Take Heart Southend
A Cardiac Support Group in Essex
Take Heart covers the areas of Southend, Castle Point, Rayleigh and Rochford, Essex.
Our aim is to offer a support network for all who have become affected by Cardiac problems whether as a patient, carer or family members.
Important News - March 2025
This is a news update letter to inform you of several changes regarding Take Heart.
Firstly, I have to inform you of some devastating and heartbreaking news. Our long-standing cardiac specialist nurse, Sarah Sayer (pictured below), has passed away after a short illness. This will come as upsetting news to you as she was so well known and loved by all at Take Heart. Our sincere condolences go out to her family, work colleagues, and all who knew her. Funeral details, should you wish to attend, can be found here or on our Facebook page.
Since changing to our new meeting venue last year, attendance at meetings has been disappointing. We hope this is due to a lack of communication. The Balmoral Centre is really good for meetings, with good parking and a lift, so please do try and come along, especially as the lighter evenings are nearly upon us.
With postage costs rising again, it is now impossible to print and send out our magazine to all 800 members. We have decided to update you in the future through our Facebook page and website, which we will update more regularly. If you don’t have a computer or are not on Facebook, I’m sure your children or grandchildren are, so please ask them to keep you informed of our activities and speakers at future meetings.
As most of you will know, we reached our target of £30K for the Pearl Appeal. Thank you to all who have supported this over the last five or six years. We made a presentation to the Cardiac Rehab Nurses (Sarah was there) in December, informing them that the £30K is now available to be spent in the coming months. We have already started by purchasing 25 blood pressure monitors and 25 weighing scales for the heart failure unit, plus four oximeters for rehab, and much more is planned.
Our next meeting is our AGM on Thursday, 10th April, starting at 7:30 PM. Apart from a few formalities, we are pleased to announce that our President, Paul Kelly, will be present and will update us on Cardiac Care. Paul will also be happy to take questions.
Tea, coffee, and biscuits will be served, and there will be a free raffle.
Looking forward to seeing you at future meetings.
Paul
Take Heart - Support for the patient, carer or family members
Heart Disease can have a tremendous impact on the entire family. Someone who has experienced heart health events is undoubtedly in a better position to offer comfort and hope to those recovering or living with heart problems. Take Heart is a cardiac support group covering the areas of Southend, Castle Point, Rayleigh and Rochford, Essex. Our aim is to offer a support network for all who have become affected by Cardiac problems whether as a patient, carer or family members. We are a non-medical voluntary group here to help you consider a new approach to life both during and after cardiac problems, in order to restore you to a more active life.
At Take Heart we like to take a positive view, after all life is for living and should be enjoyed as best we can. By meeting with people who understand you by using their own personal experiences, Take Heart can show you there is hope for a brighter future. Our community is here for you, covering all aspects of heart health matters from blood pressure to heart transplants so feel free to contact us today. We offer FREE membership, monthly meetings, quarterly magazines and a range of social events throughout the year. We have learned to enjoy ourselves here at Take Heart and in doing so we help others do the same.
Our Obectives
- To promote the welfare and care of cardiac patients both in and out of hospital.
- To promote and provide support on aftercare for patients and their families when resuming home and social life.
- To establish and facilitate local contact, support and counselling centres, accessible to anyone with cardiac complaints, including their relatives and friends.
- To increase public awareness of heart disease, its causes, treatment, implications and help available.
- To provide social and personal contact with people who share and understand their needs and problems.
- To liaise with existing groups in this or similar fields.
- To act as an information centre for those people requiring literature on heart disease.
- To support local cardiology units with fundraising events and donations
Latest Chairman's Update (March 2024)
The Good news is that we have reached our target of £30,000 for our Pearl Appeal including a couple of I.O.U.’s from two organisations that have promised donations which will materialise in the next couple of months. A presentation event has been planned for Sunday 30th June. Full details will be out shortly.
Our AGM will be on Thursday 11th April and will start at 7.15 (please attend) followed by a talk from our President Paul Kelly at about 8.00, with a Q & A afterwards. Tea & coffee and a FREE raffle.
I don’t particularly want to mention the Covid word again but looking back it all seems like a dream or a nightmare for some and a lot of Charities and businesses didn’t survive. We at Take Heart were lucky to survive but it has become difficult to try and get back to where we were. I have been asking for members to come forward and help with the running of our charity. It would only take up a few hours each month. Unfortunately, no one has come forward and we are down to 4 active committee members. We have been discussing that if members do not come forward, there is a real possibility that we will be forced to close the Charity which
would be very sad.
There must be retired people out there who have nothing to do and would love an interest or someone who feels lonely after losing a partner. This is your opportunity (when you feel the time is right) to get out there and meet people.
Please contact us or come along to one of our meetings and have a chat over a cup of tea. You won’t be thrown in at the deep end! We will bring you along and get you involved slowly and hopefully in the years to come you will be confident enough to take over some of the positions overseeing the running of Take Heart.
I have been chairman now for about 12 years and editor of our award-winning news magazine. I’m running out of ideas! We need new ideas to survive. I would love to have an assistant editor who could help me and slowly in time take over. I have always found it a rewarding experience and a very sociable one.
We have arranged several events, which as usual involve eating and drinking.
Most people of a certain age would not normally go out on their own but now you can and be in the company of friends. All are welcome to attend our events, so why not ask friends and neighbours to join you. Have a look at our social events and meetings list in our new magazine please put them in your diary.(which will be sent to all members mid-March) Events will also be listed on this site with regular updates.
Words From Our Members
