Thoughts from a Bucks volunteer

The group visited Lynn and Dennis this month at their lovely house in the country. This was their first tea party, and getting there was quite an adventure! We were given ‘house name’, ‘village’ and ‘postcode’ only (no handy street name) and internet maps pointlessly displayed a circle in the middle of empty space.

Plucking up courage, Pat, Derek and I set off and, several false turns, an impromptu stop for petrol, and some very helpful directions from a helpful man later, we arrived – just ten minutes late. And what a welcome! We were ushered into their cosy living room to join Bill and Anne, and started to chat until Sarah, Dorine and Violet arrived, ten minutes later, after, to my relief, getting lost too.

As usual, drivers scuttled around helping the hosts hand out tea and making sure everyone was settled. After this flurry of activity, we sat down and joined in with one of the three conversations taking place, until sandwiches and homemade cake and scones were brought in at about 4.

For me there were plenty of highlights: The sight of Bill and Lynn, deep in conversation about Malta and life in the Navy, Violet refusing my silent prompts from the other side of the room to be the first to try the beautiful Victoria Sponge and us both giggling when Dennis discovered what we were doing, Smudge the cat and their lovely dog joining us late in the afternoon, going from person to person for attention until Smudge found a happy home on Derek’s lap, our hosts’ incredibly polite and helpful 14 year old daughter not knowing where to look when discussion turned to teenagers’ behaviour on Halloween, and, my personal favourite, Pat receiving her first Harvest Festival hamper from the local infant school. “I’m very grateful, but I now know I’ve arrived, I now know I’m elderly!”

On the way back, travelling on the quiet, dark roads, Derek fell asleep whilst Pat and I discussed the merits of Strictly against X factor, and then talk turned to the harvest festival gift and knowing when you’re old. “the thing is”, said Pat, “I don’t feel any different inside than I did when I was 25”



To find out more about Contact the Elderly visit http://www.contact-the-elderly.org.uk/

Thoughts from a Bucks volunteer

I’ve been driving for Contact the Elderly for almost four years and have been to almost 40 tea parties. Whilst this is hardly any compared to most drivers, I feel really close to my group and our wonderful hosts and hostesses. As our group gets on so well together, I tend to forget the age differences and I don’t really think of the difference we make to our elderly guests.

However, two months ago I started to pick up a new member, Derek, an elderly gentleman in his early nineties, whose family live a five hour drive away. Derek is a true gentleman and he seems to be fitting into our little group very well. His first two outings have been to very different hosts, his first to a beautiful house in the country, and his second to a lively house in the town, hosted by a young couple with two small girls, aged 2 and 5.

When dropping Derek home in the evening, I asked him how he found the group, and explained how our hosts are so very different. I was really touched when he said “I hadn’t expected to feel so welcome, as a true member of their family”.

I’ve been to so many tea parties that I know what to expect, but it’s only when I was shown the tea parties through fresh eyes that I saw how appreciated the tea parties are and what an amazing job our hosts do.

From a driver, thank you.

For more information about Contact the Elderly please visit http://www.contact-the-elderly.org.uk/

Olive calling!

The Brentwood group of Contact the Elderly started in October 2008 with our first tea party to which I had been invited. With some trepidation I arrived with five other new members who were so friendly encouraged by the `army` of volunteers who waited on us and immediately put us at ease. Jane our hostess had provided such a sumptuous buffet most of us wished we had not had any lunch but after a relaxing afternoon chatting and making new friends we were all given a doggy bag and driven home by a volunteer.

We meet one Sunday a month at various hostesses houses each being collected from and being returned home. I am 86 years old and now live alone, my son and daughter living many miles from me and at that time as my husband was in a Nursing Home I found myself looking forward to our monthly Tea Party.

In mid February whilst I was very ill myself, my husband was admitted to hospital not expected to live although he did linger on for three months before dying in mid June. I am partially handicapped myself so needed a wheelchair to enable me to visit him. As soon as my situation became known to our group, Jane,our organiser, drew up a list of volunteer drivers to take me to hospital some 15 miles away. Between about six of them they took me to the hospital every day that my family were unable to do so, not only having to hump my wheelchair into their car but once there each one undertook to feed my husband and give him the fluid he needed as they soon realised that I was unable to stand long enough to help him.

They did this until he was discharged to a Nursing Home nearer where I live even though they themselves do not live near me. Without their help I could not have seen my husband much during the last weeks of his life.

I feel so privileged to have been invited to join this group of Contact the Elderly and know that they will always be there with their kindness and help in the future.

Olive


For more information about Contact the Elderly please visit http://www.contact-the-elderly.org.uk/

Olive calling!

Olive is 86. She has been a member of the Brentwood group since it started in 2008.
She enjoys the tea parties and through her blog she will give us an insight to what happens and what a difference it makes to her life.

Tea parties full of fun

Contact the Elderly organises monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties where people over 75 (who live alone) and our wonderful volunteers get together for a couple of hours.

To get a picture of what happens at a tea party we have asked our members and volunteers to tell us about what happens at their tea party. So if you can't join a tea party yourself then read along and enjoy!