Our Community Club

Our Community Club

PAX NINDI

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INTRODUCTION Founded early 2015 with 10 members who were mainly elderly Caribbean women focussing on Crafts covering knitting and sewing, the West Park Community Club has become a special focus for its members and anyone in the community who wants to join in.

Based in the Park Lane Christian Centre Birmingham, the group started its activities without any funding headed by Reverend Gary Graham, facilitated voluntarily by Sister Gloria Sinclair and Sister Elaine Russel who both ran the crafts and art workshops.

When the membership started growing from ten to 40 the demand for resources increased too, so in order to financially support it, Rev Graham got in touch with Cultural Consultant Pax Nindi of Global Carnivalz Ltd. WPC 3

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Pax helped the group draft funding applications and introduced the local arts group Friction Arts who assisted with arts activities which included arts and an outing to museums and the beach. The activities helped members of the group to explore place outside their community, learn artistic skills, relax and bond with each other.

Two years ago, West Park Community Club (WPCC) were successful in securing funding from the Heritage Lottery Community Fund as well as assistance from the Church, Global Carrnivalz, Friction Arts’ local authority funding which brought professional artists to work with the group led by Sandra Hall and Sister Rose Kerr who now leads the group since Sister Gloria’s health issues. The group has now grown to over 60 members and meet once a week to socialise, make crafts and most recently discuss how they can improve the group to be arts focussed.

The group now has membership from various cultural backgrounds and gender.

The Community Fund has allowed the group to have IT, arts and crafts sessions in the centre as well as allow members to meet twice a week. This book is part archive and part reflection of what has taken place as well as a feature of regular members.

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The key part of the Community Fund project was to curate an exhibition featuring images of the members and some of the products they have produced during their project. Pax Nindi curated the exhibition material (Pictures on Canvasses) whilst the team prepared the banners and distributed publicity about the exhibition.

Having invited the community and potential funders to our exhibition launch early March, we were unfortunately advised to stay in isolation due to the COVID-19 outbreak. That meant we were not able to deliver the project so the exhibition material will be used in the future. Most of the images have been used for this publication and social media including WPCC new Facebook page where the individual images were uploaded.

To date, members have created various products such as woollen hats, scarfs, dresses, table doyleys and more, some of which are featured in this publication aiming to encourage the group to package their products as well as secure customers, so they can be self-sufficient as well as increase members’ interest in the arts and culture activities available in their local area.

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Rev. George Brown WPC 9

We hope this publication will give you a picture of what WPCC has done as well as inspire members and their families to continue sharing their experiences. skills and knowledge.

I would like to thank everyone who assisted in making the project and now established Community Club a success, especially Heritage Lottery Community Fund, Global Carnivalz Ltd, Friction Arts, Sister Gloria Sinclair, Sister Elaine Russell, Sister Rose Kerr, Sister Erica Hawke, Pastor Gary Graham and my organisation Park Lane Christian Centre who made sure the project had space and resources to function.

Reverend George Brown Park Lane Christian Centre 10 WPC

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Sister Erica Hawke WPC 13

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Brother Clifton Roland WPC 15

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Sister Rose Kerr WPC 17

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Brother William Duffus WPC 19

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Sister Meryl Jones WPC 21

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Sister Vivilyn Derby WPC 23

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Sister Augustine Junior WPC 25

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Sister Noelene Christian and Sister Ava Johnson WPC 27

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Sister Barbara Morrison WPC 29

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Sister Gloria Sinclair WPC 31

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Sister Monica French Junior WPC 33

L-R Pax Nindi, Rev George Brown, Sister Gloria Sinclair and Rev Gary Graham 34 WPC

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WEST PARK COMMUNITY HUB 1 PARK LANE • HANDSWORTH • BIRMINGHAM • B21 8LE

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