Cambridge Pensioners' Fellowship

In January 1998 we relaunched our venue from Zion Baptist Church in East Road, Cambridge, to Cherry Trees Day Centre in St. Matthew's Street, meeting every Wednesday afternoon.

We went forward with a vision of reaching many elderly people in isolation and in need of company and friendship, giving them the incentive to not only enjoy themselves, but to look outward and be of some use to the community and further afield.

The opportunity arose for us to start a Drop-in Centre for the members of Cambridge Dial-a-Ride on Wednesday mornings, giving these dear people the opportunity of meeting with each other socially.

Wednesdays at Cherry Trees is a hive of activity and joy from 10.30am until 4pm, starting with about 12 - 20 Dial-a-Ride members arriving in the mini-buses, gathering together for refreshments and to make new friends. Lunch is provided by Camms Meals at the Centre, which is very much appreciated - for some the highlight of their week!

At 2pm the Pensioners’ Fellowship meets and most of the Dial-a-Ride members from the morning stay on to enjoy a happy time of competitive games, group activities, exercises, guest speakers, slides, entertainment etc. Not forgetting a welcome cup of tea! There are between 30 to 50 who attend each week. Every week we have a short time of devotion led by the Minister of Zion Baptist Church, the Revd Tony Barker, who visits us once a month, and the other weeks by myself or one of the helpers.

Since our move to Cherry Trees many of the members have been busy knitting squares and have presented Dial-a-Ride with many blankets to give warmth to those who travel on the buses. For our outreach project, reaching out into the world, we have sent over 150 knitted vests for the children in Uganda. Postage stamps are collected, trimmed and sorted, to be sent to the Baptist Missionary Society. Two or three outings are organised during the year to the seaside or places of special interest.

An invitation is extended to other Senior Citizen organisations in the City and surrounding villages to attend our Harvest Thanksgiving which is held at Zion Baptist Church, East Road, Cambridge. This gives us an opportunity to join together and to bring gifts of tinned and packaged food to be given to Jimmy's Night Shelter and other worthy charities in need.

More information can be obtained from the leader of Cambridge Pensioners' Fellowship, namely, Mrs. Sheila Wall by e-mail.