Pat and Joan’s story

When Pat joined our Support Hub in Abbots Langley for the first time, she didn’t know what to expect. By chance, she sat down next to Joan, whose first words to her were “I do like to talk!” They have been friends ever since, from the very first Support Hub session in 2024.

Pat had recently moved to the area to be closer to her family after her husband had died. She did not really know many people locally, so joined the Support Hub to meet new people and take part in the wellbeing activities on offer. While Joan has lived in the local area for many years, she found losing her sister had made her feel very lonely and isolated, so after seeing the Support Hub advertised, she thought that would be a great place to meet others. Both of them quickly became regulars.

Soon, they were bringing more friends along to the Support Hub, and had joined one of our Compassionate Cafés too, for the opportunity to have a cuppa and a friendly chat with other people who had experienced bereavement.

They have introduced more friends to both sessions, and there is now a group of five that attends the Compassionate Café together.

Pat and Joan, when asked what keeps them coming back for more, said, “The Compassionate Café is somewhere that we go to share stories with others that have lost people. We love to go and have a good talk and catch up with all the people we haven’t seen for a month.”