Music charity Wren Music put on an event for Kent House residents in honour of the song they helped create for the Lantern Festival earlier this year.

Musicians from the charity came to the care home to play to residents and present them with a framed copy of the song Wren Music wrote using the residents’ memories of spring.

Co-founder of Wren Music Marilyn Tucker, said: ‘Ages ago we worked with socially dependent people’s memories and turned them into music, but covid affected that. Finally, this is a celebration of that work and also to let people know about it and see if they want to do something similar themselves.’

Community musician Jon Dyer and co-founder Paul Wilson joined Marilyn for the event at which residents were offered the opportunity to join the ‘Kent House Band’ and try out different instruments including the ukelele, violin and guitar.

Jon and Paul taught residents the song, Spring Light, written from their memories, and later helped Marilyn present the care home with a framed copy of the song.

The three musicians also presented the residents with three lanterns which were part of the lantern procession at Wren Music’s festival in March.

The lanterns, which depicted a March hare, lamb and boat, had also been inspired by the residents’ memories.

Kate Thompson, activities co-ordinater at Kent House, said: ‘We are absolutely thrilled with our relationship with Wren Music and the residents enjoy and greatly value making music with Wren Music.

‘It’s been very hard during covid as we haven’t been able to meet. We are delighted that we can still offer this activity.’

Wren Music has been working with one of its partners in Calais and Paul, who speaks fluent French, has worked to translate the song so that it could be understood and sung by those living on the other side of the Channel.

This year’s lantern procession was the first one in two years since covid lockdowns prevented the annual event from taking place.

A favourite among Okehampton residents, the event takes place in order to celebrate the end of winter and the coming of spring.

Events included singing, dancing, a performance of the residents’ song and a procession of large community-made lanterns around Simmons Park.

Marilyn and Paul established the Okehampton-based charity in 1983 to find ways to bring folk music into the community and offer people the chance to get involved in music-making.

The charity has proved to be a great success and now works with a wide range of people with many different needs to give everyone a chance to make music.

The charity now has partners across the globe, including in Italy, Romania and South Africa with which it works to inspire others to continue to perform folk music in the modern day.