Introduction Funded by the Community Foundation for Northern Ireland and The Prince’s Countryside Fund, the Brilliant Resilience Project was shaped in response to the wellbeing needs of an older generation as we started to emerge out of the difficult Covid-19 pandemic mitigations and lockdowns: to “renew and inspire access to opportunity through creative skills training in photography, storytelling and crochet, arts participation, authorship and ownership in Fermanagh.” And that’s just what we did.
members from the Fresh Focus Day Centre who had experience of camera use but were keen to further develop their skills. The project culminated in a two week exhibition at Fermanagh House in Enniskillen, in September 2021, showcasing the participants’ crochet work, writing and photography. The exhibition brought many people together who had worked on the project and we were delighted to participate in Fermanagh and Omagh District Council’s celebration of local creativity, namely Culture Night.
The majority of the project was delivered over the Spring and Summer 2021. It began with the recruitment of participants; followed swiftly by the delivery of 110 crochet kits by Fermanagh Community Transport to ensure people had material to work with while they continued their self-isolation. Project facilitators met weekly over Zoom. As soon as restrictions allowed, crochet workshops began in Enniskillen, Belleek, and, later, Drumhaw and Newtownbutler. All workshops were conducted in line with regulations on social distancing and planned with an abundance of care. Participants were eager to re-engage in their activities and social lives, but all were cautious and, understandably, some a little reluctant. Rather than focus on the pandemic, we concentrated on developing new skills including photography, storytelling and creative writing workshops. The doorstep portraits taken by professional photographers were at people’s homes, day centres or at places of local interest. We were grateful to be allowed to expand our photography workshops to include
This publication charts the journey all took together. As we know well from the past year and a half, maintaining resilience is not necessarily straightforward. There are ups and downs. There has been loss, isolation and disconnection. In spite of all the challenges faced, and indeed those that remain, the overwhelming sense is of hope and relief that participants coped and indeed prevailed. Thank you to the generosity of spirit of all participants, community group leaders, project partners, facilitators and funders. We hope you enjoy the fruits of your work, your beautiful county and people as much as we have. Programme Co-Ordinators: Ruth Montgomery, Rural Housing Association Josh Schultz, Community Arts Partnership 10
