26 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Parish</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> - <strong>December</strong> <strong>2023</strong> Please mention <strong>The</strong> <strong>Parish</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> when responding to advertisements AB0027_<strong>The</strong>_Abbey_Nursery_Campaign_ROUTE_4_125x175_Ads.indd 1 26/05/<strong>2023</strong> 07:47
around the villages — 2 Canapés, cakes, café and . . . <strong>The</strong> <strong>Parish</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> - <strong>December</strong> <strong>2023</strong> 27 . . . elephants Ladies of the Inner Wheel Club of Reading Maiden Erlegh rose to the challenge of making and serving hundreds of canapés at the Preview Evening of the Rotary Charity Art & Craft Fair, held recently at Leighton Park School. Club members also ran a café at the fair to raise money for <strong>The</strong> Cowshed, a local charity which provides support to people of all backgrounds in a time of personal crisis. <strong>The</strong> Inner Wheel Club of Reading Maiden Erlegh meets at Sonning Golf Club on the third Thursday evening of the month and welcomes new members to join in the fun, take part in activities, raise funds for charity and support the local community. https://www.innerwheelrme.org or iwcrme@gmail.com Rotary donations for eradicating Polio worldwide reaches £200,000 Since it was formed in 1991, Rotary Club of Reading Maiden Erlegh has donated over £200,000 from funds raised locally towards the Rotary International's Polio Global Eradication programme. Because the Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation triples all Rotary donations, the actual money contributed is much more. Some of the local Rotarians have also travelled abroad to help administer the vaccine. In 1988, there were over 1,000 cases a day in 125 countries of Polio. 350,000 children were left paralysed. Since then Rotary has donated over $2.1 billion and formed a partnership with other organisations and together they are working towards totally eradicating Polio worldwide. <strong>The</strong> only outbreaks this year have been in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and these have been in low numbers. Africa is now free of Polio. Over 400,000 children a year now receive their polio vaccinations. Reading Maiden Erlegh president, Richard Nicholson said, ‘We are proud that Rotary International started the initiative and it has been so successful. My Rotary supports the initiative each year and we are delighted to have played a small part in its success’. Sonning Art Group was delighted to welcome back Jenny Whalley (above) to demonstrate 'Elephants on the move'. She brought many pictures from her native South Africa and, as always, gave a lively and fun demonstration using watercolours in a creative and loose way to create pictures full of character. You can find Jenny's work at jennysart.space or on facebook. <strong>The</strong> group usually meets in Pearson Hall on Friday afternoons from 12 .30 - 4pm although not during <strong>December</strong>. <strong>The</strong>ir next meeting will be on 6 January. All is 'splendid' in the garden TRHA (Twyford and Ruscombe Horticultural Association) says it 'has made a splendid comeback after a difficult couple of years.' Membership increased in <strong>2023</strong> and all activities, particularly the shows, were well supported. Planning for the 2024 shows is well advanced. <strong>The</strong>y will have a new look but will still be 'Open' to all exhibitors. TRHA hopes that all gardeners will be planning for the new season with this in mind. <strong>The</strong> Store, which closed for the winter break, reopens on 4 February for members to purchase horticultural supplies, get advice, or just have a friendly chat. You can apply for membership at the Store, Loddon Hall Road, Twyford, RG10 9JA. It opens on Sunday mornings from 9.30am - 11.00am, or email Jenny Wager at trhamembership@gmail.com. See: https://www.trha.org.uk for all details.