September Hospitality - Lady Mayoress Claire Anstee

Lady Mayoress Claire Anstee gave her 801st speech (she said she gives 800 speeches a year as the wife of the Lord Mayor!) to the CWC at the Welcome Back hospitality morning. She was elegant, entertaining and enthralling speaking about a year in the life of the Lord Mayor and Mayoress and Mansion House. She talked about her daily schedules that at times involved 5 changes of clothes and meeting a very great many people. But you could sense the pride and joy of her past year in this role. She gave the impression that although her life was not her own this past year she would not have missed it for the world. And on top of it all we found out that she was born in Montreal, Canada! The CWC members are even more excited to visit Mansion House this December after such a wonderful description by Lady Mayoress Anstee.

Our past office manager Phyllis Nickerson sent a very generous gift donation to the Maple Leaf Trust. Funds were raised at her Almost the Queens Garden Party in her new home in Ottawa, Canada. The Maple Leaf Trust thanks Phyllis and her ever supporting husband Lee for donating the funds to our fund.

Submitted by Patty Bell

Tour of the National Gallery

We were a privileged group to have a private tour of the National Gallery on Friday Nov.12. We were all a bit surprised at how busy and lively the gallery was that evening with live music and several other tours. But we were so engrossed by our terrific tour guide Margi Davis that we hardly noticed anything else but the paintings. She made us look carefully at each painting pointing out details in them that one normally (well at least I) would miss. We learned who was who in the painting , why the artist chose to include certain items and also how much artisitc freedom the artist had when he painted for his patron. It was indeed a truly enjoyable way to start the weekend in this city blessed with so many wonderful galleries and museums. A special thank you to Margi Davis who donated both her time and expertise to make this another great CWC event.

Submitted by Patty Bell

November Hospitality

We were led on a fascinating archaeological dig at the November 9th Hospitality. Our guest speaker, Lady Alexandra Richardson, talked at length about the art and perseverance of being a biographer, unearthing files in attics in Ireland, Texas, Italy and England to name a few locations. She even sourced information from sales staff and cleaners in Singapore Airport to glean information about the subject of her book Passionate Patron: The Life of Alexander Hardcastle and the Greek Temples of Agrigento.

He was an englishman with a passion for Greek Archaeology who lived in Agrigento, Sicily in the 1920's supervising a dig there and in mainland Italy as well. We were given a glimpse into his past before he moved to Agrigento and with how he lived out his later years. I am sure many of the ladies who attended that day will read what should be a very interesting book. Get her book here!

Vi Knight of the Veteran's Affairs Committee led a Remembrance Day moment reading a moving poem written by a 12year old boy form Calgary about Why We Wear A Poppy.

Submitted by Patty Bell

Family Carol Service

Please invite your friends and family to join us for our annual Family Carol Service!

Friday, December 3rd
6:30 pm at the
Crown Court Church of Scotland
Russell Street, Covent Garden
London WC2B 5EZ

Children are welcome! Refreshments will be served following the service of Lessons & Carols, so please RSVP to info@canadianwomenlondon.org, letting us know how many people will be attending. There is no cost for this event, and you don't even need to be a member of the CWC, but monies raised from the offertory will be shared between the Church and the Maple Leaf Trust.

For a larger version of the invitation, click on the image below.

A Trip to Highgrove

October 4, 2010

Not a tube strike, traffic, nor storm clouds could keep a sold-out group of CWC and Australian Women’s Club members and their friends from boarding the coach at 8:30 am for an eagerly anticipated trip to Highgrove. Our first stop, a mandatory shoppers’ destination, was Tetbury, once an ancient wool and yarn market located within the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire. Today it is renowned for its antique shops, elegant church spire and honey-coloured stones on the market square.

The Highgrove shop, situated at 10 Long Street occupies the major part of a period building thought to have been a brewery. It was just a shopping appetizer for us and a few minutes later, we reached Highgrove!

After a security and passport check, we were welcomed to the Estate by the scent of orchards and brilliant sunshine. Our 2 groups of 25, managed by Lolly Fullerton and Teresa Howe, were led by wonderfully knowledgeable volunteer guides who provided Royal anecdotes in addition to all aspects of the garden. Standing in front of the Orchard Room, a lime washed building of oak and stone designed by Charles Morris, a short history was provided.

