Connect Canterbury Drop-In

A blog post by Deborah Baker – daughter of Sharon Baker, a volunteer with aphasia who runs the Canterbury Drop-In

 

When my Mum first spoke of having a Connect drop-in centre in Canterbury like the one in London, I thought it was a super idea albeit one that would take years of planning, which is why I’m both surprised and delighted at how fast this dream of hers has come to fruition. With the help of Connect staff Alex, Nathalie and Martyn and friend Matthew Hickson (who has aphasia), the first drop-in session took place at the Umbrella Centre in Canterbury on Thursday 15th September and was a great success.

I thought my Mum would be nervous about being in charge, so to speak.  But as we set off to meet the volunteers at the centre she was calm and collected. We met Nathalie, who had kindly come to Canterbury for the morning to show her support. We also met Betty and Minoo, two of the volunteers who attended the training at the start of the month. I was certain that as 10 o’clock approached Mum would start to get butterflies, but if she did, she never let on. She was ready with name badges, forms and biscuits to go with the tea and coffee. She had arranged beforehand to have the chairs set out in a circle to enable us all to circulate throughout the morning.

The first to arrive was George, a lovely man who had a stroke two years ago and still has trouble finding certain words. George found out about the meeting at the hospital where Mum had left some flyers the previous month. The second person with aphasia to arrive was Lal who hardly has any speech at all, yet remains able to show his positivity through his infectious smile. He was accompanied by his wife, Indu, who drove them to Canterbury all the way from the Isle of Sheppey. Third to arrive was Claire with her friend Maria. Claire had a stroke fairly recently and though her speech is limited, she has made great progress and continues to do so with the help of her friends and family. Last, but not least were Ian and his wife Valerie. Ian spoke about his three children and his work as a carpenter prior to his strokes.

The morning went by so quickly that each one of us was shocked when we realised that two hours had passed and it was time to wind up our conversations and say goodbye. It was great to speak to other locals about their troubles and triumphs and to share ideas about everything from speaking exercises to relaxation techniques. I am sure that everyone enjoyed the opportunity to talk to others about their experiences in a friendly environment and I don’t doubt that Connect Canterbury will go from strength to strength. Special thanks is due to the staff at Connect, the volunteers, all those who organised fundraising events to raise money for Connect Canterbury and of course to my inspirational Mum who had the vision, the perseverance and the dedication to make it happen.

Advertisement