Extra hands organise a walk down memory lane

Memories came flooding back to everyone at a special event organised by a West Norfolk care company this week.

The Walk Down Memory Lane saw older visitors share stories from their past with friends, family and staff at Extra Hands Home Care.

A special reminiscent table had a range of conversation-starting artifacts from years gone by, including old ‘box’-style cameras, medals and books of local history. The items were brought in by staff and families, but the company, which was the first in Norfolk to offer a well-being check service, said donations are always welcome for future events.

“We had a wonderful afternoon chatting to our service users and their families. It was lovely to hear so many special stories and shared experiences over a cup of tea,” said Jo Tier, Director of Care Services.

The Walk Down Memory Lane afternoon is the latest in a string of community events organised by the company, which also has offices in Heacham rated Outstanding by the Care Quality Commission earlier this year.

The group of around 22 people shared refreshments during the afternoon which gave everyone the chance to know a little more about the service users and some of their history.

“Everyone has memories to share and they can be incredibly important to the individual, often shaping their own life and that of their wider family. They often want to revisit those events and we wanted to offer them the time to do so, with others and in comfort,” added Jo.

“Stories were mostly about wartime experiences, clearly this is very close to people’s hearts. One lady spoke at length about her family’s struggles during the war and spoke fondly of her grandad being unable to fit in the cupboard under the stairs when the bombs fell. Thankfully he was OK.”

If you have any items from pre-1970 which could could be used as conversation topics at the Memory Lane events, please contact Extra Hands at either its Heacham or Horsham St Faith offices. The company offers a range of packages supporting independence, from brief well-being checks to multiple daily home calls to clients who need more help.