North Renfrew District W.I. News
Submitted by Elaine Hennessy
Greetings from the Women’s Institute for the District of North Renfrew. The following branches have reported on their meetings and activities for the month of December 2018.
Forester’s Falls: Six Members of the Forester’s Falls W.I. and one visitor met at 1 p.m. on Dec. 17, 2018 at the home of Margaret Curry. President Alisa Page welcomed everyone, thanked Margaret for inviting us into her home and then opened the meeting with the singing of The Ode and repeating the Mary Stewart Collect in unison. The Roll Call was a fond Christmas memory. Everyone remembered the Christmas dinner with their extended families as they were growing up, their grandmother’s tiny house bursting at the seams, children lined up on the stairs to have their pictures taken and waiting to hear the news that a new granddaughter had been born on Christmas Day 1996. The minutes of the November meeting were read and approved. Correspondence was read. A Christmas card was received from Cheryl Gallant, MP for Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke. Highlights from the Dec. FWIO E-Blast were shared. The 2019 Fair List was discussed and some suggestions were made for items. The District Annual we are hosting on May 16, 2019 was discussed. It was decided to have a salad supper with cake and ice cream for dessert at a cost of $8.00. The event is to be held in Trinity United Church. A motion was made that all bills be paid. Carried. Christmas gifts have been delivered to our members in Retirement and Nursing Homes. Items were collected for the Food Bank and calendars for the rooms of residents at Caressant Care Nursing Home in Cobden. Volunteer sheets were completed. Program Convenor, Eleanor Waite had a Ho Ho Ho contest won by Alisa Page. Several carols were sung with Margaret at the piano. A motion was made to have the meeting adjourned. Everyone enjoyed the ice cream log, Christmas goodies and social time. It was another damp, cold and windy day, but it was warm and cozy by the Christmas tree in Margaret’s living room.
Greenwood: Members met at the Centre Culturel Francophone de Pembroke for their Christmas dinner meeting. President Charlotte Cotnam-Isea welcomed everyone. Members enjoyed a social hour before dinner with appetizers made by Cathy Green and Alanna Morris. Kathy Bennett and Sharron Jansen served hot apple cider and punch. Following the Institute Grace, members enjoyed a lovely catered meal. The Convenors Sharron Jansen and Kathy Bennet provided the desserts, tea and coffee. Many items of clothing and toys were on display that the members had purchased for a needy family at Christmas. Christmas gifts were exchanged and everyone found out who their Secret Friend had been during 2018. Names were drawn for new Unknown Friends for 2019. Treasurer Gail Fletcher advised that a donation from the branch had been given to The Grind. Christmas song sheets were passed around and everyone enjoyed a sing-a-long with Sharon Cotnam and Elaine Hennessy taking turns playing the piano to accompany the singers.
Queen’s Line: Eight of our members met at the home of Sheila Broome for our Annual Christmas luncheon and meeting. After a delicious Pot Luck lunch, we had a short meeting. Following the reciting of the Institute Ode and Collect, we answered the Roll Call, by reciting or singing a Christmas poem or a verse of a favorite Christmas carol, and everyone answered the Motto “Have your Christmas traditions changed”? We read the minutes from November, and discussed outstanding issue. Our financial report was given, and a donation was given to the local Cobden Food Bank. We discussed the upcoming Fair List, and assigned projects for our members. After the meeting, we exchanged small gifts among each other, were able to chat, and catch up on what everyone was doing over the Christmas holiday. Our next meeting will be in Feb. 2019.
