It was a jolly time for those at Hunter’s Hill Residential Aged Care Facility, as families, school kids and even Santa himself joined for the festivities!
The community came together to create a merry experience for everyone with carols, presents and festive red and green food. Hunters Hill Public students made the Christmas cards for those staying at the home, and local groups donated raffle prizes and gifts for Santa and the children to give to the residents.
Heilala Galbraithe, a staff member at Hunters Hill said that the event meant that everyone could come together in a family Christmas that all their residents could enjoy. “They are our family too”, she said “like our own grandparents”.
Staff who had the day off, like Heilala herself, still made the trip to the home to join those setting up the lunch festivities. Facility manager, Gladys Maseko, thanked all the relatives and staff for coming and making the day more magical for the residents and their guests.
The Hunters Hill Congregational Community Church choir lead by pastor Julie Grancha, brought music and energy to the day. They had an early show that carried into lunch time, and brought a joyful spirit to the Christmas celebrations with classics like Jingle Bells and Holy Night.
However, the highlight of the day was when George Burns, one of the residents, performed the old Irish balled Danny Boy with Julie and the church choir. It was an emotionally charged moment for his family, as well as staff and residents like Helene Polhill, who recalled the moment, saying it “Brought me to tears”.
The food was catered for by Twilight’s passionate cooks, including Yvette Fonseca, who crafted a feast for those attending. Residents and families enjoyed food like vibrant Christmas coloured panna cotta and chicken puffs- the “all-time-favourite”.
The Christmas lunch has been a long-time tradition of Twilight aged care, to bring people together during the holiday. It is held annually in Hunters Hill Village Residential Aged Care Facility as well as throughout all of their four homes in the northern Sydney area.
We are very proud of this wonderful intergenerational community project, LEST WE FORGET Ensuring the stories of our diggers live on…
Thank you to St. Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill for agreeing to be apart of this very special project. Also thank you to Betty and the Wilson family. Betty Wilson chatted two Year 7 students about her husband John and his missions in the war.
This project was supported and funded by DVA – Department of Veterans Affair. Please enjoy as Betty share’s with you her story.
We have some tips to keep you motivated during these colder months. Staying active especially during the cooler the months is good for the mind, body and spirit.
Here is one of our resident’s favourites, straight from the Twilight Kitchen, prepared using the freshest of ingredients. Treat your family this Winter with a bowl of Twilight’s Pea & Ham Soup.
Margaret has many years experience as a nurse, with extensive experience in General Nursing and Mental Health. Margaret has also held the position of Auditor within the Aged Care sector in the late nineties and moved into aged care management in 2002.
We hope new friendships and interactions will come out of this and future shared activities.
The Twilight Kitchen has a couple of favourites for you to try your hand at over the long weekend.
The staff at Twilight Aged Care know only too well how common this disease is as they deal with it every day within their jobs, so they wished to actively support the work of Dementia Australia.