The Louth & District Seniors’ Forum is in its seventh year.

Open meetings are held on the 1st Friday mornings of March, June, September and December (AGM).  At each meeting, speakers are invited to enlarge on particular subjects in which they are specialists.  

In the last three or four years, the following subjects have been of interest to us at our quarterly open meetings:-
Dying Matters (including an undertaker, a wills writer and Hospice, Marie Curie, MacMillan representatives,), the Stroke Association, Louth And District Medical Services (NHS GPs), Mental Health and Older People, Hearing Loss and equipment to help (provided by DeafLincs), Local Crime and Community Sentencing, Library services including the Home Library service (WRVS) and Mobile library services, Trading Standards, Public Transport including Dial a Ride, Digital TV Switchover, Louth Hospital changes, Fire prevention measures, Patient Advice & Liaison Service (PALS), Independent Complaints and Advocacy Service, Driving Standards – Arrive Alive, Adult Education provision, Adult Social Care.

In the earlier years, topics included:-
Care homes and care in the home, Dentistry, Fitness – Active for Life and District leisure centre facilities, Citizens’ Advice Bureau, Equity release, Ambulance Service, ‘independent Age’, Abuse of the Elderly, Falls Prevention.

Last year, we started a web site of what activities, clubs and organisations are held in the villages around Louth, at which older people can socialise, exercise or enjoy their hobbies and interests.  Primarily this was intended for support workers or volunteers who have an interest in seeing older people re-integrating with their community after, perhaps, a time of illness or loss.  It continues to be developed and can be found at www.aroundlouth.org.uk

In 2009, we took part in the Silver Surfer Day by organising for several older people to take laptops to the Fish on Fridays luncheon at the Trinity Centre to introduce those not accustomed to accessing the internet to a sample of what is available online.

By the start of this year, a total of 430 older people had joined the Louth & District Seniors’ Forum, with about a third of those coming from the villages around Louth.

The Forum is not all about issues and concerns …

At our 5th AGM, Charles Baron, the first Chairman of the Forum, provided a delightful ending to our morning by playing three Fritz Kreisler pieces on his violin:- Schoen Rosamund, followed by Liebersfreud and lastly Liebesleid;  the last two meaning Love's Happiness and Love's Sorrow respectively.  Charles has played violin off and on for most of his life and has been a Fellow of Trinity College of Music since 1975 after passing the necessary examinations as an ‘older person’ at the age of 55!. 

At our 4th AGM, the chairman, John Heywood rounded off the proceedings with his ‘pensioner’s piano-thon’- it was a big success.  His accomplished playing did great justice to the inspired programme he had chosen.  Marigold by Billy Mayerl was followed by the Prelude in Eb by Rachmaninoff: Percy Grainger’s early 20th century composition ‘Handel in the Strand’ contrasted perfectly and the Edward Shanaphy’s arrangement of Arlen’s ‘Over the Rainbow’ struck some nostalgic chords with the appreciative audience.

Want to know more? A quarterly newsletter ‘Open Voice’ is produced each quarter and sent out free to members.  If you would like a copy sending, then please get in touch by emailing louthseniors@yahoo.co.uk  or ringing 0797 488 0157 or writing to us at the address below.

More information on the ‘Committee’ and ‘Welcome'’ pages - see below.