About District 17
District 17 covers most of Devon and has 5 clubs – Barnstaple, Dartmouth, Exmouth, Okehampton and Torquay. Devon is a large and beautiful county with1000s of visitors each year. Devon is home to two beautiful coasts and the two National Parks, Dartmoor and Exmoor as well as towns, cities and built-up areas, interspersed with countryside and lots of villages and farmland. The ultimate holiday destination on our doorsteps! We try to meet together as centrally as possible!
As a District we have social lunches and our District Christmas Lunch and Tabletop Sale is well supported with all the clubs raising money for their own local charities. The District Spring meeting is also a very busy event with Skittles, a Darts competition and a Quiz before the Business meeting. Thank you, Bideford club, for hosting this last year, and Dartmouth, who will be our hosts next year in 2025.
District Chairman
District Chairman Louise French
Welcome
Hello and welcome to our page on the Association Website and I hope this will give you a taste of who we are and what we are doing in our clubs. I have the honour of being District 17 Chairman for the second time and I am hoping to create new opportunities to grow our clubs, including using the new publicity material available to share our message of friendship and service.
All our Clubs meet regularly once a month. They are all unique and very different! I am looking forward to visiting them again this year. They all include lots of coffee mornings, suppers, lunches and afternoon teas. This is often where money for their chosen charities is raised as well as a time for coming up with suggestions for service and further ideas for the future, socialising and enjoying each other’s company.
If you would like to contact any of our clubs and find out much more, please use the email below.
Social Links
Who we support
Chairman Louise is fundraising for South West Blood Bikes again this year. These are volunteers who use their advanced motorcycle skills in providing an ‘out of hours’ transporting service, supporting the NHS hospitals and hospices across Devon.
Every Club has its own International Charity alongside their local charities and every club makes up shoeboxes for Christmas and send blankets, sheets and many other donations to CR2EE – Christian Response to Eastern Europe, a local Charity based in South Devon.
This year our District 17 International Zone Rally will be hosted by Barnstaple and it will coincide with their 80th Birthday celebrations on February 8th 2025. We are already collecting leftover currency and UK coins and notes that are no longer legal tender for Mary’s Meals – helping to provide nutritious school meals to children living in some of the world’s poorest countries. School + Food = Hope.
District 17 Officers
DISTRICT CHAIRMAN – Louise French
1st Vice Chairman – Deirdre Stewart
District Secretary – Margaret Nosowska
District Treasurer – Pat Bunch
Member of Council – Gay Ross
District Editor – June Tamlyn
International Service Chairman – June Tamlyn
Membership & Development Officer – Deirdre Stewart
Email Us
If you would like to get in touch please email iwbarnstaple@gmail.com
District 17 Events
| Meeting | Date | Place |
|---|---|---|
| Summer Exec Meeting | 20/05/2025 | Waie Inn |
| Summer Distict Meeting | 24/06/2025 | Waie Inn |
| District Rally | 25/11/2025 | Torquay |
Current Clubs
Barnstaple - The Barnstaple Hotel EX311LE - 1st Tuesday 12.00 noon
Dartmouth - Stoke Fleming Village Hall TQ6 0QT - 2nd Thursday 14.30
Exmouth - The Imperial Hotel EX8 2SW - 2nd Thursday 12.00 noon
Okehampton - The Okement Centre EX20 1LP - 3rd Tuesday 19.00
Torquay - Livermead House Hotel TQ2 6QJ - 2nd Monday 14.00
(1945) BARNSTAPLE
(1959) DARTMOUTH
(1930) EXMOUTH
(1965) OKEHAMPTON
(1934) TORQUAY
District 17 latest news
D17 The Conference!
The sun shone and the flower displays around Harrogate were beautiful. The venue was special and the programme an excellent mix! Heather Sheerin, our Association President with her Council and Conference Committee really pulled out all the stops. The AGM was...
D17 Bridget’s Barnstaple Newsletters January and February and March and April 2025
ID17_2025_Barnstaple Newsletter April 2025 ID17_2025_Barnstaple Newsletter March 2025 ID17_2025_IW Barnstaple Newsletter February 2025 ID17_2025_ Barnstaple Newsletter January...
D17 Newsletter March 2025 (Click on the link below)
District 17 E-Newsletter March...