The 2004 Conference was held at Lovat Hall, 22nd May, Newport Pagnell, Bucks.
This year it was decided to deliberatly 'down-size' the conference, although it was attended by over 50 adults and 30 children!
Nick and Yvonne Lingard organised the conference, with great attention to detail. There was plenty of superb food to keep everyone going throughout the day, with brunches that seemed to last into the afternoon. The creche workers were wonderful, with a number of children to entertain and table-tennis tables proved to be a big hit with the teenagers. The caretaker of Lovat Hall and his helpers were extremely friendly and helpful, especially when everything was being set up. George Hills stayed all day to entertain the children!
Rosemary Davies had organised all the delegate packs and took charge of registration. There were some wonderful surprises as delegates arrived. It was such a joy to see Heni (T18 and now 8 years old) with the Biesinger family - they 'just popped in to say hello!' As always there were Saskia (T18 and now 12 years old) with Heidi and Annie (T18 and now 9 years old) with Jane Dudeney and her entire family - both of them looking so well.
Nora Shannon, the new SOFT (UK) Medical Advisor was lovely and everyone remarked on her friendliness. She worked so hard during the day, chatting to so many people. Her talk was most informative and as the conference was smaller this year there was greater opportunity for people to ask questions and have time to share their experiences with her.
Pat Ward, the National Director for the Down's Screening Program, was not due to give a talk but she used Nora's laptop to come up with interesting statistics about T13, T18 and T21. From 2005 the screening program will widen to include the first ever national register for Patau's and Edward's syndromes, which caught everyone's interest (see Medical News). Pat has been a great friend to SOFT over the years and it is encouraging that she will be taking on this new development.
Jenni Thomas is the founder of the Child Bereavement Trust (CBT) and is another friend of SOFT's over many years. Her talk on sibling grief was excellent. So many remarked that her explanations had been simple, logical but most of all reassuring, not just for their families but for themselves.
Alan and Verity Mitchell once again provided the simple service that allowed parents to remember and give thanks for their babies. We are so grateful to them for this, as for many SOFT families this is a most important part of the day.
Altogether it was a happy and memorable conference with everyone enjoying the company of old and new members alike. People commented at the end, in evaluating the day, that there has been a 'super venue, good food, excellent speakers and all for a third of the usual price of £5,000!'
Thank you to everyone who helped in any way and in particular thank you to Nick and Yvonne for all their efforts in making the day go so well.
Christine Rose
Details of the 2005 Conference are now available.
| Costs of the 2004 conference were: | |
|---|---|
| Hall | £230 |
| Food | £700 |
| Entertainer | £200 |
| Speakers' expenses | £125 |
| Creche worker | £150 |
| Creche toys | £25 |
| Printing/Folders etc. | £200 |
| Approximate total* | £1,630 |
| * Costs have been rounded up to the nearest £5 and are approximate. | |