A Brixworth care home resident has marked Easter by reconnecting with his faith after visiting a local church for the first time in a decade. Earlier this year, Bob Hasker, 71, asked staff members at
HC-One’s Pytchley Court care home – located on Northampton Road, Brixworth in West Northamptonshire – if he could receive a blessing from a vicar.
Looking to help settle Bob in at the start of 2024, team members arranged for a visit from Reverend David Reith of All Saints Church in Brixworth, who sat and prayed with Bob.
After he enjoyed his meeting with Reverend Reith, Bob requested to visit All Saints Church in Brixworth in-person. A coach trip was organised, and this week Bob made his first trip to a church in over ten years.
The visit was a huge success for Bob, and Pytchley Court care home staff members accompanying him saw the true impact it had on him as he further reconnected with his faith.
Speaking after his visit, Bob said:
"I was very excited to be there, and it was great meeting some lovely children at the service as well. I will be visiting again very often".
Reverend David Reith, of All Saints Church, Brixworth, said:
"It was a pleasure to have Bob join us for today's service and we plan to visit the care home very often to see him and his fellow residents again".
Bob was a regular churchgoer when he was a younger man, and he was regularly involved in a fundraising for the church. When he was 19-years-old, Bob did a sponsored walk from Peterborough to Northampton – a trip of over 12 hours.
He was born in Northampton in August 1952, and has lived in the area ever since. He has a wife, Linda, and they have three children together.
Linda and Bob’s son Scott visit him at the home regularly. As well as enjoying church, Bob is a great fan of Northampton Town, and first met Linda at one of their football matches.
Professionally he was a bricklayer, although he also worked in the railway and did taxi driving part-time. Unfortunately, Bob stopped going to church due to health reasons, however he was able to attend again with help from his care home support workers.
Bob said:
“I’ve always been a church boy, I don’t like to drink or go to the pub. I’ve missed going to church in recent years, and I wanted to receive the communion.
“Easter is all about salvation, that was why Jesus was nailed on the cross, so he could save us. That it is the reason for the communion, it reminds me of the salvation.”
Pytchley Court Home Manager, Sue Watson, said:
“We are delighted to have enabled Bob’s reconnection with his faith, especially at this time of year. We have a number of residents with religious beliefs at our care home and we do as much as we can to support them, whatever their religion might be.
“For Christians like Bob, members of Brixworth Community Church come in every third Wednesday of the month, and we made provisions to have the vicar hold a Sunday service for Easter. It's all part of the work we do to make our residents feel as comfortable and supported as possible, no matter what their background, interest, or faith.”