Dear Friends and Supporters!
It is incredible to think that we are already more than half way through 2012, and so we thought it would be a good time to both reflect on the past year or so and update you on how things have been going with WOMA. Meanwhile, we would also like to tell you about our forthcoming fundraising event which will be held on Saturday 13th October at The Forge in Camden (a new music & arts venue just a few minutes from Camden Town tube station). Please click here to purchase your tickets on-line through the venue.
We are very excited because Terryazoome (the Greek/World jazz fusion band) will be launching their new album in aid of WOMA at the event!
It promises to be a fun night with some great music and good food for you to enjoy. If you’d like to have dinner whilst enjoying the music, tables can be booked in advance. Call 020 7387 5959 to make your reservation, but don’t leave it too long! Doors will open at 7pm for those dining, and the music will start at 8.30pm; admission £12.
We very much look forward to seeing you there!
In order to whet your appetite, here are some reviews of the band!
- “Terryazoome take a borderless journey of the spirit with Greece and the bouzouki at its heart, Africa in the mix, and Jazz the driver. I found myself elated, emotional and wanting more.”. DJ Ritu
- “Whilst the music of Terryazoome is anchored to the music of the Greek Diaspora by default, in the best jazz tradition, the songs on Xana traverse geographical boundaries, transporting the listener to a realm without borders.” David Katz
WOMA PROGRESS UPDATE :
Our training programmes have been very successful and are going from strength to strength. We have put more than a hundred women through our courses since we started nearly seven years ago. Although the past couple of years have been tough both financially and politically, we have been determined to continue to raise funds to support more and more women by sending them on a variety of training programmes.
- In Uganda our eighth intake of women has just begun their training in tailoring and textile design at the Namasuba College of Commerce in Kampala.
- In Kenya our bursary scheme continues to attract a high standard of applicants for our courses. For example, our newest student is about to begin training in fashion and furnishings at the Buru Buru School of Fine Arts in Nairobi.
EVENTS
The past eighteen months have been terrific for WOMA on the events front!
In January last year, we held a hugely successful fundraising gig at the Round House in London’s Camden Town.
Poetic Pilgrimage, Ingrid Thobekile, Transglobal Underground and our resident World Music DJ Ritu performed in a tribute concert to the late Doreen Thobekile. Many of you will remember Doreen, who had been a steadfast supporter of WOMA since its birth back in 2005.
It was a wonderful evening and an opportunity to showcase the cross-cultural mix that makes WOMA so unique.
FUNDRAISING
Other fundraising activities have taken place throughout the year:
- Patricia Conway’s sales of her artwork, cards, and jewellery have once again raised important revenue for WOMA. Nora and Walli have done a great job in distributing Patricia’s beautiful cards.
- Our No. 1 fundraiser, Peter Brook has lead the way once again and completed yet another grueling 100k 5½ hour cycle ride around the Isle of Wight in May 2011.
- Karen Allen completed the 10k Great Ethiopia Run in Addis Ababa during November 2011.
She is currently in training to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in October this year and will be looking for sponsorship. More details will follow…. - Jim Dennehy has bravely committed to taking a Skydive for WOMA in a few weeks time. Raising lots of money for WOMA will help Jim to strengthen his resolve! To sponsor him you can follow the link below to his Justgiving page. http://www.justgiving.com/Jim-Dennehy
These are just a few examples of the kinds of fundraising activities that WOMA has benefitted from and we are hugely grateful to our friends and supporters for going the extra mile to raise funds for us!
If you are inspired to do something similar or if you have any new ideas for raising money we’d love to hear from you.
Whilst we are enormously grateful for the funding that sponsorship and music events bring in, we desperately need a more stable source of income and would continue to urge supporters to make regular donations either through our website http://www.womatrust.org/donate/ or by standing order directly into our bank account :
WOMA
Barclays Bank
Account Number 50128678
Sort Code 20-44-86.
SOCIAL MEDIA
In 2011, WOMA emerged onto the social networking stage – Lorraine Jordan and Debbie Dickinson launched WOMA into the world of Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/womatrust
They also created a stunning new look for the WOMA website. We look forward to an exciting year ahead and will circulate updates on our activities in the coming months through our newsletter, on our website and through Facebook.
Please do keep us in your thoughts – especially in the run up to Christmas. As a team we have already transformed the lives of many women through our training projects.
Although we are small, we have big hearts and a strong track record and can assure you that the money you donate to WOMA, benefits women directly.
All the very best and thank you once more….
Nora, Debbie, Karen
click link below to download a copy of the newsletter