Fun and friends

 

It’s another Monday morning, and another morning at the Down Syndrome Cheshire Hub in Northwich. Suffice it to say Ben starts counting down the days from the moment we leave for home. This place is definitely his happy place. 

This morning Ben and three of his friends have gone out for the morning with two of the amazing volunteers who work with them every week and a member of staff. Ben assures me they are working, going to the library, shopping for the ingredients for the meal they will be cooking for everyone next week and then stopping for a coffee (I did hear the word cake mentioned!)

In computer terms a hub is (and I quote) “a small rectangular, inexpensive device that joins multiple devices, its purpose is to form a single network whereby all devices can communicate directly with each other.”

The DSC HUb is this in human form, and so much more. First and foremost it is a place where anyone with Down Syndrome from new born to infinity can come and feel welcome, safe, valued, respected and loved. It is a place where friendships are forged and skills and abilities are recognised and encouraged.

It is also a centre of excellence in terms of being a place people can turn to for support, information, advice and understanding. There are regular sessions involving external agencies which people can attend about issues specific to and of interest to them whether it be speech and language therapy, educational provision or planning for the future.

For Ben and the many new friends he has made it is place where he has fun (with bells on) where he learns new skills and where he has opportunities to excel, (his gift of the gab has been noted! There is a huge variety of sessions and activities  which meet the interests of all ages and abilities and make it possible for families to enjoy activities together.

It is also a place where we can learn from our young people. The encouragement and appreciation they show to one another is humbling, they never miss an opportunity to praise one another for any achievement and are genuinely delighted in one another’s successes, talents and victories.

We are so very fortunate to have this amazing charity in our midst, they are a shining example of what can be achieved with a shared vision, a shared passion and a shared heart to work for the people they care about so much, all I can say is thank you, format the bottom of my heart  

Times they are a changing

Above is a little pastiche of my son Ben, ranging form seven months to about twenty nine years of age.

This is the most current photo I have of Ben, aged thirty three (nearly thirty four I can hear him shout!)

It's fair to say he's changed a bit but I think anyone who knew him years ago would still recognise him. From the day I brought him home from his foster Mum in Bath on December 4th 1990 I can say without fear of being accused of exaggeration that he has enriched my life. Not to say he hasn't aged me way beyond the thirty four years we've been together, and I certainly blame him for my head of pure white hair!

This selfie (not really part of my skill set) was taken yesterday as we prepared to watch the final of the Euros. We're still smiling and still I'm happy to say enjoy each others company. He's been responsible for many, many sleepless nights over the years for a variety of reasons but has also been (and still is) responsible for much laughter. It's rather like living with the cast of thousands from an old Cecil B De Mille film (showing my age!) his ability to throw together a costume and assume the identity of a film or TV character just from his wardrobe (and occasionally mine) is amazing. There have been so many dramatic entrances to our living room, unannounced but if he has disappeared for five minutes with talking then I can be fairly sure I'm about to receive a visitation.

When we finally ventured out after the covid restrictions lifted life had moved on without us, or so it seemed. I have to admit I had erred on the side of over caution, in fact we pretty much stayed in isolation for around eighteen months. (mind you, neither of us have had covid...so far) we had lost touch with many of the groups and activities we used to be involved with so life was fairly quiet. In around September 2023 we found our way to Down Syndrome Cheshire in Northwich.

Life has changed! Ben has found a place where he has made some wonderful friends, found a place where he shines and is accepted and where his gift of the gab has been recognised and utilised! He is now Chairman of the I Choose Board which meets twice a month and is a forum for adults (from 18+) to have a voice and express their hopes, choices, worries and expectations. He's been to 10 Downing Street!

He's a regular contributor to the new That Down Syndrome Podcast (I may have to change my name) and he's finally decided he quite likes having a go at some cooking and baking. He works alongside amazing volunteers and some of his peers on Monday mornings, at the DSC Hub, he's really enjoying painting some concrete planters for their garden project at the moment and he and his friends have planned the project and worked out the budget with the assistance of Julia and Colin. Another favourite activity is when they choose a meal to cook for everybody, they choose their recipe, budget, shop then finally at the end of the month they cook.

