On Tuesday 29th June 2010 Remark! Community was officially launched at the newly formed Over 55s Lunch club. This club was formed in response to the closure of Croydon and Bromley elderly clubs. The venue, Azelia Hall, is situated in Beckenham which is equidistant between Croydon, Bromley and Lewisham and will serve the elderly deaf community of these 3 London Boroughs. This fully accessible venue comprises of 2 halls and the club is held at the smaller hall to the rear with our own kitchen area. The formal opening was well attended by clients as well as professionals and the prestigious task of cutting the ribbon fell to Remark! director Mark Nelson who added:
"I am a staunch believer in supporting the community. Remark! have enjoyed recent success but we do not want to forget our roots and the very reason of our success is the deaf community itself. That's why we take pride in reinvesting profits towards the deaf community. This lunch club is hopefully the first of many initiatives that we will be undertaking under the stewardship of Jonny Nelson who has 10 years experience in the charitable sector. It was a true honour to be able to help get this project off the ground. It is a personal ambition of mine to improve the access of the deaf elderly community after realising how much limited mobility or the general affects of old age can affect your life. Far too many deaf people over 55 are isolated and this is something that we want to combat. it is especially pleasing to see one of the beneficiaries is a long standing friend of remark! and a personal friend of mine Mr Stephen Pink who incidentally won the Remark! TV awards lifetime achievement award in November 2009."
The lunch club itself is open from 10.30am until 3.30pm every Tuesday and there is a range of services on offer. We will be providing advocacy for our clients such as letter translation, form filling, dealing with utilities and helping them make informed choices in regards to their health,finances and other crucial aspects. The basic menu will be at reasonable prices to ensure that that they get a decent meal that they can easily afford. The social club itself is the core element as they will have 2 hours uninterrupted chat. This is increasingly rare as many other clubs have bingo, gambling or other activities which mean that a number of people do not get the opportunity to engage in meaningful conversation. A key factor we want to address for those who spend much of the week in isolation. We will also be making time for board games and other activities especially aimed at those who take advantage of our free transport service as they will be there for the whole duration so some extra curricular activities will enhance their day.
Jonathan Nelson the project coordinator was on hand to comment: "I share Mark's sentiments regarding a certain payback to the community that has invested in us since a young age, I am proud to be involved in this project and can already say this is one of the more rewarding and worthwhile aspects of my charitable work to date. I am looking to get similar clubs set up around London and the UK. While remark! have been extremely generous we still need practical strategies for sustainable income and will be pursuing other avenues. Watch this space!"
