What does a sausage, pumpkin, nail varnish and a famous teddy bear have in common?
Well, they have all played an important role in the recent entertaining and, sometimes, let’s just say out-of-the-ordinary events and activities at Orchard House Care Home in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire.
With so much uncertainty being experienced by everyone around the world, the team at Orchard House are determined to ensure they continue to bring joy, happiness, laughter and excitement to residents’ lives.
~ “I feel like a new woman” ~ Barbara, Orchard House Resident
In the end, they created two bangers with distinctly different flavours – one with marmalade and another with honey. Residents Molly and Phyllis helped judge, “Marmalade was the winner; it had a good flavour and it reminded us of Paddington Bear!”
For Halloween and Bonfire Night, residents enjoyed traditional activities such as pumpkin carving, making a Guy Fawkes and sparklers; provoking reminiscence amongst the residents, they all proved to be very popular, “This is fantastic, I haven’t done one of these for years”, was the joyous remark made by 96-year-old Betty after finishing her entry for the pumpkin carving competition.
Our memories will never fade
Remembering those who gave
Crosses that lay row by row
Heroes who took up quarrel with the foe
Age did not weary them
Respect, honour and sacrifice they gave
Dads, husbands and brothers were lost
Hoping war won’t start again
Our hero’s will never be forgotten
Under the poppies in Flanders Fields
Soldiers are laid to rest
Engulfed in a sea of red
After the weeks of fun and action-packed activities, residents took time to relax as part of National Spa and Wellness week, enjoying spa treatments such as manicures, foot spas and facials. They also participated in wellness activities such as Tai Chi, poetry narrations and meditation. The desired effect was achieved, “My feet feel so relaxed, I don’t want to put my slippers back on yet.”
As you can imagine from these examples, the team are busy preparing for the forthcoming Christmas events which will be full of festive traditions and spirit.
Registered Manager Maxine Bain shared her thoughts, “Our social and activities program is so varied because of the different interests and hobbies of our residents. We strongly believe in the importance of knowing the person, their life history, so we can create such a diverse and holistic program which creates such magical moments. It’s our greatest delight to see the joy and happiness as residents take part in the all of these events and activities. As the year draws to an end, we’d like to thank our community for showing us such care and support throughout such unprecedented times this year. We would like to wish you all a happy and safe December with new hope and dreams for the new year to come.”