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Residents celebrate 72 years since saying: “I do”

We staged a magical anniversary party for two of our residents who were celebrating 72 years of marriage
Valerie and Bill Sharp, who married in 1951 after first meeting at a dance in Hull.

Our Aldbury’s Café had been specially decorated for the party with hearts, flowers and photographs taken at the couple’s wedding and during their many happy years together.

The festivities started with the reading of a congratulatory telegram from King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla and was followed by a special lunch, presents, music and laughter.

Bill and Val met when he asked her to dance. He later walked her home and revealed he had just joined the Royal Navy, before asking if she would write to him.

Val thought Bill must be older than her, as he was in the Navy, so she lied to him about her age and aqreed to write.

Bill had several long postings, up to two and a half years long, but they continued to write and still have their letters.

During one shore leave they decided to get married and tied the knot on March 31, 1951 at Saint Saviours Church in Hull.

They moved about the country during Bill’s time in the Navy, living in Portsmouth and then Dartmouth.

Their first son Steve was born in Hull and their second son David was born in Devon. And when Bill left the Navy they settled in Poole where their daughter Sarah was born.

They had many happy holidays in Malta, France, Spain and the Greek Islands, always wishing to be close to the sea. They also had a little sailing boat at Poole Harbour.

Over the years they have shared many interests including music and have supported Poole & Parkstone Choir (now Viva Voce choir), where they have many friends.

Bill was also a keen sportsman, playing squash well into his eighties, and being the oldest squash champion in Poole.

Bill, now 94 and Val, 92, have lived at The Aldbury since December 2022.

They have six grandchildren: Becky, Neil, Claire, Charlotte, Hannah and Joe. And nine great-grandchildren: Connor, Dylan, Fin, Tom, Jack, Millie, Tarna and Xander.

The youngest addition Ralphie-George was just 14 weeks old at the time of their anniversary.
The couple’s daughter Sarah Gilling said: “Mum and dad came to The Aldbury together as always and we are all so grateful to the fantastic Aldbury family who have continued to provide care and support to them and have enabled them to stay together. The party, the lunch, everything was amazing and we all had a lovely time celebrating their anniversary.”
Lunch was prepared by our Chef Izabela Turczyn-Kuzma who also baked a pink anniversary cake.

In the afternoon the Viva Voce choir visited.

Colten Companion Cara Duroe said: “The choir performed a lovely sing-a-long for all residents and left us one of their CDs to play in the future. It was a romantic and joyous celebration of a very special couple.”
Val said: “I couldn’t believe how wonderful the day was. I thought it was all a dream.”
Bill agreed: “We cherish every day we spend together and we are very thankful to all the staff who made our 72nd wedding anniversary so special. We couldn’t have asked for more.”

Residents enjoy ‘stepping out’ for tea dance

Residents are enjoying the stimulating music and sing-alongs provided by a monthly community tea dance
Our residents attend the ‘Stepping Out Community Tea Dance ‘ which is run by ex-professional ballroom dance company Shall We Dance at the Broadstone War Memorial Hall.

The event is sponsored by Douch Family Funeral Directors.

Sue Miles, our Companionship Team Leader said: “Stepping Out is an entertaining and extremely valuable tea dance run for local people including those living with memory loss and their carers. Our residents have been attending for the last nine months and thoroughly enjoy themselves, especially Joan Perrin and Phyllis Haiyne, who are both former ballroom dancers.”

Joan Perrin said: “The music played is simply wonderful and being able to dance properly again with Hazel, Dorothy and Gerry from Shall We Dance is a dream come true.”

Sue Miles continued: “We are immensely grateful to the Douch family, which provides this and many other groups and activities within the community including lunch events, book clubs and also Knit and Natter.

“Indeed, the Knit and Natter Club recently donated 20 colourful lap blankets for our residents and they were over the moon to receive them.”

