A 93-year-old Sanctuary Care resident living with dementia is able to relive memories with her family thanks to a special book.
Thelma Parker, who lives at Brambles Residential Care Home, Redditch, is often read a book called ‘dear mum, from you to me – a journal of a lifetime’.
The book was created by her daughter, Rosie King, in 2011 and recounts key moments in Thelma’s life.
Anecdotes include Thelma’s time as a nurse and her experiences of life during the Second World War.
Rosie said: “I gave my mum this book nine years ago and I’m so thankful I did.
“It was a blank book at the time but it had questions on every page which she answered.
“I kept the book in a box for years until she went to Brambles and then I thought it would be nice to read it to her.
“Unfortunately, because of her dementia, she often doesn’t know she’s done these things in her life.
“But her face lights up when I read to her so she does remembers some things.”
When lockdown struck, Rosie continued to read the book to her mum over video call.
Rosie has learnt a lot about Thelma’s life and says if it wasn’t written down she wouldn’t have ever known about them.
Fiona Morsy, activities coordinator at Brambles, said: “It has been wonderful to see Thelma interact with Rosie. It just goes to show what a powerful thing the mind can be.”
