July 2018

Another action-packed café took place on July 2^nd, and with summer well and truly upon us a theme of ‘Holidays and Outings’ was most appropriate!

Our guests were greeted with a brain-teasing word search based on ‘Outings’ and an A –Z suitcase packing quiz.  We then welcomed back our local celebrity speaker, David Eyles’ who engaged and amused us in equal measure with an illustrated presentation entitled ‘Holidays – home and abroad’. David began by entertaining us with memories from family holidays and some experiences from the ‘other side’ of the holiday fence, as hotelier at the Crantock Bay Hotel. We were then enthralled by a selection of photographs showing some of the wonderful holidays he and Brenda had taken over the years in such far-flung places as China, South America and the Galapagos Islands.

 
All too soon it was refreshment time, and there was an opportunity to peruse our holiday-based displays, which included photos, books and postcards, as well as a vintage picnic hamper, a much-travelled suitcase and a classic wooden surfboard and much more. There were also souvenirs and photos brought in by our guests which helped to bring back happy memories of holidays gone by. We even compiled a list of familiar comments made by adults and children travelling on a journey such as ‘Are we there yet?’ to ‘I feel sick!’

There was a lot to look at and talk about, as well as the usual selection of delicious cakes to sample.  We were delighted that David and Brenda were able to join us for tea, as were the group of ladies who were to entertain us for the remainder of the afternoon.

As cups and plates were cleared away we welcomed members of Newquay U3A’s ‘Singing for Fun’ group who led us in a selection of well-known songs, giving us a chance to accompany them with our percussion instruments – it certainly was fun!  We began with some appropriate holiday themed tunes before moving on to familiar songs from the first and second world wars.  Although word sheets had been handed around they really weren’t needed, giving everyone a chance to provide a noisy but very enjoyable accompaniment.

As usual the afternoon flew by and it was soon time to pull down the shutters on the café for another week.

Many thanks were given to all our visitors before everyone left for home with plenty to think and talk about before our next café at Crantock Village Hall on Monday 16^th July. New members who have a degree of memory loss are always welcome, and should you require further information please contact Di on 01637 830544, David on 01637 830617 or visit our website at crantockmemorycafe.org.uk.

June 2018 Extra

After a couple of weeks to recover from our exploration trail around Crantock, visitors met up again on June 18th at our usual venue of the Village Hall.

There was time to have a go at a word-search based on the World Cup, or to look at this week’s ‘Sparkle’ magazine which had been printed once again thanks to the generous sponsorship from ‘The Bowgie Inn’ at West Pentire.

Richard then introduced Adrian Davies from St Teath who entertained us with a selection of songs from the ‘60s and 70s’. Accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, Adrian soon had us singing along to familiar numbers by such artists as The Beatles, Jim Reeves, Kenny Rogers, Simon and Garfunkel and many more.

After tea and time to look at the football-based display and have a chat, the afternoon was rounded off with a few more songs from Adrian and then Richard gave us the answers to the ‘Sparkle’ based quiz. Soon it was time to close up for another month and to look forward to meeting up again on Monday 2nd July. 

We are always pleased to welcome new members who have a degree of memory loss, and should you require more information please contact Di on 01637 830544 or David on 01637 830617.

June 2018

June in Cornwall – what better time of year to take our Memory Café visitors on a ‘Crantock Explorers’ Trail’! For this ‘one-off’ session the café was based at ‘The Cornishman’ in the centre of the village, thanks to the generosity of landlady Kathleen, who has also supported us recently by raising over £265 at a Charity Quiz Night!

Visitors and helpers met at ‘The Cornishman’, and as usual were greeted with some interesting word puzzles to have a go at whilst they settled in to their new surroundings.  Clipboards with observation sheets were then distributed, and with reminders to tread carefully on uneven surfaces and to keep an eye out for traffic, our group of intrepid explorers set off around the village! A ‘figure of eight’ trail had been devised, encompassing familiar and more unusual corners of our attractive and interesting environment, as well as a visit to the lovely Crantock Church.

The walk around the village included having a look at the listed telephone kiosk and village well, the millennium sundial and the names of those remembered around the door of the Memorial Hall, as well as interesting buildings such as the Malt House and the Ship Inn Farmhouse. At the church we were welcomed by knowledgeable sacristan Jeni Stewart-Smith who helped us make the most of the beautiful carvings and stained glass windows as well as answering any questions we posed. Everyone then enjoyed a visit to the village stocks and hearing the story of William Tinney, the last man to be put in them, and his escape from the top of the church tower!

The less mobile of our number, meanwhile, were able to stay in ‘The Cornishman’, where an interesting display of local photographs and books awaited discovery. There was also a chance to have a go at the Crantock Explorers’ Trail and questionnaire using photographs of relevant points of interest around the village under the guidance and help of Val.

Everyone arrived back safely in time for much needed refreshments, and there was plenty of time to compare ‘trail sheets’ and discuss what we had seen around the village and share what had been discovered.  Refreshed by tea and cake, there was a chance for everyone to have a look at the display and the room was soon buzzing with friendly chatter!

There was time for David to go through the answers to the questions posed on the Explorers’ Trail sheets before it was time to think about wending our way home.

Many thanks were given to Kathleen, without whom this special event would not have been possible.  We all set off for home with plenty to think and talk about before our next café on June 18^th back at Crantock Village Hall.

New members, who have a degree of memory loss, are always welcome to come along with their carers, and should you require more information please contact Di on 01637 830544 or David on 01637 830617.