There’s No Place Like The Aldbury on World Book Day

We transported our residents Over the Rainbow to Oz for World Book Day, complete with Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man and of course a wicked witch!
Our home was a technicolour treat of characters’ costumes, props, and even a yellow brick road, made by residents in the run-up to the day.

Our colten companion Cara Duroe said: “Prior to World Book Day staff and residents agreed the perfect choice for our theme was a book and film loved by all our generations, The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz.

“We all grew up loving the story and characters and creating all the props and costumes we needed for the day was a project that the whole house became involved in.”

The great, all-seeing wonderful wizard was played by our home manager Gemma Parkin, dressed smartly in her top hat, coat and tails.
Gemma said: “Here at The Aldbury we have a one-team approach and all love joining in with the themed days arranged by our amazing companionship team which are so much fun.”
Our companion team leader Sue Miles was the Cowardly Lion, Companion Melissa Siat played Dorothy, senior administrator David Austin was the Scarecrow, health care assistant Kenneth Newell played The Tin Man role, hairdresser Candy Lewis was the good witch Glinda, with her beautiful dog Roxy as Toto, and companion Cara scared everyone as the Wicked Witch of the West.

Cara was also accompanied by her terrifying team of flying monkeys: housekeeping’s Karen Sutton and Angela Shuttle and the home’s companion puppy Dave.

[caption id="attachment_5776" align="alignnone" width="863"] Companions Melissa Siat as Dorothy and Cara Duroe as the Wicked Witch of the West and Companion Leader Sue Miles as the Cowardly Lion[/caption]

Flying through all of them was housekeeping’s Simone Bernard as the Tornado.

During the day, the team entertained the residents with sing-a-longs of Somewhere Over The Rainbow, lots of dressing up and photography on the yellow brick road.

Resident Sylvia Lake was tickled pink to see Sue as the Cowardly Lion.

While Joan Perrin tried on Candy’s tutu and Abdul “Hobi” Sabih perfected his Munchkin impression.

Joyce Holden joked: “How long have I been sleeping?” as she saw all the characters come into her room.

Jean Hands said everyone looked fabulous and exclaimed: “It’s the Wicked Witch of the West! We should do this more often!”

 

Residents strike up pen pal friendships

The ‘beauty and value’ of handwritten messages has begun bringing joy our residents 
It follows a pen pal exchange agreed between our home and our sister home, Fernhill in Ferndown.

Team members at our homes shared respective lists of residents who said they would like to participate.

First to put pen to paper has been Fernhill.

Resident Doris Smith, known as Dori, said that she had not had a pen pal since she was a teenager.
“Dori said she had two pen pals at that time, one she wrote to in America and one in this country,” said Ann Marie Knight from their Companionship Team. “She told us she would love the idea of having a new pen pal and receiving letters back.”
Ann Marie said it was a similar case for resident Elizabeth Wilson, adding: “She remembered writing to a girl who lived in Canada when she was a teenager. The girl had been on a school exchange over here and that’s how they met and became pen pals.”

For Fernhill residents Gwen Jellis and Joan Vohra, this is their first ever pen pal relationship.

“They were both very excited to be writing and anticipating receiving replies,” said Ann Marie. “Our residents put together some thoughtful notes full of positive messages.
“Seeing the smiles all round clearly showed they appreciated the beauty and value of handwritten letters.
“We are planning to invite The Aldbury residents to Fernhill for lunch so they can get to meet and chat with their pen pals in person.

“Hopefully this can be the beginning of a blossoming friendship, moving it off the page and into time spent face to face.”

Here at The Aldbury, our Companionship Team members Melissa Siat and Cara Duroe both spoke of the benefits of the initiative.

[caption id="attachment_5850" align="alignnone" width="768"] Fernhill resident Joan Vohra begins drafting a postcard.[/caption]

Cara said: “We chatted to quite a few residents and they all said how wonderful the idea is. Valerie and Bill Sharp told us they both had pen pals in America as children, which was organised through their school.”

Melissa said: “We’re loving this new project with Fernhill as writing skills improve memory, help with dexterity and emotional wellbeing and keep our residents sociable.”

