Our thanks go to Valerie Fergyson for the following report on the 90th Birthday Celebration of Alveston WI.

‘On Thursday 14th May, Alveston Women’s Institute celebrated the 90th Anniversary of it’s founding with an extremely friendly and delicious lunch at the Alveston House Hotel.

As a memento of the occasion each member received an embroidered handkerchief.  A letter of Congratulations and Best Wishes on their Anniversary was received from Her Majesty the Queen and she thanked them for the handkerchief she had received from them.

An oak sapling, which was given to our President, Valerie Fergyson, by the Woodland Trust at last year’s National AGM in Liverpool, has been planted in Alveston Cemetery, to commemorate our 90 years.

In 1919 a group of forward looking women in Alveston decided to form a Women’s Institute 4 years after the first one in England was started.  Topics for their speakers were ‘How to Keep Hens’, ‘Bottling and Jam Making’, ‘Women in Politics’ and ‘Vegetable and Fruit Growing’.  With the current economic climate these topics may be looked into again!  Our speakers recently have enlightened us with talks on ‘Arabian Dancing’, ‘The Uplifting History of the Bra’, ‘Friends of Warmth’ and ‘Tai Chi’.

Visitors are made very welcome, so do come and sample a meeting of Alveston WI on the 2nd Monday of the month at 7.30pm in the Jubilee Hall, Alveston.’