Interviewer

So, good afternoon, ladies. It’s nice that I’m interviewing two people together. So first of all, could I ask your name?

Jean

Jean

Interviewer

And how old are you, Jean?

Jean

Eighty-nine.

Interviewer

And?

Margaret

Margaret. And I’m eighty.

Interviewer

Thank you. So delighted to meet you both. And which hospital are we talking about today?

Jean

Bridgnorth Hospital.

Interviewer

Thank you. So, I’m looking at you both, you both strike me as good friends. How did that friendship come about?

Margaret

We live on the same estate. Jean’s drive was just built before ours was. I’m in the next one, but we were dinner ladies at the local school.

Interviewer

Okay. Yes. So, you’ve always lived around here?

Margaret

Yes, yes. Yes.

Interviewer

And you are in a local school. So, what gets you to the hospital and the League of Friends? How does that come about?

Jean

Finished work and wanted something to do.

Interviewer

So, at that point you were about 60 or younger?

Jean

Yes. About 59/60

Interviewer

Okay. And same for you?

Margaret

Yes, just somebody asked me if I was interested in League of Friends. I think I came to an AGM. And that was done.  The Treasurer. I think she was, or she didn’t like it. She was at the  coffee shop. Oh, that was it then probably. Yes.

Interviewer

So, they saw you as two capable women, and you were recruited in? So, did you start volunteering together or did you volunteer separately?

Jean

Separately, yes.

Interviewer

And what did you both do?

Margaret

Well, we went today for our meal. Yes, that was the old doctor’s surgery. And I worked at the doctors there.

Interviewer

Okay.

Jean

Well, happened to be swimming. We go to swimming classes, and there was two members of Bridgnorth Hospital League of Friends. And we were saying, a friend and I, we need something to do to pass the time away. They said, “well, why not come we’re having a dinner.” It was a Christmas meal. “Come and see if you like it.”  And before we left that evening, we got an afternoon to go around the wards.

Interviewer

So is that what you did? You did trolleys around the wards?

Margaret

First. Yes.

Interviewer

And what was that like?

Margaret

Interesting because we’d get to chat to people, you know. Jean’s from Bridgnorth or you know, been there all her life kind of thing. And knew lots of the people. But I soon got to know loads of people. It was lovely. Lovely to speak to. Some of them didn’t have visitors at all. So, you always made sure, didn’t you, you spoke to them, you know, when you went round with the tea.

Interviewer

And, I have no idea what sort of patients you would have had on the ward then. Were they there for a long time or were they there only for a short period?

Jean

Oh, no. After so many weeks, I’m not sure whether they would, it was suggested that if they couldn’t manage at home, then they would have the family sort out an old people’s home for them.

Interviewer

But these tended to be older people who were the patients anyway?

Jean

Yes. And more recently, they’ve had so many beds. Haven’t they? For the elderly, I think.

Interviewer

Okay. So that’s where you started. And that sounds like it was 20 plus years ago, is that fair?

Jean

Yes. 30, 29 or 30.

Interviewer

Okay. So, 30 years ago. And is that what your main volunteering has been, or have you done other things with the Friends?

Jean

Yes, we’ve worked in a coffee shop. Still do. And also Knit and Natter we do on Tuesday afternoon.

Interviewer

So, what’s Knit and Natter all about?

Jean

What? Lonely chat. Yes.

Interviewer

So, this is just people who live in the community outside. And then you use your very nice coffee shop space. And they can come in, have a drink, have a chat. And possibly do a bit of knitting as well.

Jean

Yes. And we sell things in the shop, you know,

Interviewer

And, and I have no idea how many people might come to Knit and Natter group.

Jean

Well, we had, we’ve gotten a little gift from League of Friends recently, and it was 21 or 22, wasn’t it, that we had had there. Yes.

Interviewer

And knitting at some levels, is having a resurgence with young people, isn’t it? You hear about young people knitting now, I’m assuming this group is all older or do you have any youngsters?

Margaret

No, not all. I don’t know. We have a young man. Oh yes. That was our first gentleman that was introduced by Linda Widows, I seem has her name there. A lovely lad. His mum was a teacher at Oldbury Wells school. She died, his dad died, and he now works for Sainsbury’s. Gets up at half past two in the morning. And walks down from Tasley to Sainsbury’s and does stocking the shelves, a real credit to anybody, you know. Yes. And I don’t know what time he finishes, sometimes he doesn’t make it to the Knit and Natter because he’s just fallen asleep once he’s got home. And it’s quite understandable. But he couldn’t do knitting, and he couldn’t do crochet. We have some that do crochet, and he did for, what do they call it French knitting? Yes. Anyway, he’s quite proud with how far it’s gone. You’ve got to show him how to roll it round and he’ll do it. Yes. But everybody loves him, don’t they? It’s real, you know.

