Group rolls back the years in new book
A dedicated group of local people got together in Hartlepool's Central Library earlier this month to celebrate the launch of their new book.
The Burbank Connection is a collection of poems and short stories based on the group members' memories of growing up in the Burbank area of Hartlepool. With titles such as 'The Indoor Market' and 'Not Being James Dean', the book is illustrated with photographs from the town's archives, chosen with care with help from reference librarians Diane Marlborough and Sandra McKay.
Members of the group - which is made up of carers and people who used the services at the town's Havelock Day Centre - produced individual and group work in a series of creative writing and reminiscence workshops.
Community development worker Linda Malcolm helped organise the sessions, which were held at Burbank Street Community Centre. She said: "We thought it would be nice to gather all of the memories people have of the area, if people can't write them down or put them over in some way they get lost."
A grant from Hartlepool's Carers' Strategy Group secured expert guidance from professional poets Andy Willoughby and Bob Beagrie.
"The Burbank Connection was a brilliant group to work with," said Bob, who is also Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Teesside University. "This was a very moving project and both Andy and I miss coming to work with the group now that it's over."
Copies of The Burbank Connection are available from the community centre, in Burbank Road, priced at £8 each.