Exeter Gateway Centre

Love was definitely in the air when twenty plus members enjoyed a romantic candlelit Valentine’s Lunch. The kitchen area was a hive of activity as a hearty meal of lasagne, wedges and salad was prepared. This was followed by freshly baked heart shaped chocolate cakes and muffins with ice-cream!

The tables had been decorated and the sound of music filled the air as everyone tucked in to their sumptuous feast! To aid digestion, members were encouraged to sing a love song of their choice to win a raffle ticket for the draw at the end of the day-some were more willing than others!

On 21st February, Gareth, an Exeter based firefighter, came to the centre to give the members a talk on Fire Safety. Members were encouraged to use their understanding of fire safety, in a series of activities involving recognising dangers around the home and the centre. Working in small groups, we talked about what dangers there might be and how we could prevent a fire or injury. Gareth then talked about each group’s findings and as a whole we compared our ideas. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed meeting Gareth and we must say a big thank you to him for sharing his knowledge and experience with us. Everyone was asked to remember the words “Get out, stay out, ring 999”.

Well it’s already March and the members have been busy since the start of the New Year. The centre was very fortunate to be given a 3-in-1 activity table to replace our very well used snooker table so now members have been keen to sharpen not only their pool skills, but air-hockey and table tennis too. Most members have given it a try and it is a popular activity in whatever mode the table is in.

There has been plenty of activity in the kitchen with various birthday cakes baked, pancakes tossed and Chinese Lunches devoured! Our supply of cardboard was turned into a castle as a link to our Spring topic of ‘Kings and Queens’. Henry VIII and his wives proved very popular among the members.

During the last week of January, a group of members plus staff and carers made another trip to the Northcott Theatre to watch an excellent production of Singing in the Rain, by the students from Exeter University. There was plenty of foot tapping and singing along from several members-a good time was had by all.

After last year’s successful Cake Make, members again took the opportunity to make a Christmas cake. Ingredients were chopped, mixed, baked, trimmed and smoothed. Due to the popularity, Eileen spent many hours with members getting their baking skills up to scratch. All the hard work paid off, and nineteen cakes, with various decorations, left the centre to be enjoyed over the festive period.

As well as baking cakes, members have also been busy making items for presents including clay pots and pot stands. There have been some very imaginative designs on the pots-we’ve used a considerable amount of gold and silver paint!

On Thursday 7th December, several members of the centre, plus an ensemble from the Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Band, sang and played Christmas carols outside Boots on Exeter High Street. Thanks to the generosity of the general public we collected over £170 in donations in just one and a half hours! Thank you also to the band members for giving their time, especially on a cold and windy day.

Our penultimate day of the year was Play and Party time! As usual, Debbie had written an excellent short production for the members to perform. After a quick rehearsal, members made the short trip over to the Sycamore Centre to give the first performance of the day. The audience thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment, with a fine depiction of a wizard by Paul Lee. Thanks go to Sycamores for their kind gift of biscuits and chocolates. In the afternoon, a small audience of carers and other visitors were again treated to another performance.

Two hours later, the party was in full swing. Chris the DJ had the members dancing the night away, with David Aplin and Anita Galliford winning the prize for the best dancing. The guests were also treated to a buffet spread, and thanks to the generosity of The Rotary Club, the raffle was a resounding success. Everyone went home happy if not a little tired!

This year, 31 members plus staff and support donned festive jumpers and hats, ready to tuck into a delicious Christmas dinner. Having prepared the bulk of the vegetables on a previous day, time was available to experiment with seating arrangements. Due to the numbers, larger tables were preferred to last year’s long ones. This meant everyone had extra space and the chance to chat to more friends. There was plenty of food to go round and several members made the most of a second helping! At the time of writing, we are getting ready for our Christmas party, with disco, raffle, food and games-so watch this space!

As the theme for the early Autumn, the members chose their favourite pop-star and created a poster using images, and lyrics from famous songs. During the course of a week, over 20 members performed both individually and in pairs and groups, singing various songs ranging from Shakin’ Stevens’ ‘Green Door‘ to Lonnie Donegan’s ‘My Old Man’s a Dustman‘. A performance area had been created, with chequered flooring and colourful backdrop (designed and mostly painted by Emma Roberts), setting the scene for some magnificent performances.

Some of the usual suspects, Scott, David and Mike Cooke were joined by some more quieter members of the centre – Keith and Neil sang a duet, as did Rachael and Debbie, and, although too shy to sing, Suzanne provided some skillful accompaniment on the bongos.

As well as the entertainment, members also shared healthy ‘pop-star’ lunches, prepared and cooked whilst being entertained!

A great time was had by all, and we are planning to repeat the event with a Christmas twist-performing our favourite Christmas tunes!

Halloween was upon us again, so it was spooky party and supper time. Having decorated the centre accordingly, members changed into their costumes and enjoyed games, food and dancing. There were prizes for the best costumes, some of which were very imaginative and at times it was difficult to work out who was under the wig!

Again, the karaoke machine was used to good effect, with several renditions of The Monster Mash and Ghost-Busters filling the centre!

On Saturday 30th September, after many hours spent cooking, baking and making, the centre held an open cafe and table top sale. Under the careful guidance of the centre manager, Eileen, members had baked cakes and muffins and also prepared quiches, sausage rolls and salads to sell throughout the day. Many people had kindly donated items to be sold and many a bargain was had.

The event was very well attended-a big thank you to the twenty one members and their carers that came along to support (we had several apologies for absences too!) Nearly £300 was taken on the day,  raising valuable funds to be put to good use for the benefit of our members.