Dinner - Speaker

On Thursday 6^th October 2016 President Brian Johnson took the chair as he welcomed 21 Rotarians and guest speakers Jean Daisley and Lynda Sloan to this lunch time meeting held at the Gilvenbank Hotel.

On reception this week was Lars Christiansen who said grace Roy Francey and Peter May.

Our speakers this week were Jean Daisley and Lynda Sloan from Support in Mind Scotland Fife Branch who are based in Kirkcaldy who were initially part of the UK charity National Schizophrenia Fellowship, set up in 1972 following a 1970 article written by John Pringle in The Times about the dilemmas faced by carers and families of people diagnosed with schizophrenia.

In 1984 they became an independent Scottish Charity, National Schizophrenia Fellowship (Scotland), and this is still their registered company name. However, in 2010 they changed their operating name to Support in Mind Scotland following representations from their members who felt that they supported people who experienced many conditions, of which schizophrenia was only one. However, they are still known for their particular expertise in understanding schizophrenia and psychosis and the impact that this has on families and they still actively campaign to challenge the stigma experienced specifically by people living with schizophrenia. They are focussed in promoting the best possible mental health outcomes for everyone through their various initiatives. Within the service, they have a number of activities and projects: The Carer Support Service – they facilitate monthly groups in Kirkcaldy, Cupar, Dunfermline and Leven. The service also provides one to one support and information. They understand what it means to care for someone who has ongoing mental ill health and they can support individuals through this. For those of you who experience voices and other sensory disturbances, they hold weekly peer support meetings in Glenrothes, Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath.  They also offer a one to one service Fife-wide.  Their local members' publications group along with local psychiatrists and psychologists have compiled a collection of pamphlets. If any individuals are facing the stresses of everyday life and need to talk to someone to help you move forward, then their drop in sessions in Kirkcaldy, St Andrews or Cupar are available weekly. They can also help individuals take the next steps through the volunteer project

The Rotary vote of thanks was given by Tracy Thomson,

This coming week 13^th October 2016 will be a lunch time meeting at the Gilvenbank meet at 12.45pm for a 12.55pm start. There will not be a speaker this week as this will be a business meeting where Council Chairs will update members on their ongoing projects

On reception this week 13^th October 2016 will Chris Grist, Jim Boyd and Peter May.

Friends of Rotary is being promoted for those who would like to be involved in assisting in the community and internationally but have limited time and possibly can only commit on a part time basis. If you are interested in giving of some of your time as an extra resource to Rotary and possibly raising funds for charitable causes, please contact our President Brian Johnson on 01592 743251 or leave a message at Gilvenbank Hotel.