Hampton Hill resident Colin cares for his wife, Marianne, who is living with young onset dementia. Here, he describes the support that Crossroads Care has given them both and how he has brought his passion for repairing things to one of their community groups.
‘My wife, Marianne, has been living with dementia since her late fifties and Crossroads Care has been supporting us for the past eight years,’ says Colin. ‘The charity is full of kind and reliable people.
‘Care Support Worker Juliana spends time with Marianne every Thursday and always arrives beaming. That positivity lifts everyone up.
‘The support from Crossroads is invaluable because it allows me to step outside my caring role and meet friends. I’ve met other carers through its Men Who Care group. Everyone there is following the same path and knows what’s going to happen at the end, but that doesn’t stop us sharing jokes and having a good laugh together. There is a wonderful camaraderie.’
Colin has also channelled his passion for repairing things into supporting others in the group.
‘Last year, I brought a passion of mine to the Men Who Care — the Twickenham Repair Café which I set up with some friends four years ago to encourage people to repair rather than replace household items. Now, we run more than 50 events a year, helping people to mend everything from computers to clothing. So far, we estimate we’ve saved four tonnes of waste from landfill and prevented around £150,000 worth of unnecessary spending on replacements.
‘The idea connects with caring because when you’re part of a couple, people often divide up responsibilities. One person might do the cooking while the other handles the DIY. Suddenly, when everything falls to one person, you realise there are practical jobs you never had to think about before. At Twickenham Repair Café, we don’t just fix broken items, we pass on skills. At the Crossroads session, men learned to hem trousers and wire plugs and the whole thing was joyous.
‘As a family, we’re so grateful for Crossroads’ support. That’s why our son Harry did the California Ironman in 2024, raising more than £7,500 for the charity. Now it’s my turn. This October, I’ll be zip-wiring across Twickenham Rugby Stadium to raise money for Crossroads, so that more carers like me can continue receiving life-changing support.’
If you would like to support Colin’s zip-wiring challenge, click here.
