Community Care Magazine: Magazine for Elderly and Disabled: Issue 71

This year Able Community Care is celebrating 30 years of providing live-in care services. To mark this event we are giving away to the first readers who ring us, a gift connected to the word "pearl."

In this Gazette we have 4 copies of John Steinbeck's novel "The Pearl" to give away. Please call 01603 764567 to see if you are one of the first four readers to claim this item.

As mentioned in the last two Gazettes we are publishing a cookery book titled "Able To Cook" with the profits going to 2 charities, Age Concern Norfolk and Connect and Go, (a charity which supports young carers).

The book has recipes from some of our readers as well as from many famous names such as Sir Michael Caine, Sir Richard Branson, Joan Collins, Dame Judi Dench, Prunella Scales, Joanna Lumley and Stephen Fry to name but a few.

It will be on sale in early July and we are taking orders from 1st June onwards so please let us know if you would like one. The cost is £6.00 + p&p.

There are some really interesting recipes so you can cook and prepare lovely food and help the charities at the same time. A perfect combination!

The Air Ambulance Service came into being in 1987 following the tragic death of a child in Cornwall because the ambulance could not get to the child quick enough.

Today there are 18 areas in the U.K. which have an Air Ambulance service. The service costs £3.5m per year to run and is funded solely from donations as it receives no government funding or lottery funding.

On average, an air ambulance takes off every 10 minutes in the UK, flying 365 days a year in daylight hours.

The words and origins of the "hush a bye baby" rhyme are said to have originated from America.

It was the practice of some native Americans to place a baby in the branches of a tree allowing the wind to gently rock the child to sleep. The words to "Hush a Bye Baby" song were first published in 1765.

Macmillan Cancer Support has published the fact that one in four cancer patients are dying without having received Disability Living Allowance or the Attendance Allowance to which they are automatically entitled.

The amount estimated by Macmillan is that approximately £90m is going unclaimed.

People can contact their local Macmillan Cancer Support Charity who will be able to advise on claiming.

In 1846 a scientist Theron Pond invented Pond's Cream. It contained an extract from witch hazel and was found to be good at healing small cuts and scratches. The product was called Ponds Healing and it was not until the twentieth century when the market for cosmetics began to grow that Ponds Vanishing Cream and Ponds Cold Cream were introduced to the market place.

Today it is sold around the world with countries such as Spain, India, Japan and Thailand selling the most.

Trading Standards across the country are reporting complaints of companies scaring consumers into accepting a free burglar alarm which then ties the victim to a contract costing thousands of pounds.

The Trading Standards Institute is urging consumers to say no to companies offering these free appliances, who claim they are working with the police or as part of a Government scheme, or that they are researching for a fire and security alarm system company.

The alarm may be free but what they fail to mention are the fees that will have to be paid for the monitoring, upkeep and rapid response facilities. This can add up to thousands of pounds and some consumers have found themselves tied up to a contract of six years with costs up to £6,000.

Call Consumer Direct on: 08454 04 05 06 if you have any fears or concerns about a company that has approached you or someone you know.

The Daily Sparkle is a four page daily reminiscence newspaper which has been launched to help carers, friends and families who are supporting older people.

The Daily Sparkle was originally developed for Care Homes but is now available for all care staff and families and friends of older people.

The Daily Sparkle contains articles and photos about the 1940s, 50s and 60s. It also contains quizzes, sing-alongs, jokes, poetry and various tit-bits to brighten the reader's day.

One of its greatest benefits is in providing fresh subjects every day, thus providing many opportunities to create stimulating conversation with an older person.

The creators of the Sparkles, Everyday Miracles, are offering Gazette readers a 7 day free trial.

The Daily Sparkle is sent by email so all you need to do is to send your name, the name of the person being cared for, your email address and phone number to info@dailysparkle.co.uk and don't forget to mention that you heard about them in this Gazette.

After the free 7 day trial you can choose to subscribe to the paper for £10.00 per month.

Ninhams is a Norfolk producer of traditional local cake mixes. Henry Christian Ninham went into the cake baking business in 1870 and soon his business was selling cake mixes throughout the country.

The Ninham family no longer own the company but it is still a family run, independent cake supplier. The mixes that you can buy and bake yourself are: Traditional Norfolk Cheesecake Filling; Leavona Lemon Cake Mix; Ginger Cake Mix; and Chocolate Cake Mix.

