On Saturday 8th September over 140 people attended a Garden Party in the grounds of Glenroyd (which is a large detached residential home, in the north of the island, which caters for 5 young men with profound learning disabilities, who in addition have physical impairments and very complex needs).
The day was a huge success and boasted music to rival Mannifest! Visitors were entertained by the Crosby Silver Band, Ny Fenee the Manx Dance Group and folk music from Barbara Killey. As an addition there was close up magic performed by Colin Boardman.
The idea of a garden party was chosen by the residents of Glenroyd, in conjunction with their families to say an official thank you to everybody who has helped or raised funds to assist in creating our newly established Sensory Garden and to commemorate the 10 year anniversary of Glenroyd being open and managed by the charity Praxis Care.
The Sensory Garden was officially opened by John McGregor, Vice Chair of Praxis Care, local MHK Leonard Singer and the Hon David Anderson MHK & Minister for Health.
As far back as 2003 it was suggested that a Sensory Garden might be a nice addition to the scheme. However, with competing demands and the high costs, it’s a project that was initially put on hold. In the last couple of years the staff team have driven the project forward and donations from the residents’ families and the local community have been very generously received. Staff and their families have also taken part in charity events on behalf of Glenroyd i.e. The Parish Walk, End to End and the Castetown World Tin Bath Race. Some of the main sponsors being:
Ramsey Folk Club
RAOB Club
Ballamona Association
IOM Farmers
Royal Bank of Scotland
Verve Consultants
Castletown Ale Drinkers Society
In addition, staff from RBS volunteered to help construct the raised beds and to produce the very colourful mural of Manannan, the Manx Mythical god (whose Mystical Cloak we hope will protect our residents for a long time to come).
The therapeutic values of having a Sensory Garden are well documented, allowing people to enjoy nature in a safe and tactile way and it can bring a great contribution to emotional and physical well being, providing a beautiful place to relax, reflect, meditate, contemplate and to interact with others.
As every gardener will tell you, to have a truly special garden requires many years of nurturing. This task has been embraced by the residents and staff team at Glenroyd and the early results are already very impressive indeed!
The proof as they say is in the pudding and since its creation this summer, we have clearly seen a much greater desire from our service users to use the garden; Some choosing to learn new skills and to assist in the watering and tendering of the raised borders and hanging baskets, others choosing to sit in the garden and enjoy the aromas and the tranquil settings and appreciate the foliage, flora and additional wildlife attracted to the garden.
It was truly amazing to see so many visitors celebrating the occasion and to help make this a very memorable and enjoyable day, one which I hope will create happy memories for us all to cherish in the future. My personal thanks go to every one who has helped in bringing this day together and particularly the staff team at Glenroyd and the residents and their families, who have raised all of the funds to promote to days event.
