NEW BROOMS

2 April 1999




NEW BROOMS

NEEDED IN

IN THE WEST

STELLA Sanders and Betty Creed have run the Somerset Mendip FWC admirably since before I started as national organiser, but now the time has come for someone else to take over.

The ideal opportunity arose for me to pick a candidate or two when I went down to their March meeting at Beckington village hall. Unfortunately, after trying to drum up enthusiasm for one of the best unpaid jobs in the country, we had a delicious lunch followed by a brilliant speaker and after that everyone had forgotten to volunteer.

The speaker was Jennifer Murray who amazed us with her tale of flying around the world by helicopter in 1997. The journey took 97 days and £100,000 was raised for Save the Children. However Jennifer doesnt yet hold the record as first woman to fly around the world in a helicopter as she had a male co-pilot. So shes off again next year flying single handed and racing against a microlight aircraft being flown by Colin Bodill. This time she will be raising money for Operation Smile, a charity which helps children with facial deformities. It has a 737 aircraft fitted out as an operating theatre which will be visiting five continents to perform operations and also train local doctors in this specialist skill.

The members presented the outgoing contact leaders with a beautiful glass bowl apiece and meetings have been well planned for the rest of 1999 but the ladies of Somerset Mendip we still need a contact leader or two – could it be you?

Jean Howells


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