Tag: Reminiscence training

Heart of Newhaven June Newsletter

Welcome to your June Newsletter

First of all, we hope you enjoyed the Picnic in the Park on Sunday 19th June in collaboration with the Friends of Victoria Park and the Victoria Park Allotment Holders. There seemed to be hundreds of people there, all having a great time. We hope you caught up with some old friends and made some new ones.

Next in the calendar will be our second Annual General Meeting. This will be held on Saturday 2nd July and members will be receiving their own invitation to attend in person this year, now that Covid restrictions have been relaxed. There will be more details in the members’ invitations.

If you think you are already a member, but have not received the AGM invitation by email in the last few days, please do get in touch with us to check your membership status by emailing admin@heartofnewhaven.co.uk .

Just a reminder that receiving this newsletter does not necessarily mean that you are a member. You might just have signed up to receive the newsletter but not joined as a member.

Check out our website for membership conditions, which are purely geographical. If you live in our area of benefit (there’s a map on the website) then you can become a full member with voting rights.

If you live outside the area then you can still become an associate member but will not be able to vote at the AGM.

Joining is free. If you haven’t joined and wish to, then you can find the form under JOIN on the website.

The Trustees look forward to meeting members in person, many of them for the first time, and discussing our exciting plans for the future.

We would also like to use this newsletter to introduce you to a new member of our team. Bryan McCarthy joins us as our new Volunteer Coordinator.

One of our trustees, Christine McDerment has been on the other end of the volunteering email address up until now, but Bryan has stepped up and answered the call for some help.

Bryan is originally from Cork, Ireland, but moved to Edinburgh five years ago and has been living in Leith while working in criminal justice with Edinburgh City Council. “I have always enjoyed volunteering in my spare time and am excited to put my energy into coordinating the volunteering activities of Heart of Newhaven,” he says.

Now, a reminder: we are looking for volunteers to get involved in reminiscence training.

Sharing family stories is therapeutic and instructive, not to mention enjoyable. If you’re interested in helping to record people’s stories and memories, to then share with the community, then please get in touch. We have secured funding for this, so the training would be free for the participants.

Contact: judy.crabb@heartofnewhaven.co.uk

or Christine.mcderment@heartofnewhaven.co.uk

Remember to check the website regularly for blogs.

The month of May saw a visit to the Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther, with whom we hope to collaborate on exhibitions and events in the future. As well as their regular collection they also offer temporary exhibitions and the current one runs until 19th June.

You can find the blogs, including Culture & Heritage and View From The Chair, under BLOGS on the website.

News from Heart of Newhaven

MAY NEWSLETTER

First of all, a big thank you to everyone who contributed to our recent Crowdfunder campaign.

This is to be put towards the costs of sprucing up the building once we get the keys. Lots of volunteers are of course already hard at work getting ready for the big day, making inventories and moving furniture, all essential logistical work.

Soon, it really will be “all hands on deck” as we start with the paintbrushes and the trowels and we’ll be calling on even more help on the ground then.

Meanwhile, if you haven’t already given, the Crowdfunder is still open for donations.

Did you know however that you can gift to our charity at any time you like, or even on a regular basis?

All you have to do is go to our website and follow the links.

You can donate online directly to our bank or you can send a cheque if you prefer.

All the details are on the website here 

Now that the weather is improving, remember our big Picnic in the Park, to be held in Victoria Park on Sunday 19th June, between 12.30 and 3.30pm. 

Inspired by the Eden Project’s Big Lunch, this is being held in collaboration with the Friends of Victoria Park and the Victoria Park Allotment Holders. Bring a picnic and enjoy meeting your neighbours. Take part in the fun races and games or take advantage of the plants and books swap tables. There will even be an (optional) fancy dress competition for children and pets – with prizes!

New initiatives

Thanks to successful applications to the Social Isolation and Loneliness Fund 2022, The Arnold Clark Community Fund and the People’s Postcode Trust, we have successfully achieved funding to help connect and bring people together. This is the aim of the following two new projects.

Reminiscence training

We know that sharing stories and memories is valuable in preserving not just family history but social history and brings people of different generations together through understanding and sharing. It’s also enjoyable and rewarding.

If you’re interested in reminiscence and recording people’s stories and memories, then we have funding for training in reminiscence work which will be led by the Living Memory Association. 

Do get in touch with: judy.crabb@heartofnewhaven.co.uk or christine.mcderment@heartofnewhaven.co.uk  if you would like to take part.

Pots of kindness

The second project is an expansion of our earlier Pots of Kindness. That project was so well received that we are going to run another.

This time, as well as primary school children, we are inviting young people of 16+ to get involved.

We will supply the seeds, pots and compost. All you do is plant the seeds and write a short letter to an elderly recipient. We’ll deliver the planted pots with their accompanying letters to the elderly or isolated within the community.

It’s a wonderful way to bring the generations together.

Get in touch with judy.crabb@heartofnewhaven.co.uk if you know a young person who would like to get involved.

Annual General Meeting

Finally, we are due to hold our next AGM shortly, probably towards the end of June. If you’ve not become a member, consider doing so now, before the meeting, so that you have the right to vote.

There are two types of membership depending on where you live and you can find out all about it on the website page.

JOIN US.

Remember to check the website and our social media regularly for updates and blogs.