AVA Magazine - September 22
Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action Magazine.
Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action Magazine.
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8 <strong>AVA</strong> | <strong>September</strong> 20<strong>22</strong><br />
Member Spotlight|<br />
Networks of Wellbeing<br />
Sharon Francis<br />
<strong>AVA</strong> Development Officer,<br />
Specialising in Supporting<br />
Independent Living with<br />
Sandra Brantingham, Chair<br />
of NoW<br />
The 15th of August 20<strong>22</strong> marked the opening<br />
of the new Networks of Wellbeing (NoW)<br />
premises at 34 West Park Street in Huntly.<br />
The journey has been a long and winding one<br />
for NoW and the atmosphere was exhilarating<br />
and positively happy, all the staff were bustling<br />
around meeting all their guests. The challenging<br />
work involved finding suitable premises and fast<br />
forwarding to today at the opening ceremony,<br />
and there was a real sense of relief for all those<br />
involved from the board, the staff team and the<br />
volunteers.<br />
After such a difficult period due to Covid it was<br />
lovely to see so many people in one place,<br />
chatting and meeting with acquaintances they<br />
had not seen for a while. Standing back and<br />
watching, I thought, this is what it’s all about, how<br />
our communities have missed the opportunity to<br />
come together and connect. Whilst waiting for<br />
the cutting of the ribbon, Robert, a piper, played<br />
a few tunes whilst people continued to arrive,<br />
making it feel very welcoming.<br />
Networks of Wellbeing is an inclusive and<br />
diverse organisation that lies at the heart of<br />
Huntly and the surrounding area, providing<br />
mental health and well-being support within<br />
the community.Their ethos is based around the<br />
Five Ways to Wellbeing and they offer various<br />
opportunities and projects including: Chilling<br />
Women, Counselling, Peer Support, Silver Singers,<br />
Dementia Support, Mindfulness to name but a<br />
few.<br />
Sandra Brantingham, the chairperson for NoW<br />
opened the ceremony with a speech which<br />
included her journey with NoW, joining the<br />
board in 2011 and becoming the chair in 2012.