Line-up for Skylark IX Stories event unveiled!
The Skylark IX Recovery Project has unveiled the line-up for an exciting, free, family event set to take place at Scottish Maritime Museum (Denny Tank) on Saturday 4 June.
The Skylark IX Stories event, which is part of the celebrations for Scotland’s Year of Stories, will take place in the grounds of, and inside, the Scottish Maritime Museum on Castle Street, Dumbarton, between 11am and 3pm.
Stories and memories of the Skylark IX Dunkirk ‘Little Ship’ and of people living in and around Dumbarton will play centre stage at the event which will also feature children’s activities, song and poetry performances, free entry to the Museum, a preview of the new Skylark IX Community Tapestry and more.
Jade West, Community Engagement Co-ordinator at the Skylark IX Recovery Project says:
“We’ve been overwhelmed by the support of community organisations and individuals across the area who have joined us to create a fabulous, free summer event with something for everyone.
“As well as all the performances and activities, we’ll be chatting to folk about the Spirit of Skylark Centre and inviting everyone to share their thoughts. We’ll also have some fun merchandise on sale to kickstart our fundraising.”
The Skylark IX Stories event will take place during the 82nd anniversary of Operation Dynamo, the mass evacuation of 338,000 Allied Troops from Dunkirk during World War 2.
Visitors will hear stories of Skylark’s wartime service during Operation Dynamo and her working life as a passenger boat, which have been gathered during research into her history and through the Project’s current Skylark IX Voices oral history project.
There will also be a rare opportunity to see Skylark IX memorabilia from her time taking Veterans out for Remembrance events on Loch Lomond on show by Lomond Parish Church.
Visitors will also enjoy a sneak preview of the new Skylark IX Community Tapestry being created by the Project’s textile group, Skylark IX in Stitches. The team will also be on hand to share embroidery techniques with those who would like to add a stitch or two to the Tapestry.
Every Voice Community Choir, Dumbarton’s popular, dementia friendly singing group run in association with Alzheimer Scotland, will get toes tapping with two performances on the day.
Other live performances will include poems and stories by writing groups at The Phoenix and Reid Macewen Activities Centre at Erskine Veteran Village as well as talks on Skylark IX’s history.
There’ll also be fun family crafting with model boatbuilding with recycled materials and storybook or ‘zine’ making. The Scottish Maritime Museum’s Education Team will also get everyone thinking with activities exploring buoyancy and what makes boats float.
Alternatives Community-based Recovery’s Sweet Success Café will serve up delicious gingerbread, lemon drizzle cake, Victoria sponge and other freshly baked goodies.
On the day, entry to the Scottish Maritime Museum will also be free. As well as seeing the world’s oldest ship hull model experiment tank and maritime heritage, inside the Museum visitors will enjoy a visit to the Skylark IX Recovery Project’s new ‘Hope Floats’ exhibition and Boatbuilding Workshop.
In the Skylark IX Recovery Project’s Boatbuilding Workshop, everyone can see ‘Happy Days’, the Project’s first skiff which was built by Volunteer Trainees recovering from addictions and members of the community.
Younger visitors, between 5 – 12 years of age, will get the chance to enter a competition to name the Project’s second skiff, built by the Museum’s Scottish Boat Building School.
Alternatives Community-based Recovery’s horticultural team will also unveil a new memorial space beside the Skylark IX Recovery Project’s Remembrance seat and the rowing boat Maggs. The new space will enable people to sit and reflect on people they’ve loved and lost.
The Skylark IX Recovery Project cares for the Skylark IX Dunkirk ‘Little Ship’ and leads skills programmes for those recovering from addictions living across West Dunbartonshire.
The Skylark IX Stories event has been supported by the Year of Stories 2022 Community Stories Fund. This fund is being delivered in partnership between VisitScotland and Museums Galleries Scotland with support from National Lottery Heritage Fund thanks to National Lottery players.
The proposed Spirit of Skylark Centre, which will be built in the grounds of the Scottish Maritime Museum on Castle Street, Dumbarton, will feature Skylark IX at its heart alongside a boatbuilding workshop, café, Remembrance space and community hub.
Skylark IX Stories
Saturday 4 June 11am – 3pm
Scottish Maritime Museum (Denny Tank)
Castle Street, Dumbarton
YS2022 Community Stories Fund
Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022 will celebrate and promote the wealth of stories inspired by, written, or created in Scotland.
Led by VisitScotland, the Year of Stories 2022 will sustain and build upon the momentum of preceding Themed Years, showcasing a nationwide programme of major events and community celebrations.
The Community Stories Fund will complement the Year of Stories 2022 Open and Partner Events Programme, shining a spotlight on the cultural heritage of Scotland’s communities, inspiring new stories of Scotland to be shared, and creating a year-long programme of events and activities.
From icons of literature to local tales, Scotland’s Year of Stories encourages locals and visitors to experience a diversity of voices, take part in events and explore the places, people and cultures connected to all forms of our stories, past and present.
Join the conversation using #YS2022 and #TalesOfScotland.
Find out more at Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022 | VisitScotland
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