It was thankfully a sunny day when we had a market stall in town with other charities to promote our volunteer opportunities. If you are interested in what we do and would like to help please do get in touch. We are very flexible and can work around your lifestyle. It is also incredibly rewarding. Come and join as a lunch club helper, minibus driver or a Link Up volunteer.

Thanks to the Kings Arms we had a wonderful venue for our latest get together for Afghan families that live across Hampshire. The children had a wonderful time with craft and decorating biscuits while the adults could chat to each other. This was a joint event with the Rural Refugee Network and Winton House to pool our resources to make it happen.

Friday 30th September, 10-12 noon in the Winton House Tea Room. We all know someone who has had, or who does have, cancer so come along and support Macmillan Cancer Care. There will be plenty of home made cakes to tempt you. This is a joint event run by Age Concern Petersfield and Winton House.

We were delighted to take part in the Open Day last weekend at Winton House celebrating 40 years of the charity’s existence. Joyce Perry, one of our lunch club members, was given a presentation and certificate for her considerable contribution to the Petersfield community, including setting up the Winton House Centre all those years ago. She has been instrumental in the birth of many charities that are still running today.

Linking up Against Loneliness Sponsored Challenge by Nicky Gardner

Vietnam to Cambodia November 25th- 5th December 2022

Hello there, I'm Nicky Gardner and this is my story on how I came up with the idea for the challenge. The desire to ride this challenge was first born in 2014, as with many people the usual ups and downs of weight lead me to join Slimmer’s World. It was in their monthly magazine they had an advertisement for this challenge. At the time I was still a full-time Police Officer and I knew it would be hard to get 12 days off and it was quite an expensive trip. Roll on 8 years, once again too much of a good thing lead me back to Slimmer’s World!! I bought the monthly magazine and there it was again, the Vietnam to Cambodia cycle challenge. After a little thought and a friend telling me…”Just do it!”, I signed up.

Many people undertake the challenge for a charity and I thought it would be a great opportunity to raise some money for Age Concern Petersfield. When I retired I volunteered for the charity as a minibus driver and then helped during the Covid lockdowns, delivering lunches, helping deliver prescriptions etc. We also undertook putting together a weekly newsletter in which we included interviews with the users and the volunteers. One of the questions was “what do you miss most during lockdown”. The main answer from the clients was “People”, just talking and meeting with people, even if it was just going to a local shop. It was clear that loneliness was a big thing and even though we are back to some type of normal, for many loneliness is still a big issue. So….I spoke with Sheridan the ACP Manager and suggested undertaking a project targeting that issue and using the ride to raise awareness and funds to help and here we are!
Owen Pattison of Owen’s Cycles has supported us by sponsoring the challenge shirts, so everything raised goes to the charity.

The challenge itself is 12 days, which includes 260 miles cycling from Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam to Angkor Wat in Cambodia and I hope to send back daily reports and pictures to keep people involved in my journey. If you’d like to sponsor me please see the link below:

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/nicky-gardner-vietnam-cambodia2022

Thank you very much for your support.

Nicky Gardner

Thanks to Terry, one of our drivers, for picking up Afghan refugee families in our minibus for a much needed chance to connect with each other, share food, and for the children to have fun. We have loaned our minibus for two of these events held at the Heath for Afghan families that live across the Hampshire area.

Would you like to know more about mindfulness? We are offering a free taster session on Thursday 13th October, 2-3pm, at the Winton House Centre. Followed by a 4 week course from 27th October - 17th November, £5 per class. Come and experience the benefits, in company, and with our engaging tutor, Bobbie. Contact Sheridan to book a place.

Our next block booking for Let’s Get Moving starts on Monday 19th September, 3-4pm at the United Reformed Church on College Street. Running for 10 weeks. Feel happy and energised with our experienced tutor Bobbie. Suitable for all levels of mobility with adaptable classes. Contact Sheridan to book a place. £5 per class.

Thanks to everyone that sponsored Sheridan to do the Charity Walk for Peace held at the Hogmoor Inclosure. It was a fantastic event, summer sun and a curry provided by the organisers afterwards. We will find out later in the year how much we have raised for Age Concern Petersfield.

We were delighted to have Her Majesty attend our special Platinum Jubilee celebrations at a private residence in Priors Dean. With stunning views, delicious food and royal games, even the downpour didn’t dampen our spirits!