A HARVEST blessing, singing and homemade soup brought people together as Hatherleigh Nursing Home welcomed the local community for its Harvest Festival celebration.

The dementia care home, based in Hatherleigh, Okehampton, hosted family members, which is the name it uses for residents who live at the home, alongside their relatives and other visitors in its Belvedere Lounge.

The afternoon began with the blessing before the choir took over, with family members following their hymn sheets and joining in with the singing.

With farming forming such a major part of life in Hatherleigh and the villages that surround it, the season of harvest has a place in the town’s agricultural traditions.

The celebration at Hatherleigh Nursing Home brought that connection into the home for the celebration with residents, recognising the work that goes into growing and producing the food we eat.

During the event, the kitchen team served homemade butternut squash soup with crusty bread, followed by jam tarts and plenty of cups of tea.

The home, which offers 24-hour dementia nursing care, residential care, respite care and complex care, continues to support the people who live there through connection with the local community and its traditions, all while striving to create a home-from-home environment.

A spokesperson for Hatherleigh Nursing Home said after the event: “We welcomed autumn in true Hatherleigh style with our Harvest Festival celebration, and our local community joined us!

“The afternoon began with a harvest blessing, followed by a performance from the Hatherleigh Singers choir. Family members loved singing along. Our kitchen team served homemade butternut squash soup with crusty bread, then jam tarts and plenty of cuppas.

“Good food, lots of singing and even better company”