NWR Newsletter 2017 V5_Newsletter 16OCT17 | Page 19

Illawarra Day Group Report May 2017 January began with a discussion on which ancestor you’d like to have a conversation with and why. Most of us chose grandparents whom we regretted not questioning when we were young. It was also the meeting where we chose the topic for discussion for the coming year (always a hard choice). We reported on great walks or rail journeys we’d done both in Australia and overseas in our February meeting, and for March (while it was still relatively fresh in our minds!) we talked about the things we’ll remember about 2016: Overseas trips, big O birthdays, family reunions, 2 hip replacements and a puppy training that will continue on for quite a while yet. April’s topic was the colour Orange and everyone remembered the 1970’s orange kitchen, cushions and bedspreads that abounded in our houses – the height of fashion. We had two visitors this month, so I hope we set a good example to them and they join up as members. Our topic for May, “Domestic Violence”, provoked strong feelings and emotions, as you can well imagine. We researched the origins of our maiden/married names, and who were our namesakes; chose a little-known country out of a hat (very interesting and very educational) and had our Librarian address us on what was available electronically and how we could access it on our various devices. We all have a few more apps now that will be extremely useful. Future topic for the year will be: A Wonder Woman of the Last 50 Years, An Impromptu talk to be decided at the meeting, Poetry Day And of course, our ever popular, Christmas Lunch at Lynne Savage’s, complete with Christmas crackers, Christmas trivia and Secret Santa. We hope our Conference, “Laughter in the Best Medicine” proves a success. And also, that all the members of NWR Australia have had a good year. Trish Copeland National Organizer Illawarra Day Group