Cork 'Heroes at Home' receive gifts from local volunteers
Pictured receiving their Senior Play Activity Pack are, Paddy and Eileen Corcoran, Hillview Estate. Picture: Jim Coughlan.
Volunteers across Cork surprised older members of their communities this week with senior activity packs to help show their support for the “heroes at home”.
Senior Activity packs, an initiative of Playful Paradigm and Age-Friendly Cork, were distributed Southside this week, bringing smiles to many faces amid the Spring sunshine.
Each community area response team across the city received an allocation of the special packs but as the area with a large older population, Ballyphehane Togher Community Development Project (BTCDP) with the support of Cork Kerry Community Healthcare purchased additional packs.
Covid-19 has been a difficult period for many but in particular the older members of the community who have been isolating and remaining at home for almost a year.
The Activity Packs aim were delivered to as many “heroes at home” as possible in the area.
“Older people have had a hard Covid: cocooning, not seeing family or friends, missing their usual activities,” said Siobhan O’Dowd, co-ordinator of BTCD.
"We’d many willing volunteers across the project helping to assemble these packs and again now helping to distribute them,” added Ms O’Dowd.
The activity packs were distributed to group leaders in Ballyphehane, Togher, Turners Cross and the Lough with the help of CDP volunteers, Cork City Council, Cork Sports Partnership and HSE Physiotherapy and Community Work.
More packs will be distributed in the coming week to group members and older people in the area.
The packs were received with joy as recipients explored the contents in gardens and neighbourhoods across the local community.
Playful Paradigm is a partnership between Cork City Council, Cork Healthy Cities, Cork City PPN, Cork Learning Cities, Foróige, the HSE and Cork Local Sports Partnership.
