do it! The recent Wales conference celebrated volunteers in the heart of the country Doing things the Welsh way Mary Cowern cash plus interest from tai chi T he Arthritis Care Wales staff and volunteers laughed their way through the 2015 annual Volunteering Conference in October. This was a two-day event to celebrate the true value that volunteers bring to Arthritis Care. Most importantly,it was a chance for everyone to get together to talk, eat, celebrate and be merry. The conference enabled volunteers to have a say in shaping our services in Wales, and was filled with extremely informative workshops across the two days. Nikki Hill, director of policy and communications, came along to talk about how we can turn arthritis into a cause that people want to support. This was followed by a presentation and workshop from Mary Cowern, director of Arthritis Care Wales, on the importance of influencing change for the better, especially in the lead up to Welsh Assembly elections in 2016. The team also hosted sessions that looked at some exciting things happening within the organisation, both currently and moving into 2016. These include developments to the Living Well with Arthritis and the Young People & Families programmes, plans for the support offer to branches and groups, and a talk from the Wales committee. One of the loveliest things about the conference was that everyone got together over dinner and took part in a quiz. The Margaret Evans Award ceremony also took place, honouring outstanding volunteer contributions. This year, the award went to Debbie Pace, one of our youth volunteers, for her dedication, enthusiasm and commitment to developing a service for young people with arthritis in Wales. We often hear from people that they want to enjoy things that are notalways related to arthritis, so in the spirit of hilarity and fun in Wales theconference finished with a LaughterYoga workshop! What better way to end a fabulous two days of honouring volunteering? Many congratulations to the Wales team and a huge thank you to all our volunteers, who truly are the heart of everything we do. Roll on 2016 for another year of Welsh cakes, giggles andcelebrations! In Oswestry, the local branch held a tai chi demonstration, and a coffee morning and cake sale, at Gobowen Scout Hall. The group has its own tai chi instructor, and around 30 people attended. Frances Wycherley, who helped coordinate the event, said it was a great day and everyone enjoyed themselves. Those who took part in the tai chi demonstration were members of our group, but we have since had enquiries from people interested in joining us. The event was well advertised in the local paper and we had plenty of new visitors. The ladies who run our hydrotherapy sessions at the local hospital sold cakes and did the raffle. We made 310 on the day, which we are thrilled with! n For more info, email services@arthritiscare. org.uk