Bringing Church 2 U

That was the solution when one member of a Weymouth Church group that supports older people found she was no longer able to make the journey to Emmanuel and St Mary’s.

To help support older people in their community Emmanuel church runs a lunch club, a coffee morning and a group called Homemakers that meet twice a month. But recently one of their 'regulars', Rhona, had moved from her own home into a home.

The Revd Jo Haine, Vicar of Emmanuel & St Mary’s Church said:

"When Bev, who runs the Homemakers Group realised that regular member Rhona had moved into a care home and was no longer able to come, she decided she needed to do something more.

"She thought If Rhona can’t get to Homemakers, we’ll take Homemakers to Rhona!"

Jo believes thinking outside the box like this is vital if churches are to support the older members of their communities:

"Like many communities, loneliness and isolation can be a major issue for older people in Weymouth. Statistics from Age UK show that 1.9 million older people feel ignored or invisible. It is so important to know that people are not alone, and the Church can play a pivotal role in this.

"Knowing how much Rhona enjoyed music, Bev asked local band, and congregation members 36 Strings, if they could do 'A Concert for Rhona’. The care home thought it was a great idea too.

So Homemakers, along with members of Emmanuel's congregation, all went to Rhona for a fun evening of 60’s and 70’s music. Rhona was utterly thrilled both by the music and spending time with her church community."