Author: Molly Mayfield
To challenge the automatic “head-in-hands” image so often associated with poor mental health — and to show the real, diverse, and human stories behind the experiences. With the incredible creativity and guidance of Theo Moye, these young people brought their visions to life in the most honest and impactful way. Their work is brave, beautiful, and deeply personal.
Hannah at Seaton Library said:
“The feedback I have to pass on is unanimously positive – we had so many people stop and give your photographs their full attention. A couple of people made sure to tell us how unusual the pictures were and how it had made them stop and think about mental health.
All in all we’d say that the exhibition was a success and thank you so much for thinking of us as a location to host it.”
We would also like to thank the wonderful centres that host our groups and provide that safe space for us.
On display for the next 2 weeks
A brilliant but wet morning walking the 3 legged challenge with Caroline Densley and BBC Devon on the waterfront in Exmouth. She and her team are wonderfully warm and welcoming and it was absolutely awsome to be flying the flag for BBC Children in Need with them and the many other deserving charities that joined them on the walk.
Thank you BBC Children in Need for your support to us and the young people of East Devon.
This November marks a special milestone as we celebrate Marion Saunde’s incredible 10 years of volunteering with Action East Devon!
Marion’s journey began when she spotted our advertisement in the local newspaper. As a qualified Learning Disability Nurse since 1986, she was drawn to working with young people once her own three children were older. Marion started volunteering with Headlight in Axminster in 2015, and then moved to Ottery St Mary in 2017 and has been the heart of the Ottery St Mary Olders group ever since.
What drives Marion is the incredible transformation she witnesses in our young people who join the service. From watching them step out of their comfort zones during new experiences such as the Sound Bath sessions and working with animals at the Donkey Sanctuary, Marion finds immense joy in helping build their confidence and watching them flourish.
Semi-retirement has brought new adventures for Marion and her husband – they’ve invested in a camper van and explored Ireland and destinations across the UK, with Scotland next on their travel wishlist! Yet she always returns to her volunteer commitment. Marion truly believes in the vital need for Action East Devon in our community, and her decade of service proves that belief every day.
Thank you, Marion, for ten amazing years of nurturing, supporting, and inspiring our young people! 🎉
#VolunteerAppreciation #CommunityHeroes #ActionEastDevon
Theo was busy again moving his exhibition to Sidmouth Library, Theo was down there to capture the moment with the library staff, Chris Botham and Judith O’Neill Trustees of the charity.
Theo said you can’t miss it, as the exhibition is in a great spot right in the entrance. Please pop down to see the power images of how the young people of East Devon depicted their own personal experience of mental health issues.
Next stop, Seaton Library on November 17th.
Action East Devon received some awsome news from the Postcode Local Trust last week when they decided to fund us some of our core services for 3 years!
The stakes were high for the Postcode Local Trust so we were extremely surprised and grateful to have been selected.
Now we have our work cut out to deliver the service which we truly believe can make a difference to young people’s lives.
Thank you Postcode Local Trust!
Thanks to everyone at Ottery St Mary Library for helping make (in)visible more visible!
The young people in the Ottery St Mary groups were hugely involved in this project, to challenge stereotypes around mental ill health. The show is on until the end of September.
Photographer Theo Moye, Mayor of Ottery Cllr Vicky Johns, one of the project participants and Library Supervisor Kerry Carr.
Thank you to East Devon Crematorium, Shoobridge Funeral Services and Southern Co-op for this wopping £1,000 donation which will go to running our Headlight Peer Support Group for young people aged 11-25.
It was interesting to discover that in some small way our organisations are connected. Suicide continues to to be a serious killer in East Devon, but we hope this generous donation may help future generations who struggling with suicidal thoughts via early intervention.
Best of luck to Ayla, our work Experience student from Sidmouth Community College who will be receiving her exam results today.
She certainly was keen, interested and hard working. she didn’t shy away form my of the planned activities and put her hand to recruitment, creating marketing content, fundraising and even tried some cold calls to local businesses.
Keep up the good work Ayla.
