, knowledge of everything Morse and the History of Oxford was exceptional.

Other events included a coffee morning at Aston Pottery, a trip to Friars Court with a tour and afternoon tea as well as our summer Garden Party.

At the June meeting members warmly welcomed our speaker, Mike Payne, who told us about the History of Pinewood Studios.
We listened with interest as he entertained us with some lively anecdotes about his lifelong interest in film.
He told us about the growth and development of Pinewood studios and the many films made there, such as the Carry on Films, James Bond, Superman and even the Pathé news reels.
We were reminded of just how many films we had all seen and enjoyed that had been made in the UK!

Normal business was discussed and one visitor and one new member were welcomed.
We have had a busy month and reports were heard on the Coffee morning, Pub evening get together and a WI holiday.

Gill, our new joint President, had represented for the first time, our group at the annual national meeting in Leeds attended by 5000 members. We were all interested to hear about her experience and what other members from around the country felt about the Resolution and other WI topics.

At the meeting in May, the format was different as members voted for the 2014 NFWI Resolution, "Encouraging members to make family and friends aware of their wishes regarding organ donation.Opinions and experiences were expressed and West Witney WI voted in favour of the resolution.
Normal business was discussed, one visitor and three new members were welcomed. We also held our annual plant sale for all the keen gardeners amongst the members.
Laura Dean from Cogges, who is also a member, gave an interesting and lively talk on life at Cogges Farm when filming for a TV drama took place recently.
Reports were heard on the recent trip to Brize Norton, Group Meeting, Chiltern Walk, Coffee morning and Docklands trip.

We also heard from one member about her recent Denman Bursary cookery course and members were treated to samples of what she had learnt.
Forthcoming events include our regular coffee session, this month our venue is Cafe Rouge in Witney, and an evening get together at The Windrush Pub.  

In February we met at Witney Lakes and enjoyed a wonderful meal to celebrate our 21st anniversary.

At our January meeting members warmly welcomed Wing Commander Nick Robson from RAF Brize Norton.

He took us through the Base's varied history and outlined future plans for RAF Brize Norton. He also told us about the many functions of the base, including the rescue of citizens from various war-torn countries around the world; as well as one of the saddest tasks the base has to perform, the repatriation of members of the armed forces.

He also gave us a brief outline of his role at RAF Brize Norton, and we were all surprised to learn that it was only Day 97 of his new role at the airfield.  Members were delighted to make a donation to the RAF benevolent fund.

Normal business was discussed, and we were pleased to welcome one new member and two visitors.

In 2013

Traditionally the December meeting celebrates the festive season with our annual Christmas social. So once again, members were able to enjoy a good old natter, which isn't always possible at our busy monthly meetings! A festive buffet provided by members was enjoyed and a Christmas bring-and-buy sale sold out!

The result of the Pennant competition for West Witney was also announced and the winning entry will feature in the OFWI display.

 
West Witney members' pennants