Christmas Knitting Sale .. Grab our Gifts while you can!
The knitting club has been spurred into action again following the success of their Halloween sale last month. Our residents, guided by the creative expertise of senior carer Kirsty, are producing some lovely gifts just in time for Christmas. Perfect for loved ones!
From knitted Christmas Puddings, Reindeer and Christmas Trees to Scarves, Mobile Phone Cases & Glasses Cases… Strictly Limited Edition! Not to be found anywhere else! (well, maybe we’ll sell them to Harrods!!).
Truly Unique – Knitted by our very own residents and all proceeds will go towards our Dementia Care Appeal.
If you would like to place an order, please call Naomi or Lesley on 01865 247725, e-mail us at admin@st-johns-home.org, or write to us at St. John’s Home, St. Mary’s Road, Oxford, OX4 1QE. We may be able to post items to you if you are willing to pay postage costs.
You can also pop into the Home and pick up the gifts, which will be on display from 1st December 2011.
Prices: Scarves £4.00, Christmas Puddings £3.00, Mobile Phone Cases £1.00, Reindeer £2.50, Christmas Trees £2.00, Glasses Cases £2.00
Happy Shopping!
(November 2011)
Halloween Horrors!
There is now a dedicated group of residents in the Home who have, with the assistance of one of our senior carers Kirsty, set up a weekly knitting group. They have been knitting away day (and some of them night too!!), making a wonderful array of cushions, scarves and other novelty items. Their latest venture included a range of fun and spooky knitted items which they sold in time for Halloween. They raised £102 for our Dementia Care Appeal. Well done & thank you!
(October 2011)
Autumn Newsletter Hot Off the Press!
The new edition of our Newsletter finally went to print at the end of September, after some trials and tribulations with the colours (we were going for an Autumn look but ended up with rather a pinky hue!). Despite this, we hope that you will enjoy catching up on all the latest news from St. John’s. The Newsletter is also available to view, download & print online, click here.
(September 2011)
Happy Retirement to Brian!
We said a sad goodbye to our Bursar this month, who has decided to hang up his calculator and retire after twelve years working here at St. John’s. He happily informs us that he is very much looking forward to his retirement, and is planning to fill his days with a combination of relaxing, watching Oxford United, induging his hobbies and of course, eating out and about in local restaurants!
(September 2011)
A new PAT dog has arrived!
We would like to welcome our new Pets As Therapy dog Tess and her owner Lesley. Tess is usually a very clam dog, but as soon as she gets to our gates she gets really excited!! We were wondering if our residents have been giving her secret snacks?!!
(August 2011)
Problems with the Post
It has come to our attention that several relatives and friends did not receive our Spring Newsletter and Summer Barbecue invites that we posted in May. We originally mailed these to nearly 300 people on our database. If you did not receive a barbecue invite or our newsletter – we are so sorry. We are writing to complain because we have been experiencing problems with missing correspondence (both to and from the Home) over the past 6 months.
(July 2011)
From Onions to Bunions!
Please help support our gardener Nick who has bravely volunteered to run the 2012 Virgin London Marathon to raise funds for our new Dementia Care Appeal!
He will be leaving his runner beans behind and putting on his running shoes on 22 April 2012 to compete in the 26.2 mile course around London, cheered on by the St. John’s Gang of staff and residents!!
Please click here for more information.
If there are any runners out there who have secured a place through the ballot for the 2012 Virgin London Marathon:
..and would like to run for us, we would be absolutely delighted! We are only a small local charity and we need all the support we can get! You would be making a real difference to the lives of our residents. We won’t ask you for a minimum amount of sponsorship – just raise whatever you can. For more information, please call Naomi or Lesley on 01865 247725.
(July 2011)
Summer Barbecue A Sizzling Success!
On Saturday 9th July we held our annual “get-together” for residents, relatives & friends. The sun came out and it was a wonderful day. Every year we seem to welcome more and more friends and this year 140 people joined us! It was lovely to see so many families and young grandchildren and great grand children running around the lawns! We have since received lots of compliments from residents and relatives, saying how much they had enjoyed the afternoon. We raised £2,493.46 for our new Dementia Care Appeal. For more information about the day please click here.
(July 2011)
All Saints Sisters of the Poor Open Gardens Day
Once again this year the Sisters opened their gardens to the public on Saturday 18th June. Although the weather was slightly better than last year (when we had torrential downpours) - the rain once again paid us a visit.
Despite this, those that came enjoyed strolling around the gardens (with umbrellas!) to view the grounds which are wonderfully tended by our two gardeners Nick and Liz. The Sisters kindly donated the proceeds of £134.25 to our Dementia Care Appeal.
(June 2011)
Spring Newsletter Hot off the Press!
Yes, we know you have been counting down the days until the next edition of our newsletter dropped on your doormat! Well, you need wait no longer.. it is here. We are sending it to everyone on our mailing list this week as we know how much you all love to hear news of what we have been up to at St. John’s!!! … However if you have not received one you can click here to view and download it online (the wonders of modern technology!)
(May 2011)
Fundraising Concert in the All Saints Chapel
A BIG thank you to Marion Crombie, daughter of one of our residents, and her niece Hester, who very generously offered their time – and talent – for an informal concert in the very special surroundings of the All Saints Chapel, adjacent to St. John’s Home, on Sunday 29th May.
There was a fantastic turn-out on the day and it was lovely to see so many people of all ages and backgrounds enjoying the music. We were delighted that the concert raised £838.75 for our Dementia Care Appeal. Our thanks also to Sister Margaret Anne for all her work in organising the concert.
