This narrative is a very personal account of George’s and my ‘journey’ with Veronica Sherborne, and how it all began. It in no way aspires to being an academic or directive          document. It is intended more as a ‘sharing’ of the way in which she inspired our work, and generally influenced our lives, and how that came about.

Often things happen to us, which, whilst seemingly unimportant at the time or may even cause us sadness and emotional pain, do, with hindsight, take their place in the overall story.
To mis-quote, perhaps, Kung Fu Panda… ’There are NO accidents!’

Although I was totally unaware of it at the time, our journey with Veronica began many, many years ago, whilst I was still at school. Back in the long gone days of the old 11+ exam, that for me being around 1948, I was very fortunate to gain a place at a girl’s grammar school in Bristol. I thoroughly enjoyed my school years there, except for one lesson, then referred to as Laban’s ‘Modern Educational Dance’. It was a very new thing at the time.. Some people loved it – to be quite honest, I hated it! It was absolutely my most ‘un-favourite’ lesson. However, it had to be done and there was no getting out of it, until we were allowed in later years to make course choices. Needless to say, I dropped ‘dance’ at the first opportunity!

I had always felt very grateful for the opportunity to have the education I did, and when the time came, I decided that I wanted to go into teaching, to work with children who were ‘disadvantaged’ in some way.

By the time I began my teacher training George’s and my relationship was well established, and we married soon after I completed it in 1958. George was in the Royal Air Force, so we led a fairly nomadic life, moving our home between various RAF Stations every two years or so. It was during that time that we had our children, daughters at first, followed by our son, Michael George. Although the full realisation did not come to us immediately, he was to have a profound effect on our lives. Very early in his life, it became apparent that Michael had cerebral palsy and would be severely disabled.

By now, you must be wondering what all this has to do with our journey with Veronica. It was through Michael that we both eventually became aware of her work. When he was about four years old we began to think about where Michael would go to school. We were living in Bristol at the time and I was beginning to think about getting back to teaching. Following my idea of working with  ‘disadvantaged’ children, I applied for a post at a school for children with ‘severe learning disabilities’ (1970s terminology), in Bristol. Although I had had no specific training in that area I was accepted for the post, and Michael was allowed to attend the school, although he was in a different department.

Very soon after I started working, the Head Teacher suggested that it might be a good idea for me to go on a course which was being run by a person named Veronica Sherborne.
‘It’s a form of movement’, he explained ‘not exactly ‘dance’, but I think it would be a good course for you to do!’ 

‘Movement/Dance! – Shock…horror! My mind flew back to those little green tunics we used to wear for ‘dance’ at school… Panic!. ‘I’m going to be a cloud!… I’m going to have to ‘float around!.’…but what could I say? Coming into the work with no actual specialised training… I had to comply!
So off I went, on four consecutive Tuesdays, to be taught by Veronica.

What a revelation! Her work, her approach to teaching and learning, her teaching style and way of communicating immediately resonated with me very positively. I started using some of her ideas with my class. And so began my part of our journey with Veronica, and I was able to go on another weeks course with her a few years later.

By this time George had left the Air Force and was working as a Prison Officer in Bristol, in the area placement, welfare and rehabilitation of folks about to return to the ‘outside world’. One day, totally out of the blue he told me that he had applied for a job at the local Adult Training Centre, as it was then called, which would involve him working with ‘adults with special needs.’…(again terminology used at that time). 

With both of us being in similar work now, we talked a lot about our various experiences, and he heard much about my ‘movement work’. When he had the opportunity to go on one of Veronica’s courses he grabbed it with both hands, and immediately started using her ideas with his ‘adults’. And so began his part of our journey with Veronica.

As time passed and Veronica began to find traveling more difficult, she began to ask us, along with many other ‘early Sherborne folk’, to lead courses for her both in the UK and abroad.

When our son Michael died in 1989, he left the princely sum of £48 in his bank account. George and I didn’t’ know what to do with it, but wanted to do something ‘worthwhile’.
During the following year we, along with other people who we had come to know only by name through conversations with Veronica, organised a day of celebration in memory of Veronica.
We sent out invitations to that event, to all Veronica’s movement contacts, both in the UK and abroad. Michael’s £48 helped to pay for the postage …..

‘And the rest’ as is said, ‘is history’!

To finish, I want to say a very sincere Thank you from me, and, I know, from George as well, to Veronica, to all the ‘Sherborne friends’ we made along the way, both on the home front, and abroad; and also to the ‘younger generation’ everywhere, who are now ‘picking up the baton’ to carry the work on into the future. Veronica would never have believed the extent of what we have all achieved and will continue to achieve in the future, by collectively, working together.

Long may it continue!