Were you inspired by the Olympics? So were we! Are you looking forward to the Paralympics? So are we!
Lots of people who draw on MacIntyre’s support are keen sports fans, as are many of our staff. Some are active participants, some simply enjoy watching the footie, or going to a wrestling match.
We’ve been looking for ways to share people’s passion for sport with some of our neighbours, and have come up with two ideas in Buckinghamshire to do just that.
MacIntyre Sports Day on 5 September
We had the idea of holding an informal sports event that would include both MacIntyre people and anyone from the local community who might be interested. We came up with an inclusive sports day (well afternoon really), where we could include a number of sports activities depending on people’s skills and interests.
The more we thought about it, the more we realised how great it would be to hold our sports day in the town that was the birthplace of the modern Paralympics: Stoke Mandeville. So we reached out to the Stoke Mandeville Village Community Association, and we’re grateful to them for hosting our event at the Eskdale Road Community Centre.
If you live nearby and would like to join us, do get in touch with [javascript protected email address].
We’ll let you know how it went!
Linford Wood parkrun on 14 September
Our second event in September is a takeover of the Linford Wood parkrun in Milton Keynes. (Not to be confused with the Milton Keynes parkrun!) We have several keen runners among our staff and people supported in the area, and we’re planning to turn parkrun purple for the day!
Perhaps you’re not aware of parkrun and the great work they do. Run entirely by volunteers, it’s a free community event each Saturday where people can walk, jog or run a 5k stretch. There’s a real community vibe. It’s not about being first or last, it’s about taking part.
We wanted to give something back to our local parkrun, and so the event on 14 September will be staffed entirely by MacIntyre volunteers, both people who draw on our support and staff. We’re hoping this will lead to some lovely introductions and interactions with the regulars attending, and enable us to get to know more of our neighbours.
If it goes well, we’ll be looking to support parkrun events in other parts of the country.
The power of sport
We're always looking for more ways of engaging with and helping our neighbours, and sport is such a great way to bring people with shared interests together.
