Alzheimers Awareness: Terry

Terry Marsden is a regular attendee at our Sporting Memories session and the grandfather of a member of the Community Cohesion team at BFCCT.

Born and raised in Blackpool, Terry began working at Play Shoe before joining the Royal Army Service Corps.

After his National Service, he moved into employment at British Nuclear Fuels Ltd within the internal fire brigade where he drove fire engines and ambulances.

As a young man, Terry was a huge Blackpool fan. Stanley Matthews would often train on the beach and when finished he would join in with Terry and the other children, Terry is still a huge fan and tells stories about it.

At age 15, Terry headed to Wembley with thousands of other fans to watch Blackpool FC create history in the 1953 FA Cup Final.

Over the years, Terry socialised at the Bloomfield Working Men’s Club, where he was a member of teams for darts, dominoes, and whist, a classic card game. Until recently he also enjoyed playing golf in his spare time at Blackpool Park Golf Club.

Terry was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2020 and COPD in 2021, both of which have negatively impacted his well-being and ability to do the things he loves. His wife, Margaret, now solely takes on the day-to-day running of the house, repairs, shopping, cleaning etc, alongside caring for her husband and her own health concerns.

After being diagnosed, Terry began attending our Sporting Memories sessions, a fun and enjoyable social group where sports fans can come and share their memories and memorabilia. Terry attends Friday afternoon sessions in the North Stand Community Hub at Bloomfield Road and enjoys spending time with new people, which was incredibly difficult for him during the pandemic. The sessions give him something to look forward to each week, in a place he loves.

Margaret has also benefited from Terry attending the sessions, she is now able to spend time looking after her own mental health, making her daily chores more manageable.

Dan, Terry’s Grandson and Community Cohesion Mentor at BFCCT said,

“I can’t thank the Trust enough for what they have done for my grandparents.

“My Grandad now has something to look forward to each week with the Sporting Memories group, which also gives my grandma time for herself, even if it is only an hour at a time.

“The one thing that means more than anything, is how the staff interact with him and keep a smile on his face. There aren’t enough words to explain how amazing they are and how much it means to our family. We can’t thank everyone enough!”