There is a buzz in the air at Tavistock Stroke Club as the Christmas meal menu is discussed and a Remembrance poppy making session begins fuelled by cake from Spain.
Self-confessed noisy person Debbie (a former prison officer) is holding court on her table at the club’s fortnightly sessions at the Tavistock Area Support Services charity HQ.
Debbie is exactly the type of outgoing person needed to help the newcomers feel at home - many people come having undergone traumatic strokes which have drained their confidence and shrunk their lives in many ways. I really enjoy coming to the stroke club to meet different people and have some fun. I hope my positive attitude helps others and is infectious. I always say don’t give upon anything and look to the future.”
Harvey Leach and Mick Pease have become friends since meeting at the stroke club. Both have been highly active people in business and in their personal lives. Mick, formerly of Whitley Bay in the NE, has run numerous big city marathon races and was a Royal Navy diver before running all Debenhams and Top Man operations in the north of England - but his brain tumour when he was only 47, ended all that.
He said: “My life was devastated by my tumour which came out of the blue. I had a high level management job and was highly fit and active, but the tumour destroyed all that.
“I had to start all over again, learning to walk and talk and move. I then moved down here with my wife to be near her family. My wife Shirley has been wonderful looking after me. I really look forward to coming to the stroke club and getting to know people - we all have different experiences of brain issues and deal with it different ways. But it’s all done in a sociable way.”
Hs new friend Harvey, a former egg farmer (with wife Chris) and egg farming adviser said: “It’s great to share each other’s views and experiences of life and meet people I’d never have met in my social circle otherwise. My activities and social contacts were badly cutback by my stroke. The main affect has been on my eyesight. I loved walking also. But I can’t even drive now due to my eyes. But the stroke club gets us out with a varied programme of outings such as the aquarium in Plymouth and meals. It’s really uplifting to talk to people like Mick and helps my outlook. It would be easy to get down about what’s happened. But we support each other.”
Harvey was persuaded to attend stroke club by his wife who, by coincidence, was volunteering at the fortnightly gatherings and social events. She said: “s volunteers we also feel a sense of optimism when we’ve been helping out. It’s really inspirational to see how people overcome their setbacks and sark off each other.”
Anyone interested in attending Tavistock Stroke Club or volunteering can call Chris Farrance on 01822 832587 or 0778 865 7222.
