A charity in the Holme and Colne Valleys of West Yorkshire providing activities and company for older people.
Author: Friend to Friend
Friend To Friend is a charity operating in several villages of the Holme Valley of West Yorkshire. We aim to help the older generation of the community to enjoy a less isolated, less lonely, healthier and more active old age. We do so by organising social events, project groups and shared meals along with transport to and from the activities.
Hi everyone. I decided as it was a Saturday I needed something different for breakfast, so I had a bacon & tomato butty. This afternoon has been spent working re-potting some tubs. We re-potted our Christmas tree, put agapanthus & begonias in 2 pots and potted marigolds & begonias into a trough on the wall.
I’m showered and now ready for a bit of relaxation. I hope everyone is keeping well and finding plenty to do.
Today Marian, a Meltham volunteer, celebrated her 80th Birthday.
Break up long periods of sitting down Many of us are finding that we’re sitting down for quite a lot of the day at the moment. It’s a good habit to try and get up once an hour and stretch your legs a little. Even if it’s just walking to the kitchen to put the kettle on, or doing the washing up, it all helps. But if you find standing difficult, just moving your arms and legs for a few minutes every hour will also help break up those long stretches of sitting.
Do some gentle stretching Stretching is a great way to keep supple, and doing it daily can also help improve flexibility and balance. You can even do it sitting or lying down. Try the following stretching exercise from Age UK:
Sit on a chair
Lift your leg up off the seat keeping your knee bent
Return to sitting position
Repeat with the other leg.
Try sitting exercises from your chair Sitting doesn’t necessarily mean being inactive. There are actually quite a few exercises you can do from a sitting position. But make sure to choose a chair that is stable, solid and doesn’t have wheels. And you should be able to sit with your feet flat on the floor and knees bent at right angles. Try this exercise from the NHS:
Sit upright with your feet flat on the floor, cross your arms and reach for your shoulders
Without moving your hips, turn your upper body to the left as far as is comfortable
Hold for five seconds
Repeat on the right side
Repeat five times on each side.
Improve your balance Better balance is key to reducing your chances of a fall, but you don’t need to try anything tricky. The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy has six easy strength and balance exercises you can have a go at. The one-leg stand is a good example:
Stand close to a support (such as a chair) and hold it with one hand
Balance on one leg, keeping the support knee soft and your posture upright
Our board of Trustees have made the difficult but prudent decision to pause all our groups’ activities for the time being, to help protect our members from spread of Coronavirus. We do not want any of our members to feel isolated, however, so our volunteers will keep in touch with each other by phone, and will ring any members who would welcome calls. Any members who would like check-in calls please get in touch. You are not abandoned, and we hope soon to see everyone back enjoying Friend to Friend.
Our Charity’s AGM has been set for 2:30pm on Monday 7th October 2019 at Meltham Sports and Social Club. All are welcome. Please let us know if you are coming via one of our groups or ring Val on 852056. Transport can be arranged if you speak to a group leader.
UPDATE: this event was very well-supported, and thanks to Philippa of Body and Sole, Holmfirth, raised a whopping £685 for Friend to Friend!!
Philippa of Body and Sole, whose mum Jennifer was a member of Friend to Friend, organised a quiz with supper in aid of our charity, details on this poster.
Tickets are selling quickly for our next fundraising ‘Bit of a Do’, on Thursday 4th April 2019 from 2 til 4 at Meltham Golf Club. Hot beef sandwiches & chips will be followed by cake, tea and coffee, and there will be entertainment!
For further details and tickets please contact Gilly on 688248.
Party-goers at Meltham Meal’s Christmas meal on Friday 7th had a double surprise, to welcome not only unexpected visitor Dan Schofield, of DS Recruiting Services Ltd, but his very generous donation of £250 to Friend to Friend in lieu of sending Christmas cards this year! He didn’t want a fuss at the time, but we hope he will forgive us giving him a mention here. Trustees, members and volunteers were all hugely grateful for this very selfless gesture!
Many thanks to Dan (pictured here with trustee John Lines) and his company.
Here is another photo from the meal, as our members were entertained by singing from Meltham C of E School’s choir.
We would be very grateful if you might donate one or two of the following for the “Christian African Relief Trust” who will speak at Friend to Friend’s Holmfirth Project Group on Friday 16th November 2018.
Just bring any items you are able to provide to our session from 11-2 at the Methodist Church Hall in Holmfirth.
We have this week banked a very generous donation of £1,000 from a non-uniform day held at Holmfirth High in aid of our charity. We are overwhelmed by this generosity and the Holmfirth members gave them a round of applause so loud they might have heard it back at school! Our trustees will be writing to the school with a formal ‘thank you’ but we wanted to shout our thanks publicly as well.
Our charity’s Annual General Meeting is announced as 2:30pm on Monday 12th November 2018, at Meltham Sports and Community Centre, Mean Lane, Meltham, HD9 5QT. All are welcome. Please ring us on 687773 to reserve a seat. If transport is needed please speak to your normal group’s lead volunteer.