Headway Natal

Headway Newsletter : November / December 2003

EDITORIAL
Why is it that when we come to this time of the year, all we ever say is "I just don't know where the year has gone! Every year seems to go faster than the last!!" I'd like to think that it is indicative of the fact that we are so busy and productive that we don't have any time on our hands. Each year, we are a year older, and perhaps people are expected to slow down as the years advance. Don't you think that those of us who are asking where the year has gone should be proud of the fact that, far from slowing down, we are actually just as active and industrious (dynamic??) as ever. Worth a thought! Rose.

Welcome to………
We'd like to welcome Hilda Schwarz and Joy Impey as new members, and also Andre Beukes who has re-joined us. We hope your association with us will be happy and beneficial.

General Meetings………
As stated in a previous newsletter, we decided to discontinue our General Meetings in the evenings. The main purpose of these meetings was to create a time for families to come together to chat, share experiences and have an opportunity to communicate with people who have actually gone through the same/similar experiences. Having a guest speaker was the "cherry on top". The need to have this opportunity to talk and share remains as important as ever. So, to fulfil this need we are planning to start a Coffee Morning on the first Saturday of each month, starting in February next year. Mark it in your diaries for 2004! Saturday 7th February, at 10h00 at Headway House. We won't be having guest speakers, but can guarantee a lovely cup of coffee/tea and a chance to share and care. As far as our guest speakers are concerned, many have expressed an interest in coming back to Headway. So next year, also once a month, on a Friday morning, we will continue with our speakers, and all those who used to attend the evenings meetings will be more than welcome to come along. Watch your newsletters for more details. P.S.! We've got lovely Diaries and Journals for 2004 on sale at Headway. They cost R20,00 each, and even if you've already bought your own for next year, they would make really great Christmas presents.

"THANK YOU's"……
Each month, as we gather all the data for the current newsletter, it strikes me anew just how fortunate we are to be the recipients of such kindness, generosity and caring. Our "thank you's" cover such a wide range, from a) finance to b) material donations to c) time and d) talents. This month, under Finance, we'd like to acknowledge the following: Dain van der Reyden, Marcia Schreuder, Martin White, Natal Accounting Services, Ubuntu Community Chest, S Warne, Val Lewis, Viv Clements, and lastly, S.E. Bowden and L.G. Golding - "In memory of K Bowden." In total, we received R2013. Still under Finance, our Fundraising Portfolio raised the wonderful amount of R4408. And here, our grateful thanks go to the following areas:- Sales of books / cards, collection tins, "funny money" - (small change collected by lots of people & popped into a variety of different containers!) - Paper Waste, Sewing Patterns, Diaries & Journals, Raffles, Woodwork, and lastly our Shop Sales, whose contribution was R1041. Obviously we don't know who puts money in our collection tins, however our thanks go to Trish Rennie, the Hanauer Family, and Mndeni Meats for taking our tins. As far as material donations, time and talents are concerned, we would like to say a collective thank you, for the simple reason that there are so many people to thank that I could fill a newsletter with just acknowledging all the people who are true Headway angels and who bring a very special air of "magic" to Headway. In today's world, about 90% of all we read and hear is so negative and tragic, but the "milk of human kindness" is in such abundance at Headway that one's faith in humanity is constantly being restored. Thank you, one and all, for being so very special. PLUS! PLUS!….
I would like to mention several other people who have "gone the extra mile" or helped us out when we were in need! McCarthy Toyota, Smith Street, Durban kindly repaired the clutch of our Venture free of charge, and also generously loaned us another vehicle during the repair time; Vic from Xerox provided a state-of-the-art photocopier -(much needed!); Neville from Leaf Technologies provided us with a photocopier at very reasonable monthly rates; Dulcie from Ons Hoekwinkel has been most kind in donating lots of lovely cakes - which are most welcome treats at teatimes; Greg Till donated a freezer for Molweni, and organized transport to take 2 freezers, 1 fridge, bags of jumble, gardening tools & stationery - (donated by Glen Lourens) - to Zimlele; Rick Millard & Neil Hannan, Westville Rotary Club, donated (and transported) a stove for Zimele. To you all, your generosity and goodwill is quite overwhelming, and so much appreciated.