Our resident Joan Perrin said: “I hope to have a pen pal who shares the same hobby of ballroom dancing so we can write about a common interest.”

Fellow resident Joyce Holden was especially pleased with a card sent by Doris Smith at Fernhill as the pattern matched her favourite blanket and she remembered meeting Doris at a garden choir performance at Fernhill last summer.  “I’m so pleased she chose me to be her pen pal friend,” said Joyce.

 

‘Gung Hei Fat Choi’ as we celebrate Chinese New Year

Our homes have celebrated Chinese New Year with festivities, lantern making, food, music, talks and language learning
Residents, team members and visitors have all come together for fun activities to mark the start of the Year of the Rabbit.

Here at The Aldbury, residents were greeted with jasmine tea and fortune cookies with traditional Chinese music playing in the background ahead of an arts and crafts session on making Chinese lanterns.

After much threading and construction, resident Beryl Spaulding said of the completed works when they were held up: “Just beautiful”.

Our Companionship Team member Cara Duroe said: “Some of the messages in the fortune cookies were very apt. Ronald Woolley’s read, ‘Getting older means getting better. Old is good. Get old. Get happy.’ Another read, ‘Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.’

[caption id="attachment_5704" align="alignnone" width="768"] The Aldbury Companionship Team member Cara Duroe with resident Ronald Woolley. The message in Ronald’s fortune cookie read, Getting older means getting better. Old is good. Get old. Get happy.[/caption]

“Residents also learned how to draw their name in Chinese. Gwendolyne Hunte took great care in filling hers out, asking for the finished paper to be put on her bedroom wall. “This was a great celebration overall, promoting awareness of another culture and providing stimulation through our planned activities.”

At Kingfishers, in New Milton, there was a talk by Senior Care Lead Fay Suenfa.

Born in China, Fay shared details of her family traditions and how they celebrate Chinese New Year.

Our other homes celebrating the day included Canford Chase which held a tai chi morning and invited residents to make their own Chinese-themed fans.

At Linden House, residents made Chinese-style hats and decorated a model of a dragon’s head during a craft session.

Each Chinese New Year is linked to an animal in the Chinese zodiac cycle. 2023 is the year of the water rabbit. As this is a symbol of longevity, peace and prosperity, the year is predicted to be one of hope.

The traditional New Year greeting ‘Gung Hei Fat Choi’ is translated into English as ‘Congratulations and best wishes for a prosperous New Year’.

Resident taken back to childhood by magic of pantomime

The magic of Christmas lasted well into the New Year for Joyce Holden, who enjoyed a trip down memory lane courtesy of her local pantomime
Joyce, attended Cinderella at The Lighthouse in Poole.

Joyce grew up in Oldham in Lancashire where her father use to write, direct and also play the Dame in panto.

She said: “My dad’s performances were held at Ashton Road Community Congregational Church and I remember watching rehearsals.

“My dad wore an infamous red wig as the Dame and I used to watch him in wonder.”

Joyce was joined on the trip by fellow resident Jean Hands, our Companionship Team Leader Sue Miles and our Colten Companion Cara Duroe.
Cara said: “It’s no secret that Joyce adores the theatre and has many happy memories of it growing up, so, when she suggested panto we booked to go straight away.
“The show was packed with traditional pantomime fun and plenty of songs, magic, and laughter. But the two ugly sisters undoubtedly stole the show with their outrageous costumes and jokes.

“Both Joyce and Jean sat transfixed watching the story unfold, laughing, singing, clapping and of course shouting out when prompted.”

Joyce said: “I love seeing all of the different costumes. My favourites were Doris when she was dressed as a beach ball with a seagull in her hair and Nadine dressed as a deckchair with a crab hanging off her!”

Cara continued: “We all agreed that Prince Charming was very dashing and loved how Cinderella’s dress changed ‘magically’ from rags to riches, becoming a beautiful blue ballgown, just by her twirling around.