Interviewer

That’s nice. It’s nice you’ve got somebody a bit different.

Margaret

Yes. Yes

Interviewer

You can learn what his life’s like as well.

Margaret

Yes,.

Interviewer

So we do Knit and Natter. And the coffee shop is really nice. It’s quiet, it feels quite professional, isn’t it?

Jean

Yes. It’s the best it’s been when we first started. Oh, well you would say about the, when you first started. Yes. We had like a little cubby hole in outpatients, lifting up the top horrible sink. Oh yes. I mean, how much was tea and coffee then? 20 Pence probably.

Interviewer

Okay.

Jean

Less. And then, we had a saucer with three pounds worth of change on it. That was it, and if we didn’t make a pound, we used to put it in ourselves.

Interviewer

Oh, bless. So, did we only serve tea and coffee then? Or did we do biscuits?

Margaret

Oh, we did biscuits. Yes. That was all.

Interviewer

So, I feel like it’s a bit grander now.

Jean

Oh yes. Yes. But I mean, from when it was altered, that was part of X-ray I think was when it was Yes. Extended for X-ray and we had that.

Interviewer

And I haven’t looked, so can you just have tea and coffee there, or can you have meals and things?

Margaret and Jean

We’ve started doing sandwiches, and the girls in the kitchen do them. And I do a lunchtime each week. And they’re really popular. I’ve had some and they are really tasty. They’re really lovely. Yes. We do soups and teacakes. We’ve always been asked, haven’t we, you know, had sandwiches and things like that? And we kept saying, “oh, we don’t have enough. We don’t have enough customers.” Which at the time we didn’t. Yes. But, as soon as we started doing these sandwiches, they went great. Yes.

Interviewer

And are they mainly to staff or are they visitors?

Margaret

Either the girls come down and that’s really nice, you know, they come down from the hospital and X-ray come, don’t they? Yes. We get their support

Interviewer

They grab and go, or do they sit at the table?

Jean

Either, whichever they want. Yes. And even the specialists come and buy cake off us for the girls that are working with them at the time, don’t they take it round back to where they’re working. Yes.

Interviewer

So, it’s a real sense of community that you have?

Jean

We have lovely people before the pandemic. Old people would, if they lived on the Grove, which is down town. Yes. They would have to come on the bus about half an hour earlier, wouldn’t they? They were all always too frightened, they’d be too late for the doctor’s appointment. So, they always came to us for a coffee or a tea, you know, and then they’d go over for their appointment. But, because of Covid, a lot of those people, they either didn’t come out, they’re too scared to come out, or otherwise they died you know. So, after that, we had a job, didn’t we? To get it back up again, you know, to what it was. But we have. I think we have. Yes. Yes.

Interviewer

So, what keeps you both coming in to volunteer? What is it that makes you still carry on?

Margaret and Jean

Joy? Yes. Meeting all the people. There’s not one that you could say “I can’t get on with them”. You know, they don’t, they are or aren’t they, they’re always, all the time that we’ve done it. There’s never been anyone that, you know, thinks they can boss you about, or anything like that. They’re not like that, are they? They’re all just a real good team.

Interviewer

And I’m sure that sometimes friends or family may say to you, don’t you think it’s about time you retired? What’s the answer to that question?

Margaret

No, no, no. Because we wouldn’t meet people. We’d be sat at home. I lost my husband seven years ago, and I’d have never managed without the girls here. I really, you just, it was a purpose, you know? And if you weren’t on par with things, you know, they didn’t mind one bit. They’d come and help you out and things like that.

Interviewer

That’s lovely to hear.

Margaret and Jean

No, they were brilliant. Yes. We enjoy the dementia group as well. Oh yes. It’s a real joy too. Yes.

Interviewer

So, tell me about the dementia group.

Jean

They are the most lovely people. No one deserves that as an illness.

Interviewer

So, this is a group that’s separate from the League of Friends?