(May 2011)
Royal Wedding Celebrations
On Friday 29th April residents joined in the celebrations of the wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton in their own particular ways …. some watched the wedding on the big screen in the Blue Corridor Sitting Room, others were glued to the televisions in their rooms and some were happier to leave the celebrations to others! In the afternoon we organised a special afternoon tea party in the Dining Room to mark the occasion – complete with just a few flags!!
(April 2011)
Goodbye to Kate & Ella
Our wonderful PAT (Pets as Therapy) dog Ella and her owner Kate, who have been faithfully visiting us for the last year or so, popped in last month to say their goodbyes.
After giving birth in September to baby Lucy, Kate and her family are returning to their home in America. So many of our residents (and staff!) enjoyed their weekly visits and we hope that they enjoy their new life back in the States.
(April 2011)
New Dementia Care Fundraising Appeal is Launched!
As we welcomed in 2011, we launched our new Dementia Care Fundraising Appeal. We are all very excited about the project as we know that the provision of excellent and specialist care can make a huge difference to the quality of life of a person with dementia.
Our goal is to raise around £1,000,000 !!
As we will have such a huge amount of money to find to implement all the changes we have planned.. we have already started to raise funds for our new project.
For further information, please click here.
(March 2011)
Piece of Pipe Appeal Target is Reached!!
We are delighted to report that we have reached our fundraising goal for the Piece of Pipe Appeal, raising a total of £282,795. We are so pleased to have achieved our target – especially during a time of recession. The work to replace the pipe work, hot water and central heating systems is now complete and our residents have enjoyed a wonderfully warm winter! We are now in the process of redecorating residents rooms following the work. The appeal has shown that, with the help of our friends and supporters, we really are able to make a difference to the quality of life of our residents.We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to everyone who donated and to those who so generously gave their time and effort to help with the Appeal. We certainly could not have completed the project without you all! Thank you!
(March 2011)
Summer Barbeque 2011
The date for our ever-popular St. John’s Summer Barbeque has been confirmed as Saturday 9th July 2011.
(February 2011)
Christmas Festivities 2010
St. John’s, as usual, was transformed into a twinkling, festive Home during the Christmas period.
Wherever you walked there was an abundance of sparkling Christmas trees and decorations on display to greet you. The sudden appearance of the extremely heavy downpour of snow leading up to Christmas really did make it a December to remember. The majority of staff managed as usual to plough their way into and home from work, ensuring all the residents were well looked after.
As 2010 draws to an end…
It has been another busy year here at St. John’ s Home and looking back, it has been a year of mixed emotions. It is with extreme sadness that we said goodbye to our very dear Sister Helen Chappell who died in September.
Her unexpected death devastated all of us in the Home who knew her and had worked with her – she was so much a part of the Home and had taken such a major interest in us for so many years. During her many years as Reverend Mother she took St. John’s Home under her wing and was determined to ensure it was to be a home with a definite future. She was in the forefront of overseeing the immense upgrading of the Home, ensuring it was kept in line with the rigorous fire regulations; she took part in the extensive improvements to bathing and toileting facilities and even took an active interest in our latest venture, the Piece of Pipe work. It was not unusual to see her walking along a corridor late in an evening with a screwdriver in her hand, fixing some problem that had occurred. She had such a deep affection for the Home and we had such a deep affection for her. Her calm, supportive presence is sorely missed.
It has also been a year of staff changes too, as the Deputy Head of Home Mrs Pat Fawdrey decided to retire this summer after 20 years in the role.
Pat has always been very loyal to the Home and even to the end was considerate enough to give six months notice of her intent to leave, thereby staying long enough to help find and introduce her replacement to the post.. not many people are that kind and thoughtful nowadays. Pat achieved so much in her twenty years at St. John’s, from implementing major changes in the management of the Home, introducing and overseeing an extensive staff training programme and ensuring high standards of care for our residents. She worked quietly and diligently to help and support the Home in her professional and friendly manner whilst always maintaining her caring approach towards the elderly and of course her sense of humour! We wish her all the best for the future.
Christmas is coming!
December is upon us once again and we have organised even more activities to keep our residents busy over the festive season!
To view a copy of our activities and entertainment thoughout December – please click here…
Our annual afternoon tea party on St. John’s Day is always a keenly awaited event, enjoyed by residents and visitors alike. This year St. John’s Day falls on Monday 27th December and the tea & coffee will be brewing and food will be served from 3.30pm. We sent out invites last month to relatives and friends, so please do let us know as soon as possible if you would like to attend. Last year we welcomed over 120 residents, families, friends and sisters and just managed to fit everyone into our dining room! If you would like to join us, please call Naomi on 01865 247725 or e-mail admin@st-johns-home.org.
Goodbye to Oscar..
In September 2010 we also bade a fond farewell to our cat Oscar, who has been a much loved part of life at St. John’s Home since his arrival in 2003 from a local rescue centre. He was loved by resident, Sisters, staff and visitors alike and although he was useless at catching mice (!)..the place seems strange without him.
Oscar
Congratulations!
We are pleased to announce that Kate, who kindly volunteers her time each week to visit us with Ella, her gentle and friendly whippet, has given birth to a baby girl on the 13th September at 3.36pm. Lucy weighs a substantial 9lbs 7oz and apparently has very long legs – a bit like Ella the dog! We wish baby, mother (and dog) well!