WE’LL MEET AGAIN. And again.
Coffee groups can act as support groups in disguise. We meet Mandy Sorasio, Vanita Gandhi, and Robyn Cotton, three recent retirees with type 2 who meet up a couple of times a month at a local coffee morning.
From left: Vanita Gandhi, Mandy Sorasio, and Robyn Cotton
You may remember Mandy Sorasio from the Spring issue of Diabetes Wellness. There she shared her journey of going from an HbA1c of 58 to 28, as well as losing almost half her bodyweight, in a year and a half. This was due to massive modifications to her diet but also a number of other lifestyle changes. Mandy started attending a couple of exercise classes – one in a gym and the other at her local community centre. Because she was regularly seeing the same people at each class, week after week, she got to hear about a local coffee group. This is when she began to spend down time getting to know fellow type 2s, Vanita and Robyn, and met a whole bunch of new people.
The bi-monthly coffee mornings run from February to November on Friday mornings at the Churton Park Community Centre and are largely attended by local retirees. After the Covid-19 lockdowns, the Centre’s coordinator was looking for groups to use the space. A coffee morning was suggested, and Vanita, a natural people-person, was nearby so was put in charge.
Both Mandy and Robyn rave about Vanita’s ability to bring people together and make them feel at home. ‘Vanita’s an amazing facilitator,’ says Mandy. ‘She organises people to come in to talk to us about nutrition and balance. We quite often talk about our health, such as diabetes, its impacts, and what you can do to try to avoid it.’
ACTIVE MIND/ACTIVE BODY
Each week, anywhere from three to 20 people turn up. Vanita says it is a very social group but there’s nothing laid back about the crew that comes along. ‘We don’t just sit there and have coffee and biscuits and chat. We try to do some sort of activity – dance, memory games, quizzes, sign language. It’s all very multicultural, so we try to learn about different cultures. We walk out having learnt something new every time.’
They have group discussions too, often starting with one agenda and before you know it ending up on another. ‘This is what we do,’ says Mandy. ‘We go in with one topic and then get side-tracked.’ Having done an online dementia course, Vanita understands the value of keeping brains stimulated, saying the group aims to keep everyone’s minds active and working.
Then there is friendship and connection among the community. ‘The main goal of the coffee mornings is that you get to know different people in the community or even outside of it. So, if you see somebody in the supermarket, you can say, “I know you.” You can say hello to them.’
GROUPS FOR ALL
Like most community centres, the Churton Park one runs a range of classes and groups, including tai chi, Pilates, mah jong, and yoga. There’s a couple of crafters groups and plenty to keep younger folk busy, with STEM, kids’ coding, and a playgroup for pre-schoolers. Mandy, Vanita, and Robyn also attend the weekly Zumba Gold, a dance-inspired fitness class.