Memory Café opened eventually in Firholm, Innerleithen Road, Peebles, EH45 8BD
We are lucky to have this from the NHS for Thursday afternoons every fortnight 2.30 – 4.00pm. We start with a chat and cup pf tea with cake or biscuits followed by an activity or talk that is appropriate to people living with dementia. Activities range from handicrafts to indoor tennis and singalongs to seated exercise and quizzes. We all love a singalong and quizzes are very popular. Friendships re forged and numbers increase whilst we do lose some people for various reasons . We are limited by the bad acoustic in Firholm and the size of the rooms which cannot take more than 40.
CST Group meets in Firholm every Tuesday morning for separate 6 week sessions. CST is Cognitive Stimulation Therapy which helps those who want to be helped through participation in a group activity with regular participants who become firm friends. It is professionally led and has become firmly established. Contact Chair@dementiafriendlytweeddale.org for a talk about it.
Dementia Chat Group is an informal group meeting at Jean and Mike‘s home also once a week on Mondays – it is a closed group, so necessary to consult Jean – phone 07592 240448 to enquire.
Dovecot Singers has emerged from Recollective, started by Nomad Beat in conjunction with DFT. Anna Ludwig our professional music therapist who loves to lead a dementia choir has stayed loyal and we look forward to her ridiculous warmups which cause more laughter than musical ability, and we love singing along to her keyboard accompaniment and foot rattle from the words on a screen in front of us. Songs that are well-known, nostalgic, from sea shanties to lullabies. Music is the best medicine for all of life’s challenges and we take full advantage of that. We are grateful to Friends of Dovecot Court for funding from the National Lottery Community fund for this project.
Family Ceilidh Tea Dances started in September 2023 and carried on each month in 2024 -mostly in Peebles but also in Broughton, Newlands Centre and Innerleithen. Our Ceilidh Band Dave Robb and Friends played for free because they love it. They demonstrated the dances and sang between dances – they allowed for Wheelchairs and walking frames. Each dance was a truly inclusive event and very popular. We so appreciated the funding for Scottish Borders Council Happier Healthier Stronger Fund for the Tea Dances in 2024. Tea Dances continue in 2025 but not so frequently because we simply do not have enough volunteers to help. See the News and What’s On page for more information.
Dementia Awareness Week in Scotland happens every year in the last week of May through the first week of June. DFT connects with the community through an event somewhere each day of that week. Lots of connections are made with other local organisations who are dementia friendly. And we take the opportunity to keep spreading the world about dementia awareness in the community
Fund-raising events occur from time to time – watch the What’s on space.
Membership of Dementia friendly Tweeddale is FREE
We have 50 – 60 members at any one time – mostly those who attend our Memory Café.
We seek to extend membership to anyone who is interested and has something to contribute to the continuing success of our organisation.
We have two Facebook pages – one for individuals and close supportive organisations and the other for the wider community – other organisations with similar aims and ideals .
Volunteers – We are lucky to have about 20 committed regular volunteers who support our Memory Café and other fund-raising activities – we need many more of all age groups to spread our message wider throughout the whole of Tweeddale.
Supporters – To create a Dementia Friendly Inclusive Community, we need to get the whole town on board. Shops Businesses, Third Sector Groups. Sports clubs, Schools, Churches, Arts and Culture organisations. Will you join us?
