We have been thinking about the children starting a new school term this September. We wish them all the best and are looking forward to welcoming back to Astley the Debutots and Astley Primary School children. Memories of school were stirred when we received our memory box from the M&S Archive. Marks& Spencer was always the “go to” place for school uniform!
The M&S Archive
Their Archive was set up in 1984, in the 100th year anniversary of M&S and is where they preserve, develop and share the M&S collection. One of the many things they do is lend out memory boxes, free of charge, to care homes. These contain original clothing and accessories from the 1940s to the 1970s, for use as memory and conversation prompts. Each box is different and ours contained everything from a long flowing kimono, to a knitted beret, nylon stockings, vintage print dresses our residents recalled wearing, headscarves, handbags and more - it was quite a treasure trove. A huge thank you to M&S. We spent such a lovely afternoon listening to residents’ stories of how the fashions have changed and what eras were their favourites.
Other summer events
We celebrated National Beer Day with a pub afternoon. And we enjoyed our own Happy Hour (or two!) thanks to Thatchers, who very kindly sent us bottles of their Thatchers Gold Somerset Cider, bar mats and pint glasses so we could really create a pub scene. Nothing quite like a chilled pint of cider on a hot summers afternoon! We have been making the most of the great weather – our August BBQ for friends and family was a really special day.
Thanks also to Creative Mojo Worcestershire for bringing the seaside to Astley. This was the first of many sessions we have arranged with Creative Mojo, who are sharing with us their crafting and creative flair. They worked with residents to create a fabulous colourful seaside painting. Such a great sense of achievement and we are looking forward to seeing them again.
And we have just marked National Photography Day with a photoshoot with all of our residents. There is a creative photography competition this summer across our Heritage Homes so we have a lot of possible entries to choose from.
Plans for the Autumn
Residents are hoping for a visit from The King (Elvis, of course!) so watch this space!
12th September, we are celebrating Chocolate Milkshake Day, making a variety of different shakes.
Our Macmillan coffee morning on Wednesday 24thSeptember 1030-1230AM.
We have Dave from G Fitness coming in for armchair exercises once every 3 weeks from 3rd September.
There is music therapy with Kim on 9th October .
17th-23rd October we will be celebrating National Baking week, whipping up some delicious treats for everyone.
31st October we are having a Halloween party. Singer Melissa Hollick is coming to entertain us. Family and friends are invited - we would like to see everyone dressed in their best Halloween costumes!
Members from Astley church are coming back to Astley to hold regular services for the residents. We have started making poppies for Astley Church Remembrance Day Display and are making some for own display at Astley.