The women's group continues to flourish and grow in numbers and character.
In the last year the group followed the theme of "Our History's, Our Hopes?"
In the first term the women looked at personal and community histories. Some digging through the attics and drawers produced a number of interesting artefacts such as old photographs, wedding certificates, birth certificates, will etc. The weeks that the group shared their personal histories and stories was really fascinating as we witnessed people getting to grips with their own families histories and realising that in the room, while the differences of religion and culture were apparent, that in reality we shared a very common background.
Following on from this a number of the group progressed to trawling the resources of the Public Records Office, looking through official documentation to see if there was more to be gleaned on their family history. While some of the group enjoyed this experience, for others it proved frustrating as they failed to get any information on their families.
The middle term saw a mixture of issues discussed and various outings. The group decided they would like to visit the three seats of government in Belfast, London and Dublin. We are still in the process of setting up these visits.
The last term turned to the group looking to their hopes for the future, for themselves, their families and their communities. Again it was evident to see that there were indeed some differences in hopes but for the future of our communities there was an overwhelming hope for peace, justice and stability. The group invited three speakers along to speak of their hopes for the future. One woman from a republican background, one from a unionist background and a third from an "other" background. The group were enthralled to listen to the differing journeys that these women had taken and delighted to hear the same hope of a peaceful community where all communities were cherished.
~ Bernie Laverty (Project Co-ordinator), 2003