Reading, Wokingham & Districts MS Society

Make sure you keep the 12th August free as we are holding an open garden event at The Harris Garden, University of Reading.

This is primarily to raise funds and awareness of MS but of course, members are welcome to come along too.

Regrettably the garden isn’t fully wheelchair accessible. Please mention this event to any friends or family who are interested in gardens (or tea and cakes for that matter) as it would be great to make a success of this new venture.

The Pagoda Sale in Woodley on 23rd March did very well, raising £333. Next sale is on Friday 29th June.

Results of flagdays so far this year:

While the Lambing Weekend events were very successful this year, the Bluebell Walks on the last weekend of April were hit by extremely poor weather, and did not even cover their costs. Next year they are going to be great, however.

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This year's lambing weekends at Rushall Farm got off to a good start on 17th-18th March, despite the threat of rain. The second weekend on 24th-25th March enjoyed very warm and sunny weather, and drew large numbers of visitors.

Initial figures show gross takings of over £33,000 raised to help the MS Society's work. Final figures after subtracting expenses and donation of part of the proceeds to the John Simonds Trust will be published when available.

A Zumba fitness workout at Wargrave Piggott School in December raised £1,000 for the Multiple Sclerosis Society. Almost 80 people took part in the event, which was organised by Zumba instructor, Samantha Rayner.

Latin-inspired Zumba was created by dancer and choreographer Alberto "Beto" Perez in Colombia during the 1990s. It is now the largest dance fitness program in the world.

The cheque was presented to Heather Cresswell and Shirley Boyt of the Reading and Wokingham Branch of the Society. Both were over the moon to receive such a magnificent sum.

Blue Badge parking arrangements in Reading town centre are changing. Please beware if you are planning to drive into Reading town centre to do a spot of Christmas shopping:

Limited Access

A number of disabled bays can now only be accessed between 11.00 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. (or after 7.00 p,m,) every day, including weekends! Cameras are in operation, and you will be fined £60 if you are caught. The bays, 29 in total, are located in part of Friar Street, West Street and St Mary's Butts.

Parking meters

You may not realise, as it doesn't say on the meters or signs, but you can park for four hours free of charge where there is a parking meter, but do remember to display both your badge and clock.

Yellow Lines

There are also a number of double and single yellow lines where you can park, but again remember your badge and clock.

The council has produced a map detailing all of the above. Click here to view the map (PDF file). It isn't the clearest of maps, but hopefully it may help you find somewhere to park.

We will try to keep you up to date with future changes

“I have MS. But thanks to you, I also have... coffee with friends, swimming on Sundays, walks out with my dog Lily, days out with my grandchildren... my freedom!”

Di received a grant from the MS Society towards a new mobility scooter. To help raise funds, she kindly agreed to share her experiences of MS and the difference the scooter has made to her life.

Head Office sent a fundraising letter to 34,000 households across the UK in early September. Since then, members and supporters have donated over £70,000 to the appeal

Diane's story is on the new national MS website. Anyone wishing to donate to the appeal can do so at: www.mssociety.org.uk/freedom

The three pagoda sales in Woodley in 2011 raised £1,060. Many thanks to all who donated items to sell and to those who helped with the sales.

If you have any items to donate for future sales please ring Shirley on 0118 961 6107.

Regulars enjoyed a buffet lunch and a slice of cake to celebrate the 10th birthday of our Drop-in on Monday 24th October.

The Drop-in replaced the old ‘Monday Club’, and was the brainchild of Colin Graves, sadly no longer with us. However, Colin’s widow Dianne still regularly attends the Drop-in.

During its 10-year existence the Drop-in has gone from strength to strength and now provides arts & crafts, computer training, alternative therapies and guest speakers as well as the opportunity to just have a chat over coffee or lunch.

It may surprise you to learn that we rely entirely on volunteers to run our Branch activities. New volunteers are always welcomed and these are just some of the ways you could get involved. It needn't be a huge commitment even a small amount of your time would be valued. Perhaps you could:

sell raffle tickets, publicise an event, bake a cake, make tea at a social event.

If you have a little more time to spare maybe you'd like to:

drive one of our minibuses, look after our website, help organise fundraising events, visit someone with MS.

If you have a young person in your family who is taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme, they might like to help us as part of their charitable work.

Contact us, we'd love to hear from you!