The Branch and its members recently enjoyed a very interesting summer outing to Portsmouth.

The day included a visit to The D-Day Story which recounted the events of 6th June 1944 and the liberation of Europe from Nazi Germany, as well as providing an opportunity to view the last surviving landing craft from D-Day, and it concluded with the awe-inspiring Overlord Embroidery which tells the story of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy in 34 extraordinary hand-stitched panels with a total length of 83 metres.

This was then followed by a visit to The Spinnaker Tower which, at a height of 170 metres above sea level, offered panoramic views that stretched over 23 miles and included some of the most spectacular sights in the British Isles.

For those brave enough, there was also the opportunity to walk across the glass Sky Walk through which you could see the harbour 100 metres below from a different perspective!

Equally importantly, the visit to the coast provided some welcome cooler weather and much needed respite from the heat back home, and so thanks to Keith and Kathy for arranging that as well!

So well done Keith and Kathy on another great outing and we look forward to seeing you all again at our various events and meetings over the coming weeks.

The photo above is © Copyright Ian Capper and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

The photos below show Branch member Dot and her carer Jodie contemplating the Sky Walk, and how it appears close up!

We have a couple of new members who joined us recently, Gill and Tony from Sunninghill. So far, they have attended a Branch meeting and Tony hopes to start attending some activities before too long. However, one interesting facet we have learnt about them is that for the past few years they have been running their own jazz/blues band!

Indeed, last weekend, they kicked off the South Hill Park Live Music on the Terrace sets of music which runs throughout the summer each Sunday afternoon. It was a blazing hot afternoon but the band laid on a great session which was much enjoyed by those of us there.

Gill leads the band on vocals while Tony plays rhythm guitar but also some lovely harmonica and also led some great vocals on a couple of songs as well.

By coincidence, Andrew Last, the Reading Branch Chair, has also been a member of the band for many years and so it has a true Parkinson’s flavour!

Gill describes the band as

“We are a versatile 7 piece band covering an eclectic mix of music including blues, smooth jazz and popular funk. We play for both charitable and private events, being free of charge if required for a registered charity! Lead, rhythm and bass guitars, drums, tenor sax, keyboard, harmonica and, of course, vocals. A true eclectic mix!“

It never fails to surprise us what skills and experiences our members have and we look forward to following their music adventures. We also hope to arrange a fundraising show with them at some stage in the future, jointly with Reading Branch.

The photo above shows Gill leading the vocals and Tony to her left and the one below with Tony taking the lead.

Members and partners from the Branch took part in the annual Sports Try-Athlon which is organised by Sport Parkinson’s and is held at The Stoop, Harlequins’ Rugby Ground in Twickenham.

It was a great opportunity to take part in a number of walking activities and also some intensive work outs, as well as a number of activity and educational sessions which run throughout the day.

The sessions included a Physio based work out from our Physiotherapist Beccy which went down well! (see photo attached)

Fortunately the weather was better than previous days and so everyone was able to take part as much as they wished to.

Several Branch members attended, including Will and Liz, Sheena and Tony, Chris and Sheila, and Lulu, as well as several of our Parkinson’s UK colleagues, including the Chair and CEO, who were suitably impressed by the range of activities available within our Branch!

And so the message from today, and from before, is to keep on exercising and, if you haven’t already started, to start doing so if you’re able to!

A new Working Age Group has been set up in Berkshire for people with Parkinson’s and their partners. It meets in The Waterside pub in Woodley on the third Thursday of the month from 7pm to 8.30pm. Join us for a chat and mutual support. See Diary or this webpage for details.