Our Doncaster Carers Reach Out BAME group show we are all one

A diverse group of carers has recorded a song in 4 languages to share a message of togetherness.

14 members of our Doncaster Carers Reach Out BAME group, which supports unpaid carers, have made their own version of the famous Bob Marley song One Love. You can listen to the song by clicking the above video.

Called We All Are One, the song retains Marley's famous chorus line "Let's get together and feel alright", but brings in some original lyrics, sung in English, Urdu, Punjabi and Nepalese.

The new verses, penned by carer support worker Rosemary Stephen, include the words: "We welcome everybody with open arms, Hearts full of love and care, With some hot buns and cakes to share," and "Every Friday we share our love, Seeing each other, Greeting with a cup of tea".

Rosemary, who coordinates the support group, said: "There is no colour, no race, only love as far as we are concerned. What you hear on this recording is people singing from the heart. As unpaid carers, our lives have so much in common, that goes beyond where we were born or what languages we speak. Doncaster Carers Reach Out BAME group is a place for making friends, listening, talking and learning from each other. Our differences are our strength!"

Altogether, 14 members of the group sang on the recording, accompanied by guitar player Janet Wood.

Other languages spoken by members of the carers' group, which meets weekly at the Doncaster Baptist Church, are Cantonese, Polish, Thai, Bengali, Mirpuri, and Hindi. The group has been running since 2019.

We All Are One was recorded at a mobile recording studio at The Point, on South Parade, which is home to darts, Doncaster's participatory arts charity. The charity coordinated the vocal venture as part of their Singing For Memory Project.

Singing for Memory uses the power of song, friendship and conversation to connect people living with dementia and their carers with others. It is funded by the Masonic Charitable Foundation and Music for Dementia's Paul and Nick Harvey fund.

Doncaster Carers Reach Out BAME group meets every Thursday at the Doncaster Baptist Church hall on Chequer Road, DN1, from 11.30-1.30pm. A ladies group gets together the first Friday of the month at Changing Lives on Prince's Street, DN1. You can contact the group at doncastercarers@makingspace.co.uk or on 01302 986 900

Contact Sophie on sophie@wearedarts.org.uk or call 01302 341 662 for more information about darts or Singing For Memory.