We held our first ever Arts & Crafts Festival on Wednesday 19th April, and, we would love to thank everyone who showed up to take part in all the fun!
With plenty of activities and information stands to interact with, we hope that you all had a lovely time and enjoyed it as much as we did.
We would also like to take this opportunity to recognise the brilliant efforts of all of you who held stalls or came out to help us on the day – it is absolutely amazing to see so many kind, passionate and caring people, who are so dedicated to supporting others across Oxfordshire!
The ‘Festival Of Arts & Crafts’ was created for everyone looking to express their creativity or even just to meet new people in a safe and supportive environment! The festival is all about living well and enjoying life and following the event’s success in April, we are hoping to hold a similar festival again later on this year!
Age UK Oxfordshire's very own Chief Executive, Penny Thewlis, attended the event and talked about arriving at the Festival and the buzz that was created by lots of people arriving at the same time ….
“I thought people were making a real effort to be here, because there's something here that will make a difference in their lives. The team were stunning.
The Oxford Playhouse did a short drama workshop, and I was slightly anxious about how this would work. There was a group of maybe 30-ish people in the room, with a talented facilitator, Beth. There was, as there so often is in these things, a moment where we really see the impact. After a warm-up, Beth said, “Let's all go on a trip to the seaside,” so we were all at the seaside together, making the sound and the movement of waves. Then Beth said, “Can you think of any animals that we might see at the seaside?” Somebody who had not participated much up to that point suddenly made the noise of a donkey. I will spare you my imitation of a donkey, but you know that's just the kind of moment that lights you up a little bit because you think, gosh, that has really engaged somebody at a particular level.
The Festival is just one day, but it will live with us for a long time. It lifted us up and gave us some hope. I was very impressed by it, and I think the team did a great job bringing a whole lot of partners into the room to share learning about people living with dementia. It potentially meant that in other walks of life, in other areas, there would be greater receptivity towards people living with dementia.”
1 thought on “Festival of Arts & Crafts Triumph!”
Absolutely brilliant! Bullingdon Community centre felt honoured to host this event and we loved attending it…..so relaxed and interactive. We hope to see you all again soon