Activities at Overslade House Care Home

Overslade House raised a wee dram of Scottish Whiskey to Poet Robert Burns on 25th January to mark the Scottish institution, including giving the time-honoured address to the ‘Great chieftain O’ the pudding race’ – the haggis. Residents also enjoyed learning Flower of Scotland and Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond during their choir practice. A game of Perfect Pairs was played with pictures depicting Scotland and Margaret our resident who is actually Scottish was delighted to win. Our residents also had a wonderful time creating images of Scotland in a lovely collage with Olivia from Creative Mojo and Resident Nathan was thrilled to be made artist of the day. Later residents enjoyed Robbie Burns Quizzes supplied through the Oomph Wellness programme after watching a short documentary on Robert Burns who died aged 37. This was followed by videos of Glencoe, Loch Lomond and the Isles of Harris and Luke with stunning scenery and the recital of a Robert Burns poem by our King . The tables were set and residents were given the choice to try Scotch broth Haggis, Neeps and Tatties prepared by Head Chef Joanne Kolat- Furca and also enjoyed Scottish ginger shortbread and Scottish Tea Cakes. Residents John and Peter thoroughly enjoyed their whiskey with ginger but did you know a dram is only a teaspoonful?

The Six Nations Rugby Championship has begun. Residing in Rugby the birth place of the game, residents have been watching the Rugby and also took part in a quiz supplied through the Oomph wellness programme that Barchester provide for all homes. We did get a little stuck on the question which county is Rugby in, of course we knew really. Another interesting question and fact is that the Fijian team wear an all-white kit and we all thought only England players could wear all white. Quizzes are not about competing or winning although taking part is fun but about what you learn from these quizzes and the mental stimulation they provide. The quiz was followed by a game of Pyramid based on the Family Fortunes gameshow and a drinks trolley with beers and wine for the residents. General Manager Violeta Baesu, said: “We have loved watching the Six Nations, we have watched pretty much all the matches – lots of our residents are rugby fans.  It has been fantastic to be able to cheer on all the home sides.  We look forward to the results.

Celebrations have been in full swing at Overslade House, as one of its residents reaches her 90th birthday in style.

Rita Bright was joined by staff, relatives, and friends as she celebrated another landmark birthday. Guests enjoyed a special birthday cake made by the home’s chef Joanne Kolat-Furca.

Rita was born in Peterborough in 1934 and was married to Dr John Bright for 35 years. During their marriage Rita and John had 3 children, David, Amanda and Jeremy and one grandson Seth.

Rita was a magistrate in Rugby for 30 years and in her spare time, Rita loved to cook and was apparently a very good one. Rita also enjoyed gardening and flower arranging and also ran the 18th Rugby Brownies Pack in Hillmorton. Rita raised a lot of money for charity and was affectionately known as “Mrs. Womble” for her thriftiness. Rita’s kindness also extended to animals she had cats and also 3 rescue dogs, Harriet, Harry and Humphrey. Rita also ran a Christmas card shop at St Andrews Church in Rugby to raise money for charity. Rita went to St Andrews church regularly after the passing of her husband John and it was here that she met Noel who had also lost his wife. Rita and Noel love to sing and regularly sang in the choir, they also loved to travel and went on many coach trips. A wonderful partnership blossomed and Rita and Noel have been together for 27 years now and both live at Overslade House. Noel also has two sons Chris and Alex and Chris said “Rita was a godsend to my father”

When asked the secret to a long life Rita said, “Well one must stay positive and not complain too much” Rita was described by family as a very welcoming and very uncomplaining person and here at Overslade House we have to agree.

Residents in our Memory Lane residents enjoyed a visit from Annette from Creative Mojo who guided them on how to create a beautiful Dragon for Chinese New Year, the year of the Dragon. They all did an amazing job and Peter was artist of the day. Our Dining areas were transformed with kimono serviettes, Chinese name cards and Chinese lanterns. Residents enjoyed a dance from carer Lydia before lunch was served. This was Sweet and Sour chicken with rice made by head chef Joanne Kolat-Furca. After lunch residents enjoyed videos of the Chinese Dancing Dragon, The Chinese Lantern Festival The Forbidden City, The Great Wall of China and New Year fireworks. Everybody also learned whether their birth year fell on the year of the dragon and were keen to know what animal year they were. New Year celebration is centred around removing the bad and the old, and welcoming the new and the good. It's a time to worship ancestors, exorcise evil spirits and pray for good harvest.

