Remembrance Sunday was acknowledged throughout
Market Lavington residential, nursing and residential memory care home, in Devizes, in many different ways, with several small groups and many one-to-ones being supported with Residents; to reflect and share their experiences and losses on this important day.
One discussion group that was supported on the home’s Townsend Unit was helped by the Unit Manager, Caroline Farrar, bringing in many items relating to the First and Second World War, as well as some personal mementos kindly supplied by her husband during his time in active service.
Riaz Ali, Wellbeing Coordinator, descried the activity, “I brought in a leaflet that I thought I would share with the Residents, that was supplied with my grandfather’s war medals. Unfortunately, as I related to the Residents, his medals were stolen when he was living in Newport, South Wales in the 1960s. My grandfather, George Fisher, passed away in 1987 and I was too young then to explore his history and discover exactly which medals he was presented with. However, with the help of Residents and a process of deduction (and they clearly enjoyed helping me work it out), we feel we may have solved the mystery!”
As part of the activities, Residents also sang some of the well-known songs associated with the world wars, including Vera Lynn’s ‘We’ll Meet Again’ and the ‘White Cliffs Of Dover’.
Residents also shared their experiences of the war. Frank Anderson, who lives at Market Lavington, lived in Brixton during the war and remembers being bombed out of his home and then he and his family struggling to find the next place to live and being temporarily taken in by extraordinarily kind strangers for a time.
Those involved also enjoyed looking at the replicas of World War Two leaflets, with topics varying from ‘How to sew and mend your clothes to preserve materials in war time’ to ‘Growing your own vegetables’!
Many Residents shared fascinating memories in terms of food and how they could make items like butter go a long way, and how they could create chocolate sponge cakes using potatoes!
Frank Anderson, remarked, “I was only about five years old when the war started but still remember a lot about it.”
Fellow Resident Pamela Johnson, added, “Awful. It’s so good we have never had another one!”
Care Assistant Marta Incledon commented, “It’s so lovely to share memories of the war with Residents.”
Caroline Farrar ended with, “I really enjoyed seeing the Residents take so much interest in the reminiscence materials here. They loved it!”