Stories and poems by care home residents and day centre service users from Glenalina Lodge Care Centre and Brooklands Care Home have been compiled and published into a special booklet.
The booklet, published by the c21 Theatre Company is called ‘Through The Glass’ Reminiscence Stories and was supported by The National Lottery Community Fund and Doyle Shipping Group.
Working against the backdrop of the pandemic and within Covid-19 guidelines, ‘Through The Glass’ The Reminiscence Project 2020 used ‘reminiscent boxes’ containing historical items ranging from powdered milk in WWII to 1970s shoes to help stimulate conversations among residents and create personal stories.
Activity coordinators located in the homes facilitated workshops to gather stories which provided writers Gary Wilson, Tom Rowntree-Finlay and poet Shelley Tracey with content for a series of theatrical scenes.
The scenes were made into short films which were distributed to the care homes, as well as broadcast on c21 Theatre Company’s YouTube Channel, during November and December 2020.
Extracts from ‘Through the Glass’ Reminiscence Stories booklet, compiled by poet Shelley Tracey, will be presented and performed as part of c21 Theatre Company’s tour to five of the care homes involved in the project.
Following a public competition, the booklet’s cover illustration was designed by Strabane based artist Berni Bradley of Bradley Art. The illustration was inspired by her own interactions with tutoring older age groups and use of artefacts that evoke reminiscence to stimulate creativity.
Launching the booklet, project director Stephen Kelly said: “ ‘Through the Glass’ The Reminiscence Project has been an incredible journey for everyone involved.
“In the face of a once in the lifetime pandemic we were fortunate to be in a position to work with a range of partners who supported us to create meaningful and creative content, provide a voice for the social care sector, the residents and provide vital employment for those working in the arts sector.
“We are very grateful to the National Lottery Community Fund and Doyle Shipping Group for their support throughout the making of the ‘Through the Glass’ Reminiscence Stories booklet.
“It is a privilege to revisit some of the care homes as part of our NI tour and perform some of the stories and poems featured. It is our way to say thank you for giving us such wonderful stories to share, for future generations to enjoy, and for inspiring us during challenging times.”
Kate Beggs, Northern Ireland Director of The National Lottery Community Fund, commented: “We are delighted to fund this booklet, which is giving care home residents a voice to tell their stories, capture important memories and in turn, improve their wellbeing.
“National Lottery players raise around £30 million every week across the UK for good causes like this, and they can be proud to know that it is making such a difference to people in Northern Ireland.”
Sean McCready, Director of Doyle Shipping Group, Belfast added: “It has been a real pleasure for us to be involved in such a beautiful project with c21 Theatre Company. We can never really appreciate the times our parents, grandparents and great grandparents lived in, but these snapshots take us back to their time. Our employees got to watch all the films together and felt privileged to have contributed in some way to the process.”
Expressing her delight at the project, Margaret McKernan, Activity Co-Ordinator at Glenalina Care Centre, said: “We were delighted to offer some of our residents the opportunity to be part of the Through the Glass project.
“Despite the challenges of the pandemic, the activity was carried out incredibly professionally and mindfully by C21, with our residents’ wellbeing always front and centre.
“The power of the arts in the care sector should never be undervalued as it is a fantastic source of increased wellbeing and comfort, as well as entertainment and social reinforcement.
“This project, and its use of reminiscence and nostalgia was particularly powerful and supported the residents, during a difficult time, to start conversations with us their caregivers, and their peers.
“The booklet will be a great legacy of the project and something we will use day to day here at Glenalina.”
‘Through the Glass’ Reminiscence Stories booklet will be available to the residents, service users, care home providers and families. For a downloadable copy of the booklet and for further information on ‘Through The Glass’ The Reminiscence Project visit the c21 Theatre Company website.
