"Are ya here to see the boss?"
We were.
Anyone who arrives at the Darndale Belcamp Village Centre knows who that is.
Linda Heydon is the CEO of the centre, which opened in one of the most deprived areas in Dublin 30 years ago.
The 2016 census ranked Darndale as "very disadvantaged".
Men there have an unemployment rate of almost 40%, women have an unemployment rate of just over 30%.
Under 7% of the population have a third-level education.
Linda Heydon is the powerhouse behind a facility that offers a range of services to the community, including childcare services, a seniors centre and a school leaver programme.
It is one of a number of projects nationwide being supported by the Social Innovation Fund of Ireland's enterprise fund.
At Belcamp, there are life skills courses for disadvantaged families and children, there is a gospel choir, a café and an art library.
It also has a pharmacy, a shop, a healthcare centre and a mental health team on site.
Covid-19 restrictions meant that the more than 1,000 older people that normally avail of services there had to stay at home.
So, the staff brought the service to them.
Simple activity packs with word searches, puzzles and quizzes have kept older members of the community active.
They have also become accustomed to calling each other to compare their bi-weekly packs.
Assistant manager Karen Pritchard says the reaction has been terrific.
"We’ve also included really easy exercises that they can do when they are sitting down watching the telly."
The lack of exercise was leading some of them to experience stiffness in their legs.
Meals on wheels has also been introduced.
Handy helpers, a service that works with the village centre to provide locals with help such as painting and maintenance indoors, volunteered to do the deliveries.
Project co-ordinator Zoe McDonnell has embraced meeting the older population in this way.
"It's great to meet people and have that five to 10 minute yap in the garden to make sure they are doing okay. I’ve really enjoyed the face to face interaction and they enjoy it. We make sure they have what they need. We’ve had a couple of medical supplies delivered, dog food and bread also."
Angela Sexton is one of the recipients of Zoe’s service.
Angela says she’s lucky as her family is very good to her, but points out that for those who don’t have family, "it's lovely to have the likes of Zoe talking to them for a few minutes".
Back at the centre, as restrictions lift, preparations are under way before it reopens next week.
It is a huge complex, so the facilities manager Tony Brady has been busy.
When he thought about it initially, he felt there was a huge amount of work involved in introducing social distancing measures. However, he said once he got a plan together, it was straightforward.
"The most difficult aspect has been trying to make the building comfortable and safe and not making it feel alien for people coming back to work. We want staff to feel it is as comfortable as it always was."
Tony notes the fear among staff who are about to return to the centre.
They have been working from home since March, so they are fearful of either bringing the virus into the community or home to their families.
The boss, Linda Heydon, says that fear has been the biggest issue that the management team has had to combat.
"We've been conducting an induction process to instil confidence to be able to say to people, you are safe here."
Linda says changes to how the building is run and the implementation of social distancing measures will help instil that confidence.
There will be changes too for service users and particularly for older members.
"It will look different and feel different," according to Linda.
In the past, members used to dine together, but that will not happen anymore.
The 20-person capacity rooms in the Golden Years Facility will allow seven people.
"The friends they expect to see when they come back are not going to be there. Also, some were attending day care here four or five days a week because they have high dependency. They may now get one day a week."
The service will change, but Linda says the smiles, the laughter and fun at Darndale Belcamp Village Centre will remain.