Your local store or supermarket may stock them. If not write to: Unit 5, Whitelodge, Business Park, Hall Road, Norwich NR4 6DG or visit their website http://www.ninhams.co.uk for further details and some interesting recipes.

We have 6 packets of cake mixes to give away to the first 6 readers who call us on 01603 764567.

6/8 slices of white bread
¾lb (350gm) of rhubarb
½lb (225gms) of blackcurrants
½lb (225gms) of granulated sugar
6 tablespoons of water
½lb (225gm) of strawberries
½lb (225gm) of raspberries

PS. The same fruit mixture can be served with cream as a fresh, rich, red, fruit salad.

Have you ever wanted to find where a grave of a relative was, or perhaps an ancestor to help with your family history research?

A website which makes it easier to be successful is Find a Grave which advises that it has 44 million grave records from famous names to members of the general public.

The site allows you to search by date of birth, date of death, location and by cemetery.

According to the Office of Fair Trading almost half of the adult population has been targeted by a scam and 1 in every 15 people fall victim each year and although we have mentioned Scams before they still occur!

So to help our readers recognise a scam and not be taken in the following information from the Home Office is worth reading again.

Scams may be centred around winning a prize (even though you haven't entered); an exclusive entry to a scheme that's guaranteed to make you money; a way to earn easy money by helping someone get untold millions out of their country; or the chance to join an investment scheme that will make you huge amounts of money.

There are hundreds of examples so the best way to protect yourself is to be sceptical of 'something for nothing' schemes. Such schemes are likely to ask you to: send them money up front; give them your bank or other personal details; ring premium rate numbers (these numbers start with 090); or buy something to get your prize.

Don't send any money or give personal details until you have checked them out and talked to a professional or family and friends. If they ask you to do any of these things they're trying to cover their tracks and it's likely to be a scam.Other things to look out for are if they: ask you to send money straight away; give you a PO box number as their address; ask you not to tell anyone about the deal.

If you are the victim of a scam or know of one in your area contact your local office of Fair Trading or your local police.

You may have noticed in your chemist or supermarket that you can buy Moisturizing Socks whose purpose is to soften hard skin on the feet.

A tip given by a chiropodist for softening hard skin on the feet is to soak your feet in warm water, dry and cream your feet well with a moisturising cream, (there are many brands you can use). Place a clean pair of socks on and sleep in them. Do this for a week or so and lovely soft feet should be the result!

We are used to being told that everyone should drink around 6 to 8 glasses of fluid a day but as the weather warms up this becomes even more important.

Fluid can be just water, fruit drinks, (avoid fizzy sugary ones) smoothies, cups of tea, coffee or hot chocolate, etc.

Signs that can demonstrate that you are not drinking enough are getting headaches, feeling sleepy, feeling sluggish, being less alert or your concentration levels drop.

We lose fluid on an ongoing basis by sweating, breathing and going to the toilet and this fluid has to be replaced.

FIT is an organisation which offers welfare/financial support to people (including their dependents) who have been employed in the UK furnishing industry in any capacity for a minimum of two years.

In 2009 FIT provided £140,000 in financial assistance to those in need across the UK furnishing industry. There are organised social events and a regular magazine.

For further information call 0207 256 5954.
Web site is: http://www.fi-trust.co.uk

Community Car Schemes are a non-profit making organised form of car sharing to provide transport for people without access to a car. They are set up in areas with little or no transport and are run by volunteer drivers using their own cars.

The service is most frequently used for medical appointments, in exchange for a specified mileage charge. Passengers book a journey in advance with the scheme Co-ordinator who matches up their travel requirements with the drivers available.

The volunteer driver picks up the client from their home, takes them to their appointment and brings them back home. For further details in your area call your local County Council.

To Roy Jones and Helen Page for their outstanding kindness (Public thanks are at client's request).

Able Community Care provides an alternative to moving into a residential care home. If you would like our current brochure information pack please either click here and submit your request online or email to Ablemg@aol.com

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Able Community Care
The Old Parish Rooms, Whitlingham Lane, Trowse,
Norwich, Norfolk NR14 8TZ, United Kingdom

Opening Hours: 9:00am - 4:00pm GMT, Monday to Friday
(excepting UK Bank Holidays)

Tel: +44 (0)1603 764567 | Fax: +44 (0)1603 761655 | Email: ablemg@aol.com

Community Care Magazine for Elderly and Disabled: GAZETTE No.71