Originally styled “High Grove”, it is the country home of The Prince, The Duchess of Cornwall and Princes William and Harry. It is also the location of the Home farm of the Duchy of Cornwall, well known for its organic foods and gardening. Built between 1796 and 1798 but due to 2 fires over the years, the buildings were restored with local Cotswolds Stones and other saved and recycled pieces. The Duchy of Cornwall acquired Highgrove House from the MP Maurice Macmillan, son of former Tory Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in 1980. It was indeed a blank canvass of 15 acres where The Prince has devoted much energy transforming the neglected grounds into some of the most innovative gardens existing today. Everything at Highgrove embodies the Prince’s environmental philosophy - that it is better to work with Nature than against it.

And you may wonder… What can one see in a garden in the autumn? Late season perennials such as asters, rudbeckias and sedums, add their strength in colour, as do the ripening apples and pears. And more…

Our guide explained the interlinking of various themes and gardens, each with its own character and purpose. In the Thyme Walk, a lime avenue started with a bronze of a Borghese Gladiator and ended with a dovecote, a gift from the Sultan of Oman. Weaving through the magical woodland garden full of hostas – one of the Prince’s favourite plants, we glimpsed “Hollyrood House” a Tree house where the young Princes played as children. At the southern edge, the “Wall of Gifts”, a series of quirky architectural pieces from University students, was intriguing. We smiled at the luscious green Fern Pyramid that the Prince received for his 50th birthday and the mischievous Leprechauns given by a white witch from Ireland. We learned that the Prince loves moss, ferns and hostas, and birds. There are some 67 birdhouses for natural pest control.

Then there is the Azalea Walk, a special place adorned with busts of people The Prince admires – poets, scholars, environmental campaigners and composers. In contrast, to the left is a touching memorial to Tigga, the Prince’s much-loved Jack Russell Terrier, who rolled about in these gardens.

A contemplative arboretum featuring a stunning bronze titled “ The daughters of Odessa: Martyrs of Modernism, is dedicated to oppressed people of the world and situated in the healing garden dedicated to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. How appropriate as The Prince learned so much about gardening from his grandmother. Further there is a sanctuary, a sundial garden and later we come upon the Highgrove Terraces and Cottage Gardens, full of memories and gifts – a catapa tree, a 50th birthday present to the Prince from Sir Elton John, a gateway of Indian doors from Jodhpur and a circular stone seat made by masons from Hereford Cathedral. Last we marvel at the lavish Carpet Garden, resembling a Turkish carpet, which was exhibited at the 2001 Chelsea Flower Show winning a Silver Medal. One is immediately transported to a Moroccan riad here, surrounded by olive trees, fountains, cork oaks, cypresses and vines.

It seems that no CWC outing is quite complete without a Canadian connection. We were fortunate to meet Head Gardener Debs Goodenough who was busy planting bulbs. Some 30,000 bulbs are planted yearly using only natural fertilizers and mulch. Mrs.Goodenough was raised on a farm in Alberta and trained in horticulture in Canada. Later while working at Kew Gardens; she met her future husband and became Head Gardener at Osborne House, and managed other historic landscapes over a twelve-year period. In 2008, she was appointed to her present position. She smiled and told us that The Prince does get his hands dirty and is very involved in all aspects of the garden.

After our 2 hour walk though 2 miles of garden, many of us relaxed over tea and cake in the Orchard Room, while others perused the beautiful gifts in the adjoining shop.

On the trip back to London, Teresa, Lolly and Flora Tan uncorked a wine and cheese party complete with games for “royal prizes”. Yes we had traffic and a long coach ride but there was new respect for the Prince’s pioneering work in organic gardening and a lovely day of delightful memories.

All profits from the shops go to The Prince’s Charities. To find out more, visit the web site at http://www.princescharities.org.

Submitted by CWC Past President Teresa Howe. Teresa wishes to thank Lolly Fullerton for all their her help and especially for flying in from Canada for this event.

Prince of Wales’ Garden Party to Make a Difference

On September 14, twenty two members of the CWC had a unique opportunity to attend the Prince of Wales’ Garden Party to Make a Difference in the gardens of Clarence House in London . The garden party was an exhibition of ideas and activities to encourage people to think about sustainability and reducing their impact on the planet. We wandered at our own pace among the exhibits, stopping and sampling the sights that were of interest to us.

