Who attends Talking Cafés?

People are often curious about who might come along to a Wellby Talking Café. Some people hear about Talking Cafés from a Signposter they meet, or they encounter an advert in the local newspaper or on the radio. Some are encouraged to attend by their healthcare practitioner. Many types of people find their way to a Talking Café.

Talking Café hosts report that recently retired people are often guests, who are looking to meet others who also suddenly have more time on their hands and are frequently interested in volunteering. Talking Cafés have also hosted former refugees and people new to the Nelson area, and the Found Directory (and help using it) is especially beneficial for these community members.

Wellby expected the Talking Cafés would be appealing to the recently retired and people new to the area. Some of the less expected guests include the couple who live aboard a boat and wanted to come ashore for a chat. Another guest was a man who runs a support group for men with MS in Nelson Tasman who came along to connect with people, find out about the Found Directory and to help spread the word about his own group.

One quickly growing audience for Talking Cafés are people who are working from home – one guest, who works from home in IT, shared that he could end up feeling quite disconnected at times and appreciated the opportunity for a friendly face-to-face chat and cuppa during his work day.

Clearly, Talking Cafés appeal to a wide variety of people, which illustrates the common need we all have for social connection.