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Stephen came to the drop in whilst in summer recess from Westminster duties, and chatted to some of our clients, as well as, with the help of a friend, decorate a kite, ready to fly on Saturday 20th August from 2-4pm on Southsea Common, in support of all people in Afghanistan. It was a wonderful morning, full of chatter and fun. thanks again to Stephen for his continued support.  What a great evening last night for our AGM. So good to see our wonderful supporters face to face once more. Also special thanks to the Lord Mayor of Portsmouth and Babette Clarke from the Medaille Trust for their very interesting talks. Also thanks to the team for the wonderful food provided. It was also a great opportunity to thank all our fantastic, hard working volunteers with an award, given out by the Lord Mayor. Lovey to see and chat to everyone, and thank you to everyone who attended and continue to support Friends Without Borders.
Dear Friends,
It is with sadness that we inform you that Michael Woolley, our colleague, friend and honorary chairperson passed away, at home on Sunday 3rd October at 6pm. Coleen writes: "Michael was a champion of our clients, volunteers and supporters. His passion and desire to improve the lives of clients never wavered and my life, and those of many, is richer for having known you. Never to be forgotten." For those of you who knew Michael, thank you for all the love and support you have extended to him and to Friends Without Borders over the years. We will mark his passing at the Drop In on Thursday with a few moments of silence (all are welcome to join us) and once we have the opportunity to discuss between ourselves and with Michael's family, we would like to find a more permanent way to remember him. For those of you who have not met Michael, or for those who wish to feel close to him at this time, you can read a tribute to him by Coleen in our most recent Annual Report here. With all our love, Bryony, Veronica and Coleen, on behalf of the Trustees Friends Without Borders Following the success of our walk in July. Trustee Lia worked with our volunteers and friends to plan a walk at Farlington Marshes.... for those of you know the area well, this wasn't straightforward - how to use public transport, roundabout challenges (particularly on a bicycle), how long the walk would take. But the planning paid off! The walk took place from 12 noon on Saturday 18th September 2021. People could join the walk by either meeting Lia at the Hard at 10.30, Jan at the city centre at 10.40, Anita at Carnegie Library at 10.45, Rosy at Portsmouth College car park at 11am with their bikes and to cycle to meet us or to meet us at Farlington Marshes at 12 noon. Amazingly it worked and we all met up and the weather was extremely kind, warm and not too windy. There were twenty nine of us altogether. Twenty three adults and six children. We stopped for our lunch at about one and having asked people to bring a picnic or food to share if able, there was a wonderful variety, home cooked stuffed vine leaves, cakes, sandwiches, fruit and raw vegetables, there was enough for everyone including those who hadn’t brought any. And there wasn’t too much - most of the food was eaten. There were spare binoculars, we were looking like regular ornithologists with the help of Peter, one of our volunteers. We saw a Little Egret, a Common Moorhen, a Coot, a Godwit, Seagull and Starlings and more. We talked, chatted, shared stories strengthened friendships and made new friends. News and information of of events and opportunities were shared. It was late September and there were masses of small very tasty blackberries. The containers for lunch went home full of blackberries. We hope to plan another walk in November. We hope that you'll join us! Thank you to all our friends who helped to organise this, including Anita from Action Asylum (supported by Portsmouth City of Sanctuary).  On Saturday 3rd July we will walk together and share tales as part of Refugee Tales Walk of 2021. The walk will take us through the militarised landscape in Gosport, past the site of the prison that was used most recently as an immigration and removal centre. We will take a route that passes the various military bases and the hospital, then along the coastal wall up to Fort Monckton, before heading back up to the Gosport Ferry (about 2hrs of walking, Hard to Hard & time for lunch). The idea behind the walk is to think about the relationship between the everyday environment, militarism and forced migration. Together we will celebrate our global community and take steps towards a future without immigration detention. If you would like to join us, meet at the Hard 10:50 with money for the Gosport Ferry and some lunch. If necessary, we will split into groups of 30. If you can let us know in advance that you're joining us, that would be great - email [email protected] #RTStepChange https://www.refugeetales.org/the-walk-of-2021  |