Highlights were:

Learning to grow vegetables in small spaces – many unique container ideas.

• Making a reusable bag from old curtains
• Pledging at least one way to reduce the energy consumption in your home
• Sampling the food at the Farmer’s Market with lovely local and organic vegetables and unusual foods like spelt pasta
• Planning a drought resistant garden – ideas I will certainly use in my garden in Calgary
• Browsing the Red Cross’s pop up charity shop
• Watching singing and dancing on the people-powered dance floor
• Resting in the chairs made from recycled supermarket trolleys
• Learning how to recycle old clothing to make new and unusual outfits
• Marveling at the 3 meter green piggybank (being green saves you money) and the sheep climbing the ladder (loft insulation) and the bicycle-powered laptop

There were food cooking demonstrations, live music and comedy presentations, food tasting and a talk by Sir David Attenborough. Although we did not run into any of the Royal Family, it was a fun and informative morning. We all left the Garden Party full of new ideas to be more “green” and the importance of making greener choices in our everyday lives.

Lynda Opocensky

New Season of Great Events!

Time certainly does fly and I hope everyone is as excited as I am with the lineup of great events starting very soon. By now, all current members should have received their printed copy of the new CWC bulletin - and I hope to see many of you very soon!

With the new season of events about to kick off, I recently sent off an email to the 100 women who left their names with us on Canada Day at Trafalgar Square (see the previous post!). I wanted to reproduce it here in case your name isn't on our email list or perhaps you've found this blog, but aren't yet a member.

Here's the message...

I hope you have all had a wonderful summer!

I also hope that you found a moment to read the email sent to you just after Canada Day, introducing you to the Canadian Women's Club, our history and our website.

We're thrilled that some of you have already signed up as new members, but if you haven't yet had a chance to find out more about the club, now is the perfect time.

Our website calendar page now lists more than 40 events and activities for our September - January season and there truly is something for everyone! For garden lovers, the first email sent to you highlighted one of the most exclusive events on offer: a private group tour of the gardens at Highgrove. For culture vultures, we've arranged a day trip to Oxford to visit the newly renovated Ashmolean Museum, a tour of Leighton House, the Museum of London's new galleries and visits to Mansion House and Marlborough House. For cooks and gourmands, there are two cooking classes you can attend as well as two 'Let's Do Lunch' events. For book lovers, you can choose from afternoon or evening book groups - or attend both! And as usual, there are monthly bridge games held at the Canadian High Commission at Grosvenor Square, a few 'IT with Tea' sessions - not forgetting our hugely popular Wednesday morning walks through Regent's Park.

For brand new members, the best way to find out more about the CWC is to attend one of our monthly Hospitality Coffee Mornings. As well as listening to an interesting and entertaining guest speaker, you'll have a chance to mingle with other members over coffee or tea and light snacks.

Our first Hospitality Coffee Morning is on Monday September 20th, when our guest speaker will be the Lady Mayoress of London. In October, we're excited to have forensic expert Christine King as our guest speaker, and in November our speaker is author Lady Alexandra Richardson. Our December morning will have a special Christmas theme, and in January, we'll meet Gracie Finley Stickings, who will treat us to anecdotes about her career and time playing Anne of Green Gables at the Charlottetown Festival.

Our coffee mornings are absolutely FREE to all members, but if you would like to attend as a guest you are more than welcome. The charge for guests is just £5. If you do decide to join on the day, your £5 will be refunded!

I hope that gives you a taster of some of the wonderful events to come - and I do hope you'll join us soon. I'm sure many of you already have busy and active lives, but the great thing about the CWC is that tours and events are organised for you - you just need to turn up on the day! Many of our members tell us that they simply enjoy visiting new places more when they are with others. And sometimes it's nice to just feel 'at home' with other Canadians while exploring London and all it has to offer. You might be surprised to discover that we have a few members of other nationalities who simply appreciate what the CWC has to offer and who like doing things with Canadians!

Please do drop us an email if you have any questions at all - you can email us at info@canadianwomenlondon.org. And if you're ready to join, you'll find our application form on our website along with a full list of Calendar events! If you're still not sure, have a look at some past events on our blog - or get in touch and tell us you would like to try an event as a guest.

Best wishes,

Patty Bell, President