Activities at South Chowdene Care Home

Hola! South Chowdene were keen to celebrate the ‘Cinco de Mayo’. Residents started the day preparing alcoholic and non-alcoholic Sangria ready for lunchtime. We then took a virtual tour around Mexico and some of its main towns before checking some facts and figures about the country’s geography, history, music, traditions and food. Our talented chef Michelle made Enchiladas for lunch to go with our homemade Sangria (which we all agreed was delicious and we need to make more often), after which we had a quick fire quiz to see what we could remember from the morning session.

South Chowdene residents used ‘Nurses’ Day’ on Friday 12th May to show their appreciation of all the fantastic and incredibly hard working team of nurses and care practitioners at South Chowdene. Home-made ‘Thank You’ cards in craft sessions were made with each individual’s interests or personality in mind and cookery sessions saw two different types of sweets made and delivered in individual bags. Residents had great fun discussing their favourite sweets and how they were bought by weight along with the excitement of looking in the sweet shop window in anticipation. We made sure to use proper sweet bags to aid authenticity.

Excitement is still in the air at South Chowdene Care home in low Fell where residents and staff made Coronation-themed decorations and baking up a storm of red, white and blue cakes and pastries with the help of head chef Lynne Parkin in preparation for the King’s Coronation on May 6.

Staff and residents at the home put their heads together and came up with a plan for their celebrations fit for a King.  Over the bank holiday weekend the home held a Coronation Afternoon Tea with coronation themed quiz, a street party and a garden party with live entertainment including balloon modelling and a good sing. The whole home came together to celebrate our new King and talk about the new era the country is entering.

Across our services Residents had a wonderful time participating in an interactive virtual talk with Pippa Catterall, Professor of History and Policy at the University of Westminster, where we delved into the rich history of coronations.

During the talk, we explored fascinating topics such as the coronation chair, the crown, and other significant aspects related to King Charles' upcoming coronation. Our residents were thrilled to have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the memoirs of past coronations from 1937 and 1953, as well as learning about the coronation oath and what to expect from the ceremony, including the music, guests, and pageantry.

Residents very much enjoyed reminiscing around their Doris Day memories, discussing the heart throbs she has played alongside and then watched ‘Calamity Jane’ accompanied by their choice of popcorn – which was a much wider choice than they had at the local cinema on a Saturday morning! Residents discussed Doris’s diverse talents and how she used these to help and make life better for both those she knew and those who just experienced her works. We particularly liked finding out what she did for animal welfare with the Doris Day Animal Foundation and the Doris Day Animal League as well as setting up the Doris Day Horse Rescue and Adoption Centre.

Residents really showed their creative sides with their entries to the traditional ‘Bonnet Parade’. A great deal of thought and perusal of pictures went into the choice of theme as well as design of the hats. It was great to see residents using their interests and loves as part of the hat decorations. We were very lucky to have 3 independent judges in to make the very difficult decision as to who would won the overall first prize. Volunteers Ellen, Jane and Pat came in to cast their eyes over the creations and joined us for afternoon tea and a quiz after the parade which everyone very much enjoyed.