We are delighted to have two new and fabulous Clowndoctors in Dr Maybee and Dr CousCous, who have both been out visiting children on the wards this week. They have both been through a comprehensive training process which began by observing Clowndoctor sessions before embarking on a programme that covered everything from how to tailor clowning activities to the needs of each participant, to multi-sensory play for children with multiple disabilities, to more practical matters such as hygiene procedures – and much more besides! They will now have three months additional support, working under the watchful eye of an experienced practitioner who will act as mentor and advisor as they head out on to the wards - even though they are already great additions to the team! It's not easy to become a Clowndoctor but keeping standards high is critical to our work.
News
New Clowndoctors
Congratulations to Adam!
Adam Bojelian has been a very good friend of the Clowndoctors for almost 10 years now and we are very proud that he has just won a Brit Writers Award for his poetry in a national competition that attracted over 21,000 entries. It's an even more remarkable achievement given that Adam writes his poetry by blinking. We particularly love the poem about his dog, Charlie, which begins; 'My name is Adam and I am nine and I own the smartest, funniest dog in town, his name is Charlie and he is a clown.' We will print the full poem in our next newsletter. Well done, Adam - the Clowndoctors salute you!
New Partnership for Christmas
We are delighted to announce that we are partnering with the Festival Theatre, Edinburgh this Christmas, as they proudly present the essential treat for all the family in Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic children’s novel, The Secret Garden from Thu 9 December – Sat 8 January. This brand new production brings the story to wondrous life and features the enchanting music of Lucy Simon and the spellbinding lyrics of Marsha Norman. "A treat for all ages. A garden of delights” The Daily Mail
As a friend of Hearts & Minds you can get tickets to see The Secret Garden at the Festival Theatre Edinburgh for just £15 each - that’s up to half price! Call 0131 529 6000 and quote ‘Chosen Charity Offer’ when booking. Groups of 8+ should call our Group Sales Team on 0131 529 6005 to benefit from no booking fees. You can also buy your tickets online (and select your own seats) at www.festivaltheatre.org.uk using promotion code TSGCC. (Applies to Stalls seats only. Available on all performances. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer/discount. Does not apply to tickets already purchased. Subject to availability. This show is suitable for ages 6+.)
Vote for us!
Sadly, we didn't win Scottish Charity of the Year this year but we did have a lovely time at the awards ceremony and it was great to hear more about so many other amazing charities. So onwards and upwards! Hearts & Minds is through to the semi-finals of The National Lottery Awards 2010 and we need your vote to take us through to the final round. We are one of only 10 projects to make it through to the semi-finals in the Best Voluntary/Charity Project category of The National Lottery Awards. The winning project in each category will receive national recognition on a star-studded BBC 1 TV show later this year and will receive a £2,000 cash prize to spend on their programmes.
Public voting for the semi finals started at 9am on Tuesday 1 June, and will last until midday on Friday 18 June. The telephone number for you to dial to show your support is: 0844 686 5082 or you can vote online at www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/awards.
Scottish Charity of the Year
We are delighted to have been short-listed for Scottish Charity of the Year and will find out if we have been lucky enough to win at the awards ceremony in Edinburgh on June 10th. We are up against some other very deserving charities but fingers crossed that it's our turn this time. Dr Squeegie will have an even bigger grin than this if we win - if that's possible!
Spring into action
Hearts & Minds are now on JustGiving.com and we would encourage anyone who loves a challenge to run, cycle, hop, skip or jump on our behalf. We have our first brave marathon runner lined up so if you have a few coins to spare, visit the JustGiving page of Geoff Huggins and make a donation. It will make us all smile as sweetly as Blossom Elderflower, pictured here.
The Kindness of Strangers
Our very own Dr. Ping-Pong was on a train recently on his way back from a Clowndoctor session at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness when he got chatting to a fellow passenger about Hearts & Minds. This morning a cheque arrived from the lovely lady he was sitting next to bearing the message 'Best wishes for your work.' We are all very touched by this kind gesture.
Hearts & Minds attends SAC Symposium
150 years of the Edinburgh's Royal Hospital for Sick Children
Dr Sprout and Dr Mousse were delighted to join in the celebrations marking 150 years of the Edinburgh's Royal Hospital for Sick Children. They were seen on STV news as they delivered the enormous birthday cake and balloons to some of the children on the wards. The Clowndoctors visit Edinburgh Sick Kids twice a week but have only been going there for 10 out of the 150 years! A very big Happy Birthday! to all our friends there.
Elderflowers explore new ways to engage with dementia patients
This month, our Elderflowers practitioners got together to discuss their work and explore new ways to engage with dementia patients. The session focused on using music as a way to make a meaningful connection and ended with individual 'X-Flower' singing performances – some of which were better than others! Sweetie-Pie Elderflower (Maria Oller) won the prize for best performance overall. These regular artistic sessions form part of our practitioners' on-going training and development.
