At Emmaus St Albans the Companions are encouraged to work across a range of disciplines. During our last visit, we established the five key areas as; Catering, Housekeeping, Retail, Vans and Workshop. The Companions play the lead role in all operations. We wanted to capture what it is to live and work in this establishment, a behind the scenes insight into daily life.
“Self-documentation is a powerful method for observing processes over a long period of time, or for understanding the nuances of community life when the researcher can’t be there.”
With five disposable cameras up for grabs, a Companion representing each of the five work areas volunteered to document a 'Day in the Life'. There were no rules or restrictions, simply the film and 24 hours in which to complete it. Everything from their first activity of a morning, breakfast / lunch / dinner, conversations with the Emmaus community, work related activities and downtime. The choice was theirs.
Here are a couple of our favourites...
Housekeeping - Green Fingers
(Photo: Emmaus St Albans)
Retail - A Christmas Welcome
(Photo: Emmaus St Albans)
Author: J. Ashbridge