Activities at Hazel Lodge Care Home

We are really excited to be buddying up with Battle Abbey School to take part in a intergenerational singing project to bring older and younger people together . The project is run by Charlotte Wicks of Intergenerational Opera and runs over a 5 week period, with the children from the school visiting the residents at Hazel Lodge every Friday to learn the story of Hansel & Gretel in song . The original fairytale written by The Brothers Grimm was adapted into an opera by composer Engelbert Humperdinck and was first performed in Germany in1893 . 
Each week we learn the songs together and recreate this wonderful story , with twit-twoos , hoots and howls. At the end of the 5 weeks the children and residents will bring together everything they have learnt and put on a final performance for their families at Hazel Lodge. 

William really enjoyed getting in the greenhouse this week and getting his tomatoes planted. We can't wait to taste them later in the summer. 

Hazel Lodge has officially opened their Memory Lane community by holding a Dementia Information Event during Dementia Action Week, which aims to raise awareness of dementia.  

Representatives from Hastings Dementia Action Alliance, Care for the Carers, Association of Carers, DISC Dementia, Trading Standards, Rural Rother PCN were all on hand to offer advice and information to visitors who may be living with dementia or caring for someone who is. 

Councillor and Chairman of Hastings DAA, Nigel Sinden joined forces with Caroline Pulleyn, General Manager to cut the cake and officially open their Memory Lane Community. Caroline also presented Nigel with a cheque for £143.60 for Dementia UK, which was raised by residents, staff and visitors at their recent Time for a Cuppa Coffee morning.

Siblings, William and Carrol, were reunited recently after spending years apart.  William, 86, and his younger sister, Carrol, 84, found each other again at Hazel Lodge, and are now sharing many beautiful memories.

The siblings were born in Crofton Park in London during the war, Carrol was the baby of the family. She always looked up to William who was older and looked after her. Carrol worked in retail in London until she married a farmer and moved to Romney Marsh in Kent.  William did his National Service in Kenya and later met his beautiful Irish wife, Veronica in Folkestone.  They had four children. Back in London, William worked as a reporter for the Daily Mail before he later became a London cabbie.

William and Carrol last saw each other in 2019, Carrol helped William look after Veronica who had vascular dementia.  Then the country went into lockdown and William was forced to isolate by himself. 

Carrol moved to Battle to be close to family.  She moved into Hazel Lodge in January 2023 and when William moved in a few months later they were reunited, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.  Now the siblings live on the same floor in Hazel Lodge and they spend lots of time catching up over coffee and cake together. 

Carrol says: “It is so wonderful to find my big brother again after all these years and to be able to spend so much time together, we are so happy together reminiscing and creating new memories." 
 

What a wonderful day at the coast with friends , fish and chips & ice cream !

Our Time for a Cuppa Coffee morning was a great success ! Thanks to everyone who supported the event ....we raised in total £143.70 for Dementia UK.