I can't praise or thank this truly amazing charity enough, they've brightened our weeks and we both feel so welcome and cared for. Ben is so happy that he decided he wanted to do a fundraiser as a gesture of his gratefulness so Monday July 8th he began his sponsored cycle challenge. 21 minutes every day for three weeks. (I'll explain the significance of the numbers next time.

Not my usual style of blog but I just wanted to find a way to share this incredible group of people, you can follow them on Facebook at Down Syndrome Cheshire and the website has the same title. I'm off now to inspect todays painting, not sure how much Ben has got on to the planters as he's just walked past and he is covered in magnolia paint! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

On a roll

If any one has read any of my past wordy rambles through life you will be aware that technology and I are not friends! I sometimes think I may actually be allergic to all things computer. I remember fondly the days when you simply turned something on and it would work, no fuss, no emotional meltdowns, no need to follow 300 pages of instructions and enter and re-enter long lines of letters, numbers, and symbols reminiscent pf the value of Pi!

The fountain pens above remain and always will remain my favourite method of transferring the words from my head on to paper. I'm fortunate that my handwriting is generally quite neat and legible but the thing I like most is that when I write by hand I tend to spell things correctly and punctuate correctly. Keyboards are my mortal enemy, I detest predictive text (though I must confess the randomness of its suggestions can sometimes be the cause of great hilarity) I am by no means a good typist, I didn't do typing at school and I've never mastered  using a keyboard ( and I sincerely doubt I ever will) It takes me so much longer to type anything because I have to keep going back to edit when I see a missed capital letter or a spelling mistake, it slows me down and interrupts my somewhat butterfly thoughts.

My dislike of technology is not purely for computers, though when I think about it pretty much everything we use on a day to day basis is computer based. We recently got a new TV as the old one could no longer synchronise sound and image, quite entertaining for a while but not good for any length of time. Honestly you need a degree in computer sciences to even switch the wretched thing on! Once you have actually managed to link it to your broadband etc you then have to download channels, you have to sign in to access anything, you have to have a password, for some sites it is absolutely impossible as the screens don't do what they're supposed to do, add to that navigating everything, very often you get to the end and press yes or whatever and it goes back to the beginning!                     
i have to confess (again) that much as I enjoy the vast range of channels, apps like Spotify, You Tube and such like I sometimes hanker for the simplicity of my childhood, limited hours, three channels, if you missed a programme you missed it  (and the world didn't end) and you got your steps in getting up to change the channels. My final rant against all things computer techy relates to how many simple activities can no longer be done in person, pretty much everything has to be done on line from driving licences to passports and all things in between. I am relatively intelligent and I can with, luck turn  my computer on but I find myself overwhelmed with the demands of on line form filling.

I wonder what would (will) happen on the day when technology crashes completely, no access to money, no way to pay, no access to medical records, the list goes on, bring back pen and paper I say, at least as an alternative to the dreaded technology!

 

It’s been a while…

 

It’s taken me about twenty five minutes to sign in so far, and it’s been a while as the website reminded me! Life has moved on and is pretty much back to normal or what passes for normal for Ben and I. We’re busy again, some with the Salvation Army as of old but more with Down Syndrome Cheshire, an amazing local charity that entered our lives around October

Ben has thrown himself into everything on offer with enthusiasm and delight, his highlight (so far) being a visit to 10 Downing Street on March 21st this year, World Down Syndrome Day. He’s also attended a charity awards night (and three course dinner!) given a speech at our Annual General Meeting and is chairman of the I Choose board. 

If you know Ben personally he will no doubt have told you (more than once) that he will very soon be celebrating his 34th birthday! (How’s that happened?) He’s looking forward to bowling with some friends from DSC then  a trip to the Shire horse centre followed by a night at a hotel, evening meal and full English breakfast in the morning. (I mention these details as they are very high on Ben’s criteria for a good day!)

This is just a tentative, toe dipping attempt into getting myself back into writing again. I have a few techy hurdles to overcome with such things as emails on my iPad and other such trivia but I’m hoping to get myself sorted and a little more proactive and productive in the coming weeks. Watch this space…