“Afterwards Joyce was smiling from ear to ear and thanked us for her trip down memory lane.”

Patricia revisits treasured Dorset museum

Patricia enjoyed an enchanting birthday revisiting her favourite Dorset museum at Christmas time
Patricia Purser, regularly visited the Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum in Bournemouth with her daughter Julia Doxot-Purser, before going into care.

Our Colten Companion Cara Duroe arranged for Julia to meet up with her mother at the museum on the East Cliff, so they could look around together and have lunch in the café.
Julia said: “When my mother was moving to The Aldbury from France, I wanted her to re-connect with the area in her memory. I would frequently show her photos of the family in Bournemouth. Whenever she saw pictures of the Russell-Cotes Museum, she would express excitement because she remembered it from her annual summer holidays here as a child and teenager.
“When I learned that The Aldbury was asking residents for wishes, I knew Mother could not articulate what she would like, but I spoke for her saying: “Russell Cotes please!” And the team made it possible. Even better, they saved it until the Christmas lights were up. And it was 87th birthday treat for her.”

Julia continued: “Our morning at the Russell-Cotes was wonderful. Mother is not often very alert or articulate now. But her face lit up with smiles as I said: “Look at that marquetry!” “What a lovely ceiling!” She was so happy to see all the beauty around her.
“Thank you to everyone for making this possible. It was the first time I could enjoy taking Mother somewhere since before the pandemic. It was really special for both of us.”
Patricia was joined on the trip to the Russell-Cotes by fellow residents Enid Connelly, Joan Perrin, Jean Hands, Abdul “Hobi” Sabih and Valerie Short.

[caption id="attachment_5727" align="alignnone" width="890"] Patricia Purser enjoyed an enchanting birthday revisiting the Russell-Cotes Museum and Art Gallery. Patricia in the wheelchair is seen here with Colten Companions and residents from The Aldbury who joined her on her visit[/caption]

All enjoyed exploring the museum, which was built by hoteliers Annie and Merton Russell-Cotes in 1901 as their home and which is filled with their extraordinary collection of British paintings and sculptures, as well as souvenirs from their travels around the world.

On their deaths, the couple gave the house and all its collections to the people of Bournemouth to enjoy forever.
Colten companion Cara continued: “Julia was delighted to spend this time with her mum and create a new loving memory together.
“Meanwhile, our other residents loved the collection of beautifully decorated Christmas Trees and learned it takes the entire staff a whole day to dress them.

“Enid and Jean enjoyed talking to the guides and Jean said she would like to come with her daughter too, to look at all the paintings again.”

The Aldbury resident thrilled by pony visit  

Our resident Dennis Edwards, a former blacksmith, was visited by Sammy the miniature pony
Our team organised for Sammy the miniature Shetland Palomino therapy pony to visit resident Dennis Edwards.

Our Colten Companion Cara Duroe explained: “Dennis used to work with horses and draws pictures of them all day, every day.
“He loves all animals, but especially horses and gets emotional remembering how he used to talk to them to calm them down before he would shoe them.”
Cara continued: “We wanted to give Dennis the chance to be up close to a pony again so, we contacted Pony N Paws, a local company run by Fiona Guile. Fiona, along with her pony Sammy and Scamp, her therapy dog, visit care homes, schools and events.

“When she brought in Sammy to the lounge Dennis’ whole face lit up. He was over the moon and very emotional and the entire room was deeply moved by what we saw.”

“Dennis said: “Oh I love animals, what a lovely coat he has!”

“He was chatting to Fiona for a long time, asking all about Sammy and telling her how he used to shoe horses.

“He also showed her his drawings which was so sweet.”

Dennis’ fellow resident Patricia Stokes was also captivated by Sammy, as her late husband was a jockey and they were frequently around horses.

Cara said: “Pat had told us she would love to stroke a horse’s mane again, so of course she was absolutely thrilled to meet and pet Sammy.”

Sammy’s therapy companion Scamp, a five-year-old medium sized cock-a-poo also caused a real stir amongst the residents.