A special thank you………
At this point, while thanking all those who are so generous in so many different ways, I feel it is more than appropriate to mention the Staff at Headway. The Staff at Headway are magnificent! Their dedication, their wonderful spirit, their compassion, their commitment, and their incredible ability to make all who come through the doors feel better about themselves. How fortunate we are, and how humbling to work with so many people who genuinely care. They work as a team, are concerned about each and every attendee as a team, and I sincerely consider myself very privileged to be part of such a team. THANK YOU, Cheryl, Darina, Debbie, Happiness, Kerry, Lesley, Linda, Lionel, Liz, Pam, Rosanne, Veronica, and Zipho.

To our fantastic group of volunteers, another huge thank you. You make life so much easier and more pleasant, and you are such an important feature in the daily life of Headway. THANK YOU, Ann, Brian, Helen, Irene, Kate, Jenny, Jessica, Joy, Lilian, Marie, Marlene, Mavis, Peter, Rose & Stan, Sue, Saroj, Thanusha and Wayne.

An exceptional Fundraising effort……….
In October, we were contacted, out of the blue, by one of our long-standing members, Maxine Venter, and asked if her 10 year old daughter, Natascha, could do some fundraising for us. Maxine's husband, Tim, died as a result of a head injury sustained in an MVA about 8 years ago, and Maxine has been a member of Headway ever since. Natascha had been selected to compete in a National Beauty Pageant, Miss Sky Nations, being held in Gauteng in November. One of the requirements was to raise money for a Charity of her choice. She chose Headway.
Combining single-minded determination and an engaging personality, she managed to get a really large number of prizes donated towards having a GRAND RAFFLE. With lots of hard work and resolve, the Raffle was a great success, and Natascha was able to hand over a cheque for R1400. We feel that this is an incredible effort and result from someone so young. What an amazing example to today's youth - tomorrow's adults!! It is to be hoped that more youngsters will follow Natascha's excellent example. Thank you so much, Natascha. You're a star!

Function feedback………
For quite some time now Mavis has been hard at work getting the Christmas repertoire ready for our Christmas Crackers Concert. Everyone has been in great voice, feeling quite excited and looking forward to the concert. We had our Dress Rehearsal on Tuesday 2nd - good as dress rehearsals go! - and then the following day we went Busking in the Westville Mall. This was a marvellous PR Exercise, and an ideal opportunity for us to express our thanks to the businesses in the Mall who support us in so many different ways. It is now the 3rd year we have been busking, and we feel that Headway is gradually getting more and more publicity thereby becoming better known, which, of course, is part of our Mission Statement.

It was great fun and a real success. So, by Friday we were peaking just in time for Christmas Crackers. It followed last year's format, with the 1st half singing Christmas Carols - including some excellent solos from Murray and Cameron - and then about 40 minutes of in-house "Variety". Lots of fun and laughter!! As far as we're concerned, the Concert was most entertaining, and judging by the comments we heard, it was enjoyed by all present. The concert was attended by about 40 people. Peter Deighton was a highly amusing compere - how he remembers all his jokes is quite astonishing; the singing was enthusiastic all round and a great time was had by all. It was a "Bring and Share", so a delicious spread was enjoyed and rounded off a successful evening. Extra thanks go to Cathy Sofilas for the 8 dozen lovely mince pies which she kindly made for us. They were scrumptious!!

O.T. Corner………(from Debbie)
Another really busy month. Far from resting on their laurels after so much work for our Craft Market, we have been very busy and productive, plus there have been lots of outings. Many of you may have seen on T.V. the launching of "The Great South African Nokia Journey". Sponsored by Nokia, 5 teams have been visiting 260 cities, towns and villages all over S.A. to collect typical South African stories, and also to give South Africans an opportunity to display their talents. They were in Pinetown in November, and the Headway gang made this their Friday outing. They had put together their stories, and had produced a book of poems and essays.

