Living Alone Positively

After reading Nigel George’s article (‘Staying sane during the silly season’), which featured in a previous issue of The Villager, a conversation was sparked at Coastal Villas about what residents could do to help alleviate feelings of loneliness for other residents living on their own.

To gain some insight into what measures could be taken, residents Laraine Perrett and Brian Colegate contacted more than 100 of their fellow village residents living alone. From there, the LAP (Living Alone Positively) project was born.

Brian reported that personal calls at villas and apartments was the most effective means of gathering information and contact by phone enabled them to cover almost everyone.

There were 22 residents who expressed an immediate wish to participate in the project and an early indication from those consulted suggested that outings at the weekend would be popular,” he said.

As for group activities in the village, we will strive to organise meetings of like-minded villagers with a common interest. For example, those among us coping with impaired eyesight may like to get together as a group to share experiences and opinions,” he added.

Brian and Laraine are aiming to organise a weekend activity outside the village soon, which would involve residents being willing to take passengers.

But the primary aim of the outing is companionship,” said Laraine.

And we don’t need to travel vast distances to achieve that,” said Brian.

Three LAP village events have already taken place in February, including a Valentine’s Day BBQ dinner. The get-togethers have been much enjoyed by all.