For 84 years, women of rural Omokoroa have hung a banner embroidered with kowhai and Manuka flowers and recited a creed at monthly meetings which have played an important role in their lives, and enabled them to make a difference in society locally and nationally too.

The 1933 banner was hung once more in early December, as seven members of the Omokoroa branch of Rural Women gathered for their Christmas meeting at the home of branch president Jenny Turner in Work Road, Katikati.

Among those attending was 93-year-old Enid Plummer.

“I’ve been a member since I was in my 20s. It’s a much smaller group now but I continue to enjoy the meetings,” says Enid.

As a young, newly wed woman living in what was then an isolated rural area, the companionship and support of other women of all ages was an important part of her life, she says.

Back when Enid joined, the organisation was called the Women’s Division Federated Farmers, and the banner still bears the initials WDFF. However, it’s now known as Rural Women New Zealand.

Omokoroa branch treasurer Jeanette Merritt says the work of Rural Women at branch level goes largely unrecognised by the public.

“People often think all we are about is scones and cups of tea, but that’s not the case. As a small branch we have limited funds but we regularly contribute to a number of local causes. If we see a need we set about raising money to help and it’s surprising how much we are able to achieve,” she says.

National initiatives

The Omokoroa branch funds, among others, the TECT Rescue Helicopter, local volunteer fire brigades, the Waipuna Hospice, Women’s’ Refuge and the Seafarers Union.

Friendship and the social aspects of their monthly meetings are important to the women but so too, says Jenny Turner, is the chance to make a difference on a much wider scale.

As members of the national body Rural Women New Zealand, the branch members support initiatives such as leptospirosis research, breast cancer awareness, faster roll out of rural broadband, suicide prevention, school bus safety, prostate cancer awareness and rural support initiatives.

They are also able to make their views known on issues of concern they identify which affect everyday lives of rural families, including currently, reductions in school bus services. Such issues are often taken up for action at government level by the national body.

However, Jenny says membership numbers in branches like Omokoroa are dwindling as changing lifestyles and interests mean the organisation isn’t attracting younger members.

On-line meetings

“I can see a time when Rural Women exists almost entirely online, with women connecting through social media and email.”

However, the virtual world would be no replacement for the experience members of the Omokoroa branch enjoyed on December 5, when Jenny treated them to an Italian-themed Christmas lunch, inspired by her visit to Italy to attend a Peta Mathias cooking school in Puglia, Southern Italy, in September.

Jenny began with a demonstration of making pasta dough, with durum wheat flour and eggs, which she kneaded to elastic consistency then left to rest before rolling through a pasta machine.

Once thin enough, Jenny turned the pasta into “strings” using the same machine and cooked it for a spaghetti and meat balls dish.

“In Italy meals are continuous with one dish coming after the other. The Italians really do sit outdoors in summer around long tables, with extended family members contributing dishes to the meals.”

Nip of Limoncello

Jenny’s menu began with an antipasto platter of olives, chesses, cured meats and sardines. That was followed by rice balls and salad, pan fried marinated salmon, the spaghetti and meat balls, a roasted dish of jointed chicken (hare) with olives, grapes, tomatoes, garlic herbs and lashings of white wine. The meal was completed with a wedge of Pannetone and a nip of Limoncello.

It was an enjoyable afternoon for a group of women who are determined to continue to meet, to enjoy friendship, to make a difference to the lives of rural people, and in keeping with the closing words of their creed; “strive to touch and to know the great human heart common to us all, and O Lord, let us not forget to be kind”.