Another Year Over...

With the very successful community Christmas stall and huge raffle 2023 came to a close for Bridgetown CWA...and what a year it was.

Keeping up our tradition of serving the community we made many donations to other community groups including the Agricultural Society and Geegeelup Village. There are some Bridgetown High School students who were recipients of laptops and prizes and in keeping with the spirit of Christmas we helped St Vincent de Paul with their hampers and sent 10 boxes of gifts to Samaritan’s Purse, an international charity for disadvantaged children.

In addition to our two-fund raising stalls we held a “show and tell” event in April showcasing the history of CWA at our rooms where some local residents discovered photos of their mothers and grandmothers as members in the past 85 years and many people were astonished at how much of our way of life has been influenced by the work of CWA statewide.

A submission to Federal Parliament on the impact of local bank closures was very well received by the community and we had our own adventure when we had to change banks to Manjimup.

A sentimental moment for us was the dedication of a memorial bench outside our rooms for all past members.

Of course, we wouldn’t be CWA if we didn’t mention our catering efforts. In addition to the Blessing of the Roads and the Mystery Tour of Life we catered for a wake, the WA Bridge Club and several local organisations, and no, it wasn’t all tea and scones.

Next year looks like being busy again with our priority on renovating our old kitchen, which we would not be able to do without a grant from the Shire of Bridgetown-Greenbushes and assistance from the wonderful chaps from the Bunbury Prison Pre-Release unit. Completion of this project will provide a community space for smaller groups to meet and cater for themselves. Watch this space.

And... while we are at it, 2024 is also the 100th year celebration of the foundation of CWA and we are part of a regional group putting on several events. More information can be found at the CWA Southern Valleys 100 Years Celebration facebook page. Please feel free to join and keep in touch, we would love to read your thoughts and if you would like more information on your local branch email Anita Iuretigh anita54@iinet.net.au.

Wishing everyone a happy and safe Christmas and a prosperous New Year.