HEA celebrates 25 years supporting the Holbeck community
26th May 2017HEA celebrated it’s 25th year supporting the Holbeck Community with a week of celebratory events. We kicked off the week by launching our inaugural Dementia Cafe, timed to coincide with Dementia Awareness week, and were delighted to welcome Gabby Logan and Christine Yorath to officially open the new initiative. Also helping out was our Patron the Rt Honourable Hilary Benn MP, who, along with Gabby and Christine, joined in with the reminiscence activities.
‘Underneath the Arches’, as the cafe has been named, sparked much chatter about Flanegan and Allen songs and it was great to see thoughtful conversations and much laughter throughout the afternoon. In conjunction with the 25th celebrations for HEA, we had books of photos of the local area that attendees poured over and shared stories about.
The project was run with the support of the Alzheimers Society and we were joined by trained professionals who were on hand to provide practical advice and information for those with Dementia, their family members and those caring for them. The Cafe will run on the second Monday of every month and includes lunch, refreshments and an informal atmosphere to explore issues around Dementia.
There was a silver theme throughout the week, with cupcakes and decorations adding a bit of extra sparkle to our regular activities and the entire team got involved at each of the events.
On Friday, we hosted a celebratory afternoon of entertainment at St. Matthews Community Centre where performer Steve Andrew serenaded the attendees while they enjoyed a freshly cooked meal with friends. There was dancing and lots of reminiscing.
Patron Rt Honourable Hilary Benn MP joined us again on Sunday for a delicious three course meal, where old friends and supporters came together to celebrate past work and projects still to come.
