I’d like to begin 2021 by wishing all of our members, supporters, collaborators and partners a very Happy New Year!
Since launching a little under a month ago, we’ve welcomed hundreds of new members to The Joy Club and have been overwhelmed with the positive feedback from members and partners alike. It’s been particularly moving to hear how The Joy Club’s selection of home-based activities has helped to keep members active and joyful as COVID continues to restrict us. On behalf of myself and the rest of the team: Thank you, we’re so grateful for the early support and feedback.
We’ve been asking our new members what they like about The Joy Club and what they think could be improved – the two most common pieces of feedback have been that members would like access to more free activities, and they would like the opportunity to interact with each other. We feel these pieces of feedback will be particularly meaningful as we enter another national lockdown.
That is why today, it is my pleasure to introduce The Joy Club Presents… – a series of FREE, live, online events exclusive to members of The Joy Club. From yoga classes and choir practice to creative writing lessons and talks from experts, The Joy Club Presents… will connect members to new activities and to each other.
We’ll continue to collect and implement feedback from our members – so expect many more announcements like this one! We’re here to facilitate what our members want and need. We’ve always worked this way – everything from the initial idea of what The Joy Club would be to the name itself and brand visuals came from a group of people in later life who reflect our membership (a couple of whom now sit on our Member Steering Group). We’re committed to listening to our membership and implementing feedback – so please do keep it coming!
Here a few of the sessions coming over the next week to give you a flavour of what you can expect from The Joy Club Presents…
Mike Kinsey Yoga
For our inaugural The Joy Club Presents… event, we’ve invited our partner Mike Kinsey to lead a gentle yoga class, exclusively for our members.
Mike is a 200hr Hatha/Vinyasa yoga teacher and has taught professionally throughout various studios in the UK. Most recently he has taken his teachings online so that he can share his classes as widely as possible. He offers online memberships, including live-streamed classes, pre-recorded classes and one to one consultancies, all of which are available to members of The Joy Club at a discounted rate. His classes are fun and calming with a keen sense for breath and alignment.
Mike will be hosting a free yoga class on Thursday 7th January from 3pm – 4pm. The session will start with an introduction to Mike, followed by the class (suitable for all abilities – no equipment required), which will last around 30 minutes. After the class there will be time for you to chat and meet other members.
The Joy Choir with Sharon Durant
Next, we’re very excited to announce that we’ve invited the brilliant Sharon Durant to lead The Joy Choir.
Sharon has lots of experience in leading community choirs (on and off Zoom!), so we’re thrilled that she’s taken up this role. Her experience includes working regularly for the British Council, delivering their World Voice programme in locations as diverse as Columbia, Sierra Leone and Morocco. She has also been choral director for the North East Gospel Choir, Urban Voices and Custom Voices for over 15 years. She’s very talented and very welcoming!
The Joy Choir will be meeting on Zoom for the next six Fridays, from 3pm to 4.30pm, starting on Friday 8th January.
Creative writing with Grace Palmer
And for the final event in our initial series, we’ve invited Grace Palmer to deliver a series of creative writing sessions.
Grace has an MA in Creative Writing from Bath Spa University and lots of creative writing experience. She has been teaching creative writing at Bristol Folk House for over three years and has been working with Paper Nations, a literary development agency working with disadvantaged writers. Grace loves teaching and helping people get their words out into the world.
The creative writing group will meet on Zoom over the next five Tuesdays, from 3pm to 4.30pm, starting on Tuesday 12th January. All members are welcome – you don’t need any previous writing experience and you don’t need to do any preparation. Come as you are, to all, some or any of the sessions – and start to write your stories!
The Joy Club Presents… is an exciting and enriching programme of live events that will enable our members to engage in new activities and interests from the comfort of their own homes and connect with one another through interactive Q&As. To register for a class or talk, simply sign into your account, search for ‘The Joy Club Presents…’ in the search bar and follow the instructions in the invitation of your choosing!
We will be adding new events every week, so there will always be something new for our members to discover, unlock and enjoy!
Hannah Thomson, Founder CEO
If you’re not already a member of The Joy Club, why not sign up for your one-month free trial to access The Joy Club Presents… and our other amazing deals today?