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A festive image featuring a cream cake topped with sparklers, held by a person celebrating during a gathering for Social Sunday at Ascension Church Hulme.
Celebrating together at Ascension Church Hulme during the Social Sunday event, highlighting birthdays and community connections.

On Sunday 6th July, we gathered at Ascension Church Hulme for a joyful, creative Social Sunday exploring the theme of Birthdays & Celebrations. The aim was to bring people of all ages together to share memories, have fun, and connect across generations.

We began with a warm welcome from the priest of the church Azariah, who also led us beautifully in a song to set the tone.

Smiling priest wearing glasses and a casual jacket, welcoming attendees at a community event.
Warm welcome from the priest, Azariah, setting a joyful tone for the community event.

We explained the different activity zones and invited everyone to move around at their own pace. Here’s what we got up to:

Zone 1: Card Games
A lively corner where people played games like Pictionary, Articulate and mime, using specially-created word and picture cards. A brilliant young volunteer, Anna, helped guide the games and kept the energy high.

An overhead view of hands drawing on paper with a pen, surrounded by a cup of coffee, colorful markers, and blank sheets of paper.
Participants engaging in drawing their dream celebrations.

Zone 2: Dream Celebration Sheets
Led by Niamh, who works at Ascension leading the Sunday School, this creative zone invited everyone to collage or draw their dream celebration using magazines, glue, and colourful materials. People shared some wonderful and imaginative ideas about their ideal parties!

A collage sheet titled 'My Dream Celebration' featuring cut-out images and words such as 'Happy', 'Love', 'Tasty treats', and colorful flowers, held up by a hand.
A collage showcasing a dream celebration filled with joyous words and vibrant imagery, created during the Dream Celebration Sheets activity.

Zone 3: Celebration Wall
A collaborative display where participants posted words, pictures, memories, and their finished dream sheets. This became a vibrant visual record of what celebrations mean to us all.

A vibrant Celebration Wall displaying thoughts and memories related to birthdays and celebrations during the Social Sunday event.

Zone 4: Conversation Station
Here, pairs and small groups sat down to chat about their favourite celebration memories and traditions, using printed prompts as inspiration. We also recorded some of the reflections to capture the voices of the day. Thank you to the wonderful Merryn Myatt of https://lifestory.vip/ for leading on this part with her wonderful warmth and interview skills.

Four adults engaged in conversation in a cozy lounge setting at Ascension Church Hulme, with plants and colorful decor in the background.
Participants engage in meaningful conversations at the Conversation Station during the Social Sunday event at Ascension Church Hulme.

Zone 5: Cosy Cinema
For anyone who preferred to relax, there was a quiet corner showing a family-friendly film.

Finally, we came together in a circle to share reflections, what sparkled for us (we even gave out stickers!) and thank everyone for being part of such a special, intergenerational afternoon.

What a wonderful event! We love doing these kind of outreach sessions. If you would like us to come to your community centre and lead something similar, get in touch with Jolene on jolene.joyethic@gmail.com

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Published by jolenesheehan

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