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HHI visits to India and Zambia in 2023

Jute Williams returned to Zambia for her annual visit in September. She was accompanied this time by the BPFC film crew who were to carry a full programme of filming the various projects and individuals supported by HHI as they had already done earlier in the year in India when they accompanied HHI’s Chair Edmund Plummer on his annual visit to that country. The results of their efforts can be viewed by using the links below.

There were many moving and memorableitems inthe reports which Jute sent back each day during her annual visit to Zambia. Have a look at these in Jute’s Travelogue under the News item in the HHI website.

The films from India can also be viewed on the Films section of the website

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HHI Bridge Drive

SFHHI’s  2023 annual Bridge Drive took place in a different venue this year. Following the successful Cafe Bridge Day held earlier in the year an alternative less active event offering an afternoon of ‘fun bridge’ was held in the Strathaven Golf Clubhouse on Tuesday 16th November

It was well supported with sixty players from The Strathaven and Hamilton Bridge Clubs taking part. The support of the Hamilton members was particularly appreciated by the SFHHI committee. An excellent sandwich lunch was provided by the Golf Club prior to play.

The successful winner of the bridge was Strathaven Club member Neil Dougan seen being presented with his prize by Kath Russell. The lucky winner of the HHI cake provided by Alexander Taylors was Mrs Sandra Raeburn 

The excellent sum of just over £770 was raised for Health Help International to help its efforts towards the purchase of a new dormitory for disabled children at a school in Zambia. 

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Cafe Bridge Day

Cafe Bridge Days are relatively new in the UK but such events have been enjoyed on the Continent for a number of years. At these, players move between a number of prearranged venues and play several hands of bridge in each.

SFHHI hosted its first Cafe Bridge Day on Wednesday 7th June. Six local cafes and restaurants participated each hosting one or two tables and providing lunches half way through the proceedings. Play took place also in Avondale Church which generously allowed us the use of its facilities for the registration of the players and their return at the end of the day for results to be announce and prizes to be awarded. 

Sixty players took part coming from around the country and including a party of twelve  from London. An evening meal at the Drawing Room was arranged for the London party, followed by a programme of Scottish music provided by local singers and musicians.The excellent sum of £2000 was raised for HHI

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2023 Round Strathaven 50

This year’s RS50 event, held on Sunday 21st August, was the 21st since the first one in 2002

The numbers taking part continue to increase each year and a record 800 cyclists had entered beforehand. On the day 610 took part in the 50 mile route and 207 over the 15 miles.

The weather was favourable and everyone completed their routes. There were many favourable comments from the cyclists about the organisation of the event and especially about the usual excellent refreshments at the various locations.

A record sum of over £15,000 was raised and once again Health Help International received a very generous donation of £6000. This brings the total amount received by HHI from the RS50 events since 2002 to just over £60,000  

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Café Bridge

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In a new venture for SFHHI we will be hosting a Café Bridge event in Strathaven on Wednesday 7th June. This will be a fun day for all bridge players and we are hoping to attract approximately 80 people to the town from all over the UK.  The bridge will be a very sociable game and will involve moving from one café to the next after every 4 hands, with lunch included at one of the stops. If you play bridge at home, or in a club, please come along and play. If you don’t play, please pass on the information to all the bridge players that you know. The day will start and finish at Avendale Church where a raffle will be drawn and prizes awarded. As ever we hope you will support in whatever way you can and please spread the word.

More information and registration for the event can be found here 

or phone Kath on 07916 171 830

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Trustee Visits

After an absence of two years due to the restrictions of Covid, Edmund Plummer, Chair of HHI, was able to resume his annual visit to India at the beginning of 2022 when he spent two weeks catching up on all the projects and organisations supported by HHI in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Later in the year he joined Alun and Jute Williams on their return visit to Zambia to see all of the activities being supported by HHI there. 

Interesting reports on both these visits as well as photographs can be seen on the HHI website. 

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Iain Park Interview on Avondale Radio

Iain Park had the opportunity to speak about Health International and the Strathaven Friends of HHI in an interview he had with Helen McCabe broadcast on 21st November 2022 on Avondale Radio. This local radio station which is accessed on the Internet is reaching an ever widening audience since it started up earlier in 2022. Helen presents a programme called ‘Thinking Allowed’ which is broadcast twice a week. Iain’s hour long chat with Helen when he was able to tell her all about the work of the Charity and Strathaven’s involvement with it was interspersed with six musical items chosen by him. You will be able to listen to it shortly when it is added to the list of archived items  -on www.avondaleradio.com  

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Round Strathaven 50

This year’s event, the 21st RS50 since it started in 2002 was held on 21st August and was one of the most successful to date. Around 550 cyclists of all ages took part over either the 15 or 50 miles routes and the excellent sum of over £12,000 was raised. Many cyclists donated more than the £22 entry fee towards the good causes which the RS50 supports, including Health Help International. This year the Charity received the generous donation of £6,000.

This will be put towards the fund which HHI has established for the purchase of a new Autoclave machine for the Monze Mission Hospital in Zambia. These sterilising machines are essential to the safe running of the hospital and the present machines are nearing the end of their useful life. 

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