Forty years care and a new name for community service
10 Jun 2025
Forty years after opening its doors a unique Launceston community service is getting an appropriate new name.
Mayne Street Day Centre, which provides respite to seniors with dementia in a home-based environment, has been renamed Banksia House. Since the centre opened a banksia tree has thrived in the back yard of the facility - reminder of just how much the service has grown in four decades.
Recently volunteers and staff celebrated the centre’s birthday and the name change under the banksia tree.
During the celebrations, on display were stories of past and current clients, photos of the original staff including the therapy dog and some of the activities that are conducted during the day.
The centre was originally opened by the then Minister for Health John Cleary on 3 June 1985.
The honour of cutting the birthday cake was given to long-standing volunteer Marlene who has devoted 28 years to the service.
Introduced by her brother Peter, who at the time was a driver, Marlene took on cooking duties.
“Over the years I have helped with meals, cooked cakes, made sandwiches, prepared barbecues and made numerous cuppas,” she said.
“I enjoy being with the clients and staff.”
Christine, the wife of a former client at the centre, told the gathering:” What Mayne Street offered went beyond just care, it was stimulation for his cognitive function, social interaction and a deep sense of belonging. It brought so much comfort to know he was somewhere that truly understood him.”
