Capturing a moment in time

Vale Cynthia Aliphon
OCAV was saddened by the death of Cynthia on 16 April 2019

Cynthia Aliphon has captured most of the big moments at OCAV’s Braeside Park village since she moved in almost a decade ago. Her photo collages capture the faces of current residents and those who have died or moved from the village.

“A few weeks ago I was going to take one of the frames down from the Community Room wall, but another resident said it should stay up because it was a lovely reminder of a friend who has died. I hadn’t thought of that, but it is a good way to remember old friends,” Cynthia said.

A keen photographer, Cynthia takes photos at gatherings, and the people attending, and displays them on walls in the village, mostly in the regularly used Community Room. And gathering is something many of the Braeside Park resident do socially or for a scheduled activity such as bingo or craft.

The most recent gathering (pictured) was a morning tea to raise money for cancer research. Cynthia was quick to capture the faces of those present. She happened to find a frame that had the word, ‘Attitude’ on it and thought that fitting for her friends at Braeside Park.

“I just use my phone now to take the photos and I gather the frames from opp shops in the area,” she said. “Once I have the photos printed, I cut them up and arrange them and then frame them.”

“I do the same thing in my family when we gather for events or celebrations. Here at Braeside Park it is a way of marking the history of the place and who is here at a given time.”

“Sometimes its hard to manage all the changes when a few people go one after the other. But we do have to manage and the collages capture happy memories of the people.”