Margaret

Well, they’ve joined in with the League of Friends now, but originally it was started by two beautiful nurses. If ever anybody wanted a nurse to look after them, it was these two girls, wasn’t it? They were, oh they were absolutely lovely. And they won an award for setting it up and we’d get people from church, didn’t we? Anywhere, you know, sort of North Shropshire or anything like that, just to see how we got on. They absolutely adore music, don’t they Jean?

Jean

Yes.

Margaret

Yes. And since the two girls, they retired because the one, her dad was very poorly and lived down Devon way, I think it was. And the other girl, she got a granddaughter, and she was going to look after the granddaughter. So, Phil, that you’ve seen today, his wife and another lady have taken it over just as brilliant. Phil’s wife is a craft person. She could put her hand to anything. I mean, we’d have done things, but not on the same scale, would we? I wouldn’t have done the same as them, but no. Fabulous. Yes. And usually ends off with a sing song doesn’t it for them. Yes.

Interviewer

So how regularly does that meet?

Margaret and Jean

Once a month. Yes. And they’ve set up one in the middle now, haven’t they? Yes. It’s just a chat or something. I think it’s so that the people themselves can get to know other people in their situation.

Interviewer

Absolutely. And is it just people with dementia or do their carers come?

Margaret

Their carers come, yes. Some I think are a bit scared of staying on their own. I don’t know whether some would manage on their own. Do you?

Jean

Probably not.

Margaret

You know, to say that they’d stay, I don’t know. You know. But I think they love us as much as we love them, don’t they, really? It’s lovely.

Interviewer

And sometimes I think those sorts of things, those are important for the carer as well.

Margaret

Gosh, definitely. Definitely. Because they can talk to other people in the same situation. The same, yes. And the girls that run it, they have knowledge of who to direct them to if they’re newly ones with dementia. Whereas, we don’t know that kind of thing. But we would find out for them, but not as good as, you know, the girls that run it.

Interviewer

Do you volunteer on the same day as the Dementia Cafe, or the bus?

Margaret and Jean

Yes. Yes. I don’t do the middle one because I help at the cancer shop in town. And once I’ve done that, I couldn’t keep saying, “I need another Friday off.” Yes. So, it was more, but they don’t need help. Do they, really? No. You know, they could just chat, and they like puzzles, don’t they? And things like that. Yes. And old dominoes. Yes. Funny thing this was going, when we used to just go round the wards, and we would go to see the people on the ward, and we were going to play dominos. And I said to this man, “I’m not much good at it,” but you know. Yes. And anyway, after a bit, I said, “Do you know how to play dominos?” And he said, “I do.” He said, “I used to do Domino’s for the county.”

Margaret

And I thought, “oh my God, there’s me, you know, can just about do fives and threes,” you know, kind of thing. So, yes. So, we had some fun with him. Yes. But that, you know, even on the ward in those days, a lot of them were, he wasn’t a dementia one, was he? He was all there. He was all there. What he could do. Bless him. Yes. Yes. We had one lady running around the wards. Oh. We got her knitting, you know, and her husband came, and visited, and he said that I gave all her knitting needles and wool away. He said she’s never touched any knitting or anything. Yes. He was always in tears because she was sat up in bed, you know, knitting away. So, things like that, you know, it really makes it worthwhile. Yes.

Margaret and Jean

Yes. And the first lot of people, we always remember them, don’t we? Who’ve been, and a lot of the men. Oh, we had books! Large print books from the library. Very nice. And this one book, it was huge. And you just turned the page, and it was all about the beach, wasn’t it? And the sea or something. And then the next one was a football one, and I said something about, “do you ever remember mark the ball?” Well, these men were on the books like wolves, you know, playing kind of thing. Anyway, we tried to do mark this, mark the ball, didn’t we? Well, they were much closer than me. I was useless as to where this ball was supposed to be. But no, they like anything, you know, people would say they don’t know what to say to them. Well, you don’t even have to worry about what you’re saying to them. Except I’ve put my foot in it a few times and said “Right, where do you live?” And then you feel choked, and you think “you silly woman,” you know. It’s their carers that have to tell them what their address is or anything like that. Yes. But you know, anything of memory of old days, didn’t it? They knew and Yes. Yes. They knew.

Interviewer

Excellent. Now, when you were told that you might be speaking to me today, is there anything you wanted to tell me that you haven’t had the chance to say?

Margaret

No, because we didn’t have much more. We found something.

Interviewer

It’s lovely.

Jean

No.

Interviewer

Okay. Well, it’s been lovely to meet you. Thank you ever so much.