Headway crafts were on display, plus posters showing what we're all about. Cameron and Zipho got up on the portable stage and performed a self-penned "rap" telling the crowds what Headway and Zimele are all about. Our guys definitely showed that they are "proudly South African." The Zimele children had been helped to write a poem, and this was also read out. Other outings included a trip to the Umgeni Bird Park - always such a pleasure, a visit to the Imax Theatre at Gateway to see "Coral Reef Adventure" - a wonderful experience according to all the attendees, and a fun morning playing Ten-Pin Bowling, also at Gateway.

During the final week Debbie planned outings for 3 mornings, namely a trip to the Craft Market at Wilson's Wharf followed by lunch; a picnic at Paradise Valley; and a stroll from Pirate's Beach to the Suncoast Casino followed by lunch and a movie. We've been very fortunate to have the voluntary services of some excellent 3rd and 4th year O.T. students during the course of the year. Karen, Kerry, Kirsty, Jennifer, Olivia & Tarryn - thank you all so much, and we hope you've enjoyed your time with us as much as we've enjoyed having you at Headway.

Finally, on Friday 12th we had our closing Braai, kindly hosted as usual by Norman Lourens and his son, Glen. It is great to end the year on a high note, and our end-of-year braai has become something of an institution!! We didn't actually do a head-count, but think there were at least 50 people at the braai. The weather stayed fine for us, with the rain starting at about 13h00, just as people were starting to leave. Once again, there were lots of compliments to the chefs, and a great deal of appreciation was expressed. To top it all off, we did the draw for a recent raffle of a beautiful Christmas Basket of "Christmas goodies". To everyone's delight, it was won by our very own Happiness, - a lovely end to a happy day. All in all, it has been a great year at Headway and the daily "Respite Care" side has truly flourished. Well done to all involved.

Slow down the ageing process?………
I found an article by a Dr Bruce Goldberg about how to slow down the ageing process. However, I feel that some of his advice and principles are actually appropriate for everyone, regardless of age!

You can decided for yourself from the following extracts.
Eliminate the tendency to judge yourself and others.
Do not seek external approval
Let go of all anger. This will facilitate your own healing.
Be love-motivated rather than fear-motivated.
Pay attention to your intuition and spiritual insights.
Live life in the current moment & appreciate it fully. Let go of the past & do not worry about the future.

…..and some thoughts on survival………

The first rule is: life isn't fair. Get used to it!

Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday - but not nearly enough, or quite unnecessarily.

You are not what others think you are. What you think, you are!

Warning!! Humour may be hazardous to your depression.

Pretend you're a star and poke a hole in someone's darkness.

Love is the only treasure that multiplies by division.

Why do broken hearts keep on beating? Most of us miss out on life's big prizes. The Nobel. The Booker. The Lotto. The Oscars. But we are all eligible for life's smaller pleasures. A pat on the back. A kiss behind the ear. A full moon. An empty parking space. A crackling fire. A great meal. A glorious sunset. Enjoy life's tiny delights. There are plenty for all of us.

Backpage snippets………

Congratulations and well, well done to Cathy Hanauer for graduating as a Medical Doctor after 7 very hard years. I don't think there is anyone who can really understand just how wonderful an achievement this is in view of the accident Cathy had. Cathy you are an inspiration! We wish you every success and happiness in the future.

The Headway camera has given up - probably from over-use!! It actually plays a very important role at Headway, almost on a weekly basis!! So we're asking if there is anyone who has a camera which is not used/ spare/ unwanted etc etc. We'd be immensely grateful if anyone can help us.

While we're asking, we're also looking for someone with gardening expertise. HELP!! We'd like to make a meandering pathway in the front garden, including a paved area under the trees. We'll also need paving stones!! Any offers??

Please note!! Headway closed on Friday 12th December, and will re-open on Tuesday 6th January, 2004, at 08h30.

We wish you all a very joyous season and all success
and happiness in the New Year - 2004