Day 4: Hamilton Day Program

Today marked the halfway point of our trip and we were all starting to feel the exhaustion of our busy days. To combat our exhaustion, we woke up for an early walk to a local coffee shop, Vintage. To our surprise, we discovered that the shops sells products made from the local L'Arche members. After coffee, we headed to Hamilton's day program.

The program is very relaxed and provides a space where L'Arche core members can socialize and do different activities. They have everything from beads for jewelry making to materials to hand-craft candles. A majority of the crafts that members make are for sale in a small store in the building.

At program today, I spent a lot of time making bracelets and coloring with various core members. It was a nice activity to do to simply be present with the people I was with. It allowed me to center myself and find calm within our busy week. On the other hand, some of us had a hectic morning baking cupcakes with some of the core members. From what I heard, this was a fun but crazy and tiring experience. Make sure to come back to our page on Friday to hear more about what these cupcakes are for!

During the last hour day program, a beloved man named Paul came in for a music therapy session. This was a beautiful hour where we all experienced the joyful singing of each Hamilton core member. It showed the strength and bonds within the community and allowed us to connect with the members in a new way.

Another fun part of the day was the birthday of the core member, Laurence. She is a spunky 78 year-old woman who is full of laughter and life. As she does every day, Laurence had a unique outfit with lots of bling! Today, it was a larger than life necktie reading "Happy Birthday!" We all wished her happy birthday, and Meghan, Ariel, and Jordan had the opportunity to celebrate with Laurence and her house members at dinner.

After day program, we all made our way to the Cornerstone house for worship. This was a beautiful experience that truly brings the community together. We were all very touched by the words of each and every core member that day. What was impactful for me and other members was seeing how much the community at L'Arche cares for its members, even the ones who have past. During each worship service, they honor them and lift them up in prayer. I thought this was powerful because it shows that no one is ever forgotten.
After worship, we went to our separate houses for dinner. I was excited for dinner today because I got to meet a new core member. One of the members of the house had been out of town and returned today. It was nice to meet her and see how everyone in the house interacted and connected with one another. I am in a house that focuses on more independent living than the other houses. It has been interesting to be in this house because these ladies do not have an assistant that lives with them. They do almost everything on their own and are perfect matches for each other. Watching each of the house members interact has shown me how intentional placements within L'Arche are. These ladies fit together like pieces of a pie, and it is beautiful.

As day 4 comes to a close, I bid you goodnight from Carrie and the rest of the L'Arche Ontario team!