THE MEMBERS of Wyre Forest Talking Newspaper (WFTN) have celebrated the charity’s 45th birthday.
The group held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Saturday and, following the official business, guests were invited to enjoy a celebratory buffet.
The meeting was well attended by more than 50 guests including the Mayors of Stourport and Bewdley, local councillors and WFTN volunteers old and new.
Mike Dickins and Mary Blake, who had both been volunteers with WFTN at the very beginning in 1980, also helped to cut the celebration cakes.
WFTN provides a weekly reading of local newspapers for blind and partially sighted people in the Wyre Forest area.
It is a free service run entirely by volunteers and is available to anyone who has difficulty reading or holding a newspaper.
Picture by Colin Hill. s
It is distributed to listeners on a memory stick which plays on the player, provided free of charge by WFTN. Alternatively, the memory stick can be plugged into the listener’s own player.
The recording features local news and sport from Kidderminster newspapers and other sources.
It also produces a magazine recording three times a year, with articles from various local and national magazines, along with a seasonal edition at Christmas.
There are various volunteer roles available, such as reading the news for the recordings, administrative tasks, editing, being a technician and liaising with listeners.
The WFTN welcomes volunteers from all backgrounds, ages, cultures, experiences, skills and interests and is always looking for new volunteers and listeners.
Picture by Colin Hill. s
A WFTN spokesperson said: “Our volunteers are a fabulous bunch of people, from all walks of life, and being part of WFTN not only helps our listeners, it’s a great way of meeting new friends as well.
“If you think this might be for you, or know of someone who would like to become a listener, more details about the charity and how to become involved, can be found on our website.”
Visit wftn.org for more information on the service, listening to it or volunteering.
WFTN is a registered charity, and whilst the service is free to listeners, it requires funding on a regular basis. Costs include rental of premises, replacement and maintenance of equipment, and sundry expenses.
Financial contributions, donations large and small, are welcome whether from individuals or organisations.
“Without such support WFTN would cease to exist,” said the spokesperson.
