YEAR END AND UPDATE

Ooops i see it has been quite some time since a trustee did an update for you all!  Well just because we do not always tell you what we have been doing does not mean we have not been busy......So i thought i would update you all on a few matters.

Year end - 31 March signals our financial year end and so our lovely accountants are now gathering all the important paperwork together.  Something we are looking towards this financial year is increasing fundraising, budgeting more and generally being more financially streamlined.

Fundraising Pack - Given we are focusing more on fundraising this year to help to fund research into PCOS then we are gathering together a good old fashioned fundraising pack, with inspiration, plans, posters and information to help  you all to help us to help you ....

Working Groups - Technically as Trustees we should oversee the charity direction, however, as we have limited funds and limited volunteers then we also do alot of the day to day running of the charity.  So we have divided ourselves into working groups to make our MC meetings more effective.

That's all for now folks, i promise it won't be as long 'til the next one...

Cx

New Year...

Well a Happy New Year to all of you....

January is historically always a 'tight' month for everyone and especially so for Charities - so Verity has had a MASSIVE boost from the Wonderful Gemma Baker who has recently returned from Kilimanjaro (i hope i spelt that right) after raising over £1400 for Verity. So round of applause please for Gemma.

The New Year is also a good time to get your resolutions going - and how about trying to take control of your pcos. Our membership gives you lots of good information as well as discounted rated to our conferences.

more updates later...

cx

Verity fundraising superstar....Gemma Baker

One of our lovely members Gemma Baker is fundraising away for Verity in her charity challenge of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.....she is setting of on 4th January 2012, which means she will still be training hard when all of us are enjoying our roast turkey....

All of us at Verity think Gemma is AMAZING not only for setting herself a challenge of a lifetime and going for it - but also for raising a whopping £1064 for Verity.

So we just wanted to send out a huge cheer - so GOOOOOOO GEMMA...

If you would like to sponsr Gemma - please go to her just giving page:

http://www.justgiving.com/GemmaBaker25

Caroline
x

Fundraising update.....

Well what a busy few weeks we at Verity have had.......

PCOS Awareness Week flew by in a whirl of fertility shows, conferences and puzzles. Hope you all did your little bit to keep raising awareness and funds.

So a little update, earlier than usual as i have a really busy week, to let you know how we are all doing on the £5,000.00 target. We are now on just over £2,750 which means we are over half way but still plenty more to do - so keep fundraising.

If you could not make it to the conference you can still deposit your pennies for pcos (see the post below) at your nearest HSBC bank. It is also not too late to hold your own fundraiser as every penny counts.....

Pennies for PCOS

We need your help to keep the website and discussion board running

It’s been a financially challenging year for the charity, and we need your help to raise £5000 by the end of the year to cover the costs of the website and discussion board for 2012. We understand that money is tight for us all, that’s why we’ve come up with a great way that you can help without feeling the pinch!

Pennies for PCOS

Between now and the end of 2011, why not collect up all those pesky 1p and 2p coins that collect at the bottom of our handbags and down the back of the sofa?

Most of us will hardly miss a few pennies here and there, but if all our members did this it would make a huge difference not just to Verity, but the hundreds of thousands of women around the country that rely on our website and forum every year.

Even better, why not take a Pennies for PCOS jar into your workplace or local shop? We’ve made a nifty little label that you can cut out and stick on an old jam jar, and when you’re done use the slip below to pop into a local HSBC branch and bank your efforts.

To find your local HSBC branch, visit http://bit.ly/HSBC-branch

Many thanks in advance to all of you that participate!  If you're coming to the conference this Saturday, why not bring your pennies along with you?  We'll have a big purple pot to collect all the coins :)

Make sure to follow the blog for our regular fundraising updates as we inch closer to our £5000 target.

Verity pennies-for-pcos-flyer

View more documents from Rachel Hawkes

PCOS myths Pt 2 - Can PCOS be cured?

Here is the second PCOS myth we are clearing up during Awareness Week, and arguably the most important. There are so many websites online offering cures for PCOS, that are profiting by selling false hope. 

So, without further ado... let's clear this big fat myth right up!

Can PCOS be cured?
Professor Stephen Atkin, Head of Academic Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism at Hull York Medical School and Verity adviser says:

"I am afraid that PCOS cannot be cured, but it can be managed. In those patients who are overweight we have shown that even a small amount of weight loss (about 5%) can have a major beneficial effect on testosterone levels (that contribute to excess hair growth) and on helping periods to be more regular."

PCOS myths Pt 1 - No cysts on your ovaries

During PCOS Awareness Week (05-12 November 2012), we will be busting up some of the common myths around polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).  Here's the first one, leave a comment below to let us know your thoughts, and whether you already knew the answer.

"If I don't have cysts on my ovaries, I can't have PCOS"
Dr Helen Mason, Senior Lecturer in Reproductive Endocrinology at St George's University in London and Verity adviser says:

"First of all, the cysts are inside the ovary, not on the outside.  The diagnostic criteria for PCOS which were agreed a few years ago state that to have PCOS you have to have 2 out of 3 of the following:

• Increased numbers of cysts / follicles on the ovaries
• Irregular or absent menstrual cycles



L: Normal ovary    R: Polycystic ovary

• Raised androgen or a clinical sign of this, such as hirsutism or acne

So the answer is that you can have PCOS without seeing cysts on the scan.  The problem with scanning is that it really is an art and not a hard science and cysts can be missed.  Plus, the appearance of the ovary can change.  If you have irregular cycles and acne / hirsutism, however, the chances are very good that you have PCOS."

PCOS AWARENESS WEEK

Well it is finally here ladies - the second pcos awareness week. What a start we have been extremely busy with the national fertility show at London Olympia yesterday and today. We must have spoken to thousands of individuals.

It is such an amazing way of increasing awareness and making contacts. We would love to attend at more shows like this but it does cost each time in stock, and the show stands. So we need all you lovely ladies to keep fundraising for us so we can keep speaking to all the professionals and the public.

further updates soon.

cx

Amazing Amazon....

Really busy week this week so just a quick blog after the Verity MC about how amazing Amazon is. If you click through to Amazon from the Verity website (on the PCOS books section) then Verity gets a percentage of the money paid donated from Amazon at no extra cost to you. This donation is not just for PCOS books but on anything you buy from Amazon.

So anyone doing their xmas shopping on Amazon start from the PCOS books page.

cx

Dedication.....

Now you all know that your trustees and volunteers are a dedicated lot (Rachel literally does not sleep - emails at 4am anyone!!) and this week on my holiday i too was still dedicated and thinking all things Verity.

So what did i do - i hear you ask - well i dragged my friends down to Aphrodite's Rock in Cyprus where legend has it Aphrodite rose from the sea. Now according to legends (ok my Dorling Kingsley guide book) many women come here to tie hankerchiefs to a tree as an offering to Aphrodite for fertility. So i did just that on behalf of all you pcos ladies.

Legend (the guide book again) also says that if you swim round Aphrodite's rock you get a year younger and Aphrodite will bestow love and fertility on you. Becki was feeling poorly, so Katy, Preety and i took up the challenge in the somewhat choppy seas (our boat trip was cancelled - it was that rough). Katy gallanty offered to take photos whilst Preety and i swum our hardest (whilst trying to keep hold of our beach shoes) and made it round the rock without crashing into it.

So what is the moral of this story - us trustees (and our lovely friends) are a dedicated bunch but there is only so much we can do and so do rely on all of you to support the charity and fundraise for it so we can continue to put on conferences, run the website and so forth.

until next time.

Cx

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