Sebastian Calderon, Murray Pioneer
A local nursing home recently organised a week of arts, crafts, and creative activities aimed to put smiles on the faces of its residents.
The Riverview Lutheran Rest Home in Loxton held a ‘show week’ with residents and visitors enjoying activities organised to boost the mood and happiness of everyone involved.
The event started with the art and crafts exhibition, which will be running until 14 October, where Riverview talents showcased their creations alongside artists from The Collective Loxton.
Riverview resident Jan said “I displayed some of my embroidery and millinery, it was really good”.
Riverview CEO Nicolle Jachmann said “Chelsea, our wonderful Wellbeing program manager, has developed an amazing week of fun and exciting show-related activities enabling all residents to enjoy the fun and festivities of a country show.”
“The varied range of fun show activities throughout the week means there is something for everyone to enjoy and we are truly grateful to the many wonderful volunteers and family members that have assisted Chelsea and the lifestyle team in bringing the show to Riverview,” Ms Jachmann said.
Wellbeing program manager Chelsea Launders said “I am beyond grateful for all of our dedicated volunteers for their enthusiasm and spirit, as their involvement was instrumental in supporting the lifestyle team to ensure our events were a great success.”
“Community organisations such as Loxcare and The Collective Loxton also played a vital role through their involvement and support, which significantly enhanced our art and craft exhibition, offering further pieces of interest and talking points for our wonderful residents and their relatives”.
“My goal in bringing this show to our residents is to help maintain that meaningful connection with their local community and cultural roots. All the while having some fun along the way”.
Riverview resident Gloria shared her excitement for the event, “getting dressed up for the photobooth was really fun.”
Riverview resident Judy said “what a wonderful week and lovely to see all the local talent we have here in Loxton and as for Side Show Alley, what a marvellous way to end the week.”
Animals were also a big part of the week, thanks to a visit from Farmer Darcy’s Travelling Farm, which allowed everyone to interact with different farm animals.
A scarecrow making competition was organised as a creative activity, two teams attempting to build the best scarecrow from old clothes filled with newspapers.
This article appeared in the Murray Pioneer, 16 October 2024.
