Some of you will have seen the documentary programs ‘Our Dementia Choir’ which aired recently on BBC1 and which featured heavily in the national press following both programmes, such was the extent that people were touched by the story of the choir and the individuals involved.
We have a close connection with the choir as Helen’s mum, Maureen, is a member and we have been helping support them since they formed last year. Such a diverse group of characters, vast age range and totally different personalities, all brought together by their love of music and Vicky McClure’s curiosity about the effect music can have on the brain of someone suffering from dementia has formed a ‘choir family’ with bonds stronger than we could ever imagine!
Even while we and many others are fundraising to keep the choir going (if you would like to donate, go to www.justgiving.com/fundrais…/music-and-memory-dementia-choir ), once we heard about the Alzheimer’s Society Cupcake Day, some of the families decided they would like to take part and so on Thursday 13th June we held our event as part of the national fundraising effort and we had a blast!!
Maureen very kindly opened up her home to the choir, their families, her neighbours, friends, friends of friends, local councillors and many more.
For over four hours and despite the rain, there was music from Kellys Heroes, Lynn Goulbourn and the choir themselves, loads of laughter, a little bit of dancing, a raffle, a ‘guess the weight of the cake’ competition. There were people in the living room, the passage way, the kitchen, up the stairs, in the garden, basically anywhere there was room, there were people!
All together the amount raised was £340.00 which is great and if you would like to contribute too then just go to www.alzheimers.org.uk/get-involved/make-donation
