A Field of Dreams moment
Date of news/blog: 25th September 2023It may not quite have been a Fields of Dreams moment, but for Donna Dyson, it was a case of if you build it, she will come.
That’s because when Donna saw Foxhunters being built, she knew immediately that she was going to end up working then, and she was correct!
Donna has been our Activity Coordinator since we opened in November 2018 and along with her Assistant Debbie, she is responsible for planning and delivering the activities which help the mind, body and soul of our ladies and gentlemen.
Donna has worked in care homes for 18 years and it all started purely by coincidence.
She explains: “I opened the paper and saw an advert for carers so I thought I would give it a go as I wanted to do something different, and I haven’t done anything else since!”
After having her son, Donna says the hours associated with caring were becoming difficult so after the Activity Coordinator at the home she was working at left, she asked if she could take on the role and this was when it all started for her.
She worked in several smaller homes before the opportunity at Foxhunters arose.
“I saw this place being built and it was huge, but I just knew I was going to work here, and I when it came to my interview, I was offered the job on the spot,” says Donna.
“The amount I have learned since starting here is ridiculous. They have made it a professional role and it’s all about helping the ladies and gentlemen at Foxhunters to have fulfilling lives.
“It doesn’t compare to the previous roles I had as it much more varied. Looking back I was drifting through my job at these homes, making teas, painting nails, doing some art, whereas here it is so much more varied.
“I feel more like an events manager, and we have had fantastic support from the local community. It’s never difficult booking people to come into the home and I have made some great contacts who have really helped me, such as Will Duggan, who arranged for the Welsh Guards to visit and brought in a Banksy art piece which later sold in Abergavenny for six figures.”
Donna and Debbie put meticulous planning into activities at Foxhunters, the idea being they want to offer as much as possible on any given day for the ladies and gentlemen to choose from.
All the activities are colour-coded, with blue standing for spiritual/mindfulness activities, yellow for intellectual activities, pink for creative ones and oranges denoting special events. And at the request of residents, pictures were added to the planner so they can understand what each activity entails.
Donna adds: “It’s nice to go home at the end of the day knowing the job you have done is appreciated and that’s certainly the case here.
“I never approach anything half-heartedly and approach everything at 100% and the ladies and gentlemen pick up on that and now you are trying to do the best for them.
“It’s a lovely, family-oriented environment to work in and the staff are all supportive of each other, so you can’t ask for more than that.”
Outside of work, mum-of-two Donna admits to taking her work home with her, in more ways than one.
She explains: “My brain is constantly on the go, thinking about activities we can do, but working at Foxhunters has helped me personally too because one of my favourite hobbies has become needle felting and that is something we first did in the home!”