THE one thing Soroptimist members find themselves explaining most often is where the curious name of their organisation comes from.

According to the official website, the name was coined from the Latin soror meaning sister, and optima meaning best – the closest translation is ‘the best for women".

The name neatly sums up the ethos of the organisation, which counts more than 80,000 members in 130 countries working together to fight for what is best for women and girls around the world.

An awareness-raising movement rather than a fundraising one, Soroptimists champion human rights for all but focus on areas that predominantly affect female populations.

The movement was among the first to campaign against female genital mutilation and landmines and has a representation at the UN.

Founded in California in 1921, it wasn’t long before the movement had spread to Britain, with the first club chartered in London in 1924.

The Great Britain and Ireland federation of Soroptimists was formed in 1934 but, thanks to the Commonwealth, includes members from Anguilla to Zimbabwe.

In the North-East and North Yorkshire, the Soroptimist movement has a strong following, with clubs in Darlington, Stockton, Middlesbrough, Durham and Sunderland and across Richmond, Northallerton and the Yorkshire Dales.

The Darlington group was the first in the region to be founded, in 1948, and welcomes 35 members to its twice monthly meetings.

The group works on a dizzying array of projects at any one time and can often be found manning a stall at community events, launching petitions and campaigns and making practical contributions to women’s organisations here and abroad.

The club works equally hard for women regardless of where they live – providing toiletries and clothing for women forced to move into the Darlington women’s refuge to supporting a scheme to make sanitary products available to young girls in India.

The branch also created a well received anti-domestic violence project, called Loves Me, Loves Me Not, to highlight inappropriate behaviour in a relationship using bookmarks that were left in public spaces around Darlington.

Darlington branch president Dorothy Thomson says: “Some of the things we do are not that big – one year we encouraged members to grow bee-friendly plants and we do an annual litter-pick along the River Tees.

“We are not just out there doing good, we have a wonderful time while we’re doing it.”

Among its other projects the Darlington Soroptimists sponsored a young woman in India to go to medical school and are now helping her younger sister to achieve her dreams.

Food banks, literacy and even toilet twinning have also featured in recent Soroptimist campaigns.

Barbara Brown, programme action officer for the Darlington branch, says: “We’ve always said that if you help a woman you are helping a family.

“It is always women and children who suffer more in war, for example, and it’s estimated that 80 per cent of human trafficking involves women.

“It is about women supporting women and making sure that girls around the world can have an education and a healthy life.”

The only condition of Soroptimist membership is that you are female, have a desire to be active and care about problems and issues facing women."

Mrs Thomson adds: “It’s not just a social club, although social things come into it, but that’s just a spin-off from our main objectives.

“It’s people coming together who want to make a difference. Doing nothing is guaranteed to make no difference.

“But if you chip away at something, you can create change – look at the landmines campaign slowly coming to the fore and making a difference.

“You might put a lot of effort in as a Soroptimist but you always get more back.”

Darlington Soroptimists meet every second Monday and fourth Tuesday in the month at Dalkeith House.

For more information on Soroptimists and the different groups in the region visit sigbi.org.