Poet visits Thorrington care home to celebrate National Poetry Day

Silversprings care home in Tenpenny Hill, Thorrington, opened its doors to author and poet Ruth Loten for an afternoon of stories and rhymes.

Residents enjoyed listening to Ruth read a variety of classic poems from well-known poets such as Shakespeare and Wordsworth and everyone enjoyed discussing the meanings behind them.

Wordsmiths - Pauline Robinson, Ruth Loten and Frances Harvey (Image: WPR)

Joanne Rix, home manager at Silversprings, said: “Here at Silversprings, we’re always looking for new and exciting activities to keep residents entertained and engaged.

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“National Poetry Day gave us the perfect opportunity to promote the benefits of being creative and letting your imagination run free.

“I’d like to extend a huge thank you to Ruth for an inspiring and thought-provoking session – we’re already looking forward to planning our next creative activity.”

Inspired by the activity, 83-year-old Frances Harvey, a resident at Silversprings and keen poet herself, read aloud a published poem she wrote for her husband, demonstrating the power of poetry to prompt emotions and nostalgia.

Frances said: “It was lovely to talk about and listen to the poetry. I even read a poem of mine which I enjoyed.”