“A wonderful memory that has stayed with me all my life” – Stratford-upon-Avon care home celebrates

Home news

May 24, 2021

Residents at a care home in Stratford-upon-Avon got crafty to mark the Victory in Europe Day anniversary.   

Care UK’s Ambleside, in Evesham Road, created a ‘memory river’ to encourage residents to celebrate this historical milestone.

Made with stones painted by residents, the river is now a permanent feature in the home’s garden, giving them an opportunity to sit by the ‘river’ and reminisce whenever they choose to.

Jacqueline Silverlock, 89, was one of the residents involved in the art project. She was 13 years old when she found out the war had ended from local soldiers – they even gave Jacqueline and her cousins oranges, a rare commodity at the time as there was a nationwide shortage.

Later, she celebrated VE Day with her family on a Cornwall beach with other locals, including a boy who played ‘Don’t fence me in’ on his accordion. When sharing her story with others at the home’s VE Day celebration, she said: “This is a wonderful memory that has stayed with me all my life.”

Julia Joy, Home Manager at Ambleside, said: “For residents, marking the VE Day anniversary is incredibly important, as many remember it as the day they knew they would be reunited with their fathers, uncles and brothers.

“While the current restrictions meant we couldn’t organise a true street party, we still wanted to do something special to mark the occasion and give residents an opportunity to reminisce, so we worked together to create a beautiful memory river. Reminiscence activities can be incredibly beneficial for older people, especially those living with dementia, and although VE Day was 76 years ago and many of the residents were children at the time, it’s amazing to hear some of the small details they recalled during our event.

“It was great to hear heart-warming stories from residents – they reminded us just how lucky we were not to have experienced a conflict of this scale in our lifetime. We’re also delighted with our new garden addition; it’s already a resident’s favourite, and we’re looking forward to continuing our reminiscence activities around it.”

Ambleside is a state-of-the-art care home which provides full-time residential, dementia and nursing care, as well as short-term respite care. Designed to enable its residents to live enjoyable and fulfilling lives, the care home has its very own cinema, café and hair salon, and there is plenty of space, both indoors and out, for relaxation and recreation.

To find out more about Ambleside care home call Customer Relations Manager, Gary Hulme on 01789 868 298, or email, gary.hulme@careuk.com 

For more general information, please visit careuk.com/ambleside