Robin Jowit OBE, former Mayor of Richmond was a guest speaker at The Teddington Society's (TTS) Annual General Meeting (AGM) at Teddington's Normansfield Theatre on Friday, 11 April.

During the AGM, Jowit, who went to Ukraine in 2023 and has since fundraised for humanitarian aid to the country, discussed why raising money for such aid is so important.

The photos and videos he presented during his talk at the AGM showed the devastation the war with Russia has caused.

Robin Jowit wore a Keep Out of Other Countries' Affairs (KOOCA) top when discussing his work in Ukraine (Credit: Kitt Garrett)

 He explained that since the war started, 3,800 schools in Ukraine have been damaged while 365 have been completely destroyed, meaning that Ukrainian children have been taking their lessons in bunkers or underground Metro stations.

The Teddington resident said: "The real heroes are the teachers and 95% of them are women."

Jowit, 87, has raised over £20,000 with the help of the Kew Rotary Club to provide educational opportunities for children in Ukraine.

All of Jowit's work has been done pro bono and all donations raised through his Crowdfunder page go to helping Ukrainian children.

The money raised has provided laptops, electrical storage batteries, sports equipment, floodlight safety, and training equipment to help teach STEM subjects to the children.

Jowit received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Makariv Town Council for his fundraising efforts (Credit: Kitt Garrett)

Jowit needs to raise and additional £50k to achieve his goal of doing another aid mission to Ukraine later this year.

Following Jowit's talk, Sally Howland, TTS's Treasurer, presented updates about the society's membership.

She explained that at the end of 2024, the society had 645 active memberships amounting to 927 members in total (including 282 "linked" members).

She said: "Please keep up the good work and help us by encouraging your friends, neighbours, and family to attend our events and join us."

The Teddington Society's Liz Waters, Vice Chair, Ann Whitfield, Membership Secretary, Denise Woods, Events Lead (Credit: Kitt Garrett)

TTS's philanthropic contributions in early 2025 were also highlighted, including donations to local charities such as Off the Record, Crossroads Care, Teddington Summer Music, and St Mary with St Alban Church.

The Teddington Society donated a total of £2,919 to various local charities in 2024 (Credit: Kitt Garrett)

Howard Dix, TTS's History Chair, and his wife Jasmine have been members since 2000, but only active in the last couple of years.

Dix said: " I think it helps keep us in touch with the local community and provides a forum for sharing views and ideas for improving the town."

Upcoming TTS events include:

• Teddington in Flower 2025 – Sunday, 18 May 2025, 2pm – 6pm.
• Teddington Village Fair - Sunday, 22 June 2025 12pm – 5.30pm.

You can find out more information about TTS and how to become a member here.