Lee Burnham, Old Raven House's gardener, and Helen Wise, activities lead with the Hampshire-based care home's time capsule.

Hampshire Care Home Looks to the Future by Burying the Past

The residents of Hampshire-based care home Old Raven House have been spending some time reflecting on the events of the last year.

To set what has been a difficult year for many in history, the team at the home in the village of Hook have planted a time capsule in its garden.

The time capsule is filled with notes written by residents of their thoughts about life during the pandemic. In addition, any PPE that has been recommended during the outbreak has been included. The home also decided to include a COVID testing kit. This is a reminder of what many people have administered on a weekly basis to keep themselves and others safe.

The home has buried the time capsule in the garden under a rose bush, which is a highly scented, climbing rose, chosen by the residents.

A Meaningful Gesture

Helen Wise, activities lead at the Hampshire care home, coordinated the burial of the time capsule, as she wanted to organise an activity for the residents and staff which was something meaningful. It has enabled people to begin to move on from a tumultuous year.

Sylvia McKenzie, 87, a resident at Old Raven House, said: “Creating the time capsule was a lot of fun, and it was great to get our thoughts down on paper and bury them in the ground!

“I hope that in years to come, someone finds our time capsule and enjoys learning more about the strange and eventful year we have had.”

Helen said: “Recently, we have spent a lot of time reflecting on the past year with our staff and residents and planting a time capsule seemed like the perfect activity for everyone to get involved in.

“We found that writing our thoughts down on paper was very therapeutic and we really hope that someone finds the capsule and learns all about our first-hand experiences of the pandemic.”

To find out more about Old Raven House simply click here.