Vets ‘bug’ nursery children with gift
ANURSERY school and veterans’ charity are forging closer links thanks to a bug ‘mansion’ and a bench.
Staff at Mulberry Roots Nursery, which like Veterans In Communities (VIC) is based in Bury Road, Haslingden, asked for a large bug house to be made for the children to fill.
Veterans In Production created the ‘mansion’, which is designed to help the children learn more about insects, and the nursery provided VIC with a donation. While collecting the bug mansion, staff took a shine to a bench that veteran Brian McEvoy was renovating.
Brian is being supported by VIC through the Building Better Opportunities, Changing Futures project.
He said: “The bench had been built by a member a few years ago but it had not been finished off. Operations Manager Bob Elliott instructed me on how to sand the bench down and I did so by hand and filled in where the screw heads were to make it smooth for the children to sit on. I had just painted my parents’ garage so had undercoat and mint green paint left over and that went on the bench.”
He then decorated it with bees, humming birds and butterflies by stencilling and painting, and made a floral stencil from flowers on his bedroom curtain.
The alphabet and numbers completed the bench makeover.
Nursery manager Danielle Tomlinson said: “With the children we are collecting items from outside at the moment, twigs and leaves to go into our bug hotel, and when we saw the bench we just loved it.
“It is too nice to go outside so we have put it in the corridor and the children love sitting on it.”
It is hoped, once restrictions ease, the nursery and veterans can work more closely together. Brian has been invited to run an art class with children and it is hoped the nursery children can also visit the centre.
The Building Better Opportunities, Changing Futures project at VIC is run by transformational coach Gill Hughes. It is a longterm scheme and Gill works intensively with veterans looking at all aspects of their life including housing, finance, welfare, mental health and social skills and helps them to prepare for future employment.