Salisbury Care Home’s Garden Party Boosts the Bridge Youth Project
A summer garden party at a Salisbury nursing and residential home has raised more than £500 for city charity The Bridge Youth Project.
Residents and staff at Colten Care’s Braemar Lodge welcomed families, friends and community contacts for the occasion.
Fundraising was driven by the sale of arts and crafts items handmade by residents in the weeks beforehand along with plants and flowers they grew specially.
Ideal as small gifts, the craft items included greeting cards, bookmarks and decorated key rings.
Under the direction of Colten Care’s Music & Arts Partner Fiona Pritchard, a residents’ choir delivered the party soundtrack by singing and drumming along to popular Eurovision hits of yesteryear by, among others, Abba, Sandie Shaw, Lulu and Cliff Richard.
Braemar Lodge chose The Bridge Youth Project as its main charity this year under a Colten Care policy of enabling residents at all 21 of its homes to support good causes in the community.
Home Manager Jackie Cash said:
“We always enjoy preparing and hosting our garden party. It’s a fun, social experience for our residents and it helps us maintain community links. At the same time, supporting The Bridge Youth Project in their superb work in the community is both a privilege and a pleasure.”
The Bridge Youth Project works to raise young people’s aspirations and resilience through mentoring, emotional literacy and courses in social skills and wellbeing.
One of the people involved in the charity’s founding in 1994 was a former Braemar Lodge resident, Neville Jennings.
And making a personal visit to the home for the garden party was current chair of trustees, Bill Graham.
Thanking the home for hosting the party and raising the funds, Bill said:
“The residents and staff at Braemar Lodge clearly put in a great deal of effort to make this occasion a success, and we are so grateful for all they are doing on our behalf.”
Among the beneficiaries of previous Braemar Lodge garden parties and year-round fundraising are homeless charity Alabaré, the Salisbury Hospital League of Friends, Salisbury Hospice, Salisbury Trust for the Homeless, Horatio’s Garden, Age UK and the Naomi House and Jacksplace hospices.