Today it's celebrated also by Chinese communities outside the country. Lion dance, dragon dance, temple fairs, flower market shopping and so on are just a few of these rich and colourful activities.

In the run-up to the new year people will clean their houses to get rid of dirt, rubbish and other unwanted items. They will redecorate them with red couplets, lanterns, new flowerpots and furniture, and will shop for foodstuffs for banquet specialities. Members of the family sit around a big table to have a New Year's Eve dinner

Older and senior members of the family give the younger ones good luck pocket money contained in a red envelope

Everyone would have a thorough bath to cleanse themselves and wash away the bad luck before the end of the year. Children and adults would change into new clothes, new shoes, new outfits for the festive period.

At midnight on New Year's Eve, noisy firecrackers would be set off to usher in the New Year. On New Year's Day and the few days that follow, friends would visit each other's homes and offer good luck wishes to each other, exchange seasonal greetings.

Ann the  resident Ambassador  said: “I loved the dance that Lydia gave us, I love the vibrant costumes and learning about the Chinese Zodiac animal traits. A person born in the Year of the Dragon is said to be kind, confident and strong.  I find it fascinating to learn all about different traditions, and I thought our dining areas looked beautiful.”

Overslade House was filled with flowers, cards and sweets in celebration of St Valentine’s Day.

Residents enjoyed a live virtual event provided through Barchester Healthcare demonstrating flower arranging for Valentine’s Day with Kathryn Delve.

3 tables were set up with beautiful flowers suggested by Kathryn and residents went for a Valentine’s Day colour theme. The Laurel greenery was from our own lovely gardens

Residents were shown how to cut their flowers to make them last longer and how to arrange their displays and each one looked very different with their own personal touch . Everybody thoroughly enjoyed the session and were pleased with their results , as some residents had never done it before, it was lovely to welcome the men and relatives to join in also.

Residents enjoyed an armchair Zumba session full of love songs including Shakira, Kiss Kiss and Brotherhood of Man, Save all your kisses for me, finishing with deep breathing and relaxation to Saving all my Love for You.

Staff and residents celebrated the day of love by telling their personal life stories with most saying they had a wonderful marriage. The dining areas were turned into romantic restaurants ready for a lunch of salmon, followed by chocolate dipped Strawberries, heart shaped shortbread and fabulous fairy cakes sprinkled with love, made by Head Chef Joanne Kolat-Furca.

The corridors have been filled with love songs and in our Memory Lane we made Valentines balloon baskets to send some love to heaven. Residents were also treated to chocolate hearts and marshmallows as our Activities Team delivered from room to room sharing the love everywhere in the home.

Maureen, a resident said: “It has been a lovely day. It was wonderful to see everyone go to so much effort to get involved with the day’s festivities. I really liked how the dining area was decorated with lots of personal touches, the chocolate heart sweet dishes, and chocolate covered strawberries were lovely.”

Staff and residents at Overslade House joined fellow keen quizzers from over 250 Barchester care homes and hospitals across the whole of the UK, including Wales, Scotland, Jersey and the Isle of Wight, to put their collective general knowledge to the test.

The inaugural Barchester Big Quiz of the Year took place on 9th January 2024 when Overslade House got super competitive and took on its sister homes from all over the country to find out which Barchester home or hospital had the best quizzers.  From historical humdingers and musical musings to pictorial puzzlers and connective conundrums, the homes battled it out to find out who would prevail.

Nathan, resident at Overslade House said: “It has been a lovely afternoon. We scored a very respectable 27/30 questions. It was wonderful to see everyone in all the other homes joining in. I really enjoyed getting together with my fellow residents to take on the other homes – it is amazing how competitive everyone gets!”