Working eleven hours a day for seven days a week isn’t the lifestyle of choice for many people. But when his family sold their supermarket last year, one thing that Suresh Ganesh found he really missed was the contact with people. “They weren’t just customers, many of them became friends” he says.

So in his new lifestyle, he looked for things that would still give him plenty of involvement with people. This took him to Voluntary Action Leicester, and one opportunity really grabbed his attention. Headway, the charity which helps victims of brain injurywith their rehabilitation, was looking for volunteers at its Leicester Day Centre. What they wanted above anything else was the ability to relate to people, “and that” says Suresh “is what brought me here”.

“Here” is Headway House, where a dozen or so people meet every day after finishing what for many of them may have been a lengthy spell in hospital. A mix of professional staff and volunteers offer the chance to take part in a whole range of activities, from crafts and computers through to help with returning to education or work. What struck Suresh most of all was the incredible determination and positive outlook of Headway’s members. “People help each other a lot,” he says. “It’s a real community with no regard to background. It’s wonderful to see people improving all the time.”

Suresh has now spent one morning a week at Headway for 8 months and thinks it’s “a brilliant place. People sometimes think a place like this is some kind of hospital. But it’s not, it’s a place for learning.”

Headway is always looking for volunteers who can share Suresh’s sense of excitement. Anyone interested should phone Marietta Sharp on (0116) 273 9763.

This release issued by Richard Bird (01327 704734 or email )
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