Cara added: “The Pony N Paws visit was a great success. Everybody loved Sammy and Scamp and being able to touch and pet them was a very enjoyable sensory experience for them all.

“Our resident Pip said: “He is amazing” twice and just couldn’t stopped feeling his soft coat.
“And Dorothy said: “I love him” as she touched her forehead to his.
“Sammy was so chilled, calm and friendly, allowing all residents and staff to stroke him. Margaret even took his lead and walked him around the lounge!”

Visiting relatives also stopped to stroke and take pictures of the animals.

Cara said: “They were surprised and delighted there was a pony in the home.

“It was a wonderful visit. The smiles on residents’ and staff faces alike were perfect and we all cannot wait for them to visit again.”

Residents get a taste of their very own beer at brewery visit

Three of our homes have been putting their very own brewed beer to the taste test
Our residents and the residents of Amberwood House and Avon Reach visited Poole Hill Brewery to taste beer they had named in a Colten-wide competition.

During the summer, residents from all of our 21 homes were invited to take part in a beer tasting session with beers from the local brewer Southbourne Ales.

The aim to was to collectively choose a great tasting beer that would become ‘The Colten Beer’.

Three beers were sampled and scored for taste and appearance and residents then suggested names go with each one.
Elaine Farrer, Chief Operating Officer for Colten Care said: “We knew our residents loved their beer, but few could predict how many would enjoy this activity and how many brilliant names they would come up with.
“In fact, we had so many great names to choose from, we decided to go with three differently-named beers from three different homes: The ‘Crafty Colten’ chosen by the residents of Avon Reach, Frothy Pop chosen by residents of The Aldbury  and the ominously-named Residents’ Revenge, which was given its moniker by Amberwood House.”

[caption id="attachment_4795" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Pictured: Amberwood House residents Len Fowler and Jim Smith and their Colten Companion Kirsty Richmond-Cole (centre)[/caption]

The beer was brewed by Poole Hill Brewery inn Bournemouth and six representatives from across the three homes were hosted by the owner of the brewery, Jennifer Tingay, for a tour of her premises and a final tasting of their newly-bottled beers, labelled with their winning names.
Abdul ‘Hobi’ Sabih from our home said: “Our beer tastes great. I have already drunk all mine!”

His fellow resident Frank McCord agreed: “It’s been fascinating to visit the brewery and to learn more about the brewing process.
We are definitely looking forward to drinking more Frothy Pop at The Aldbury.”
Jim Smith, a resident of Amberwood House, said: “I was very interested to learn about the history of beer and brewing. Jennifer is a very good host and of course the tasting of our Residents’ Revenge was a highlight!”

Jennifer said: “It was lovely to host all the Colten residents. We had a quiz and they asked some really good questions about brewing before enjoying a tour and of course their tasting.

“The designs for the three different beer bottles which have been created by Colten’s own designers are wonderful. Some of the best I have seen.
“We are pleased to know the residents from Colten Care can now enjoy their own crafted local beers having played such an enthusiastic part in the process.”

Resident Phyllis realises wish to dance again  

When our resident Phyllis Haine expressed a wish to dance the Foxtrot and Waltz again, our team set about making her wish come true
Phyllis, often shares happy memories of donning one of her many pairs of sparkly dancing shoes to take part in dances and competitions.

Sue Miles, our Companionship Team Leader explained: “When we learned about monthly community tea dances being held at Broadstone War Memorial Hall, which also cater for people with memory loss and their carers, we excitedly arranged for Phyllis and a group of her fellow residents to attend with our support.”

The Stepping Out Community Tea Dances were launched by the Broadstone Stepping Stones Dementia Group, in partnership with and sponsored by Lesley Shand Funeral Service.

The Leonardo Trust also offers sponsorship by way of paying the ticket price for unpaid carers.

Shall we Dance run the event providing the music, dance and refreshments.
Sue continued: “It was simply amazing. Our residents were treated to classic dances like the Foxtrot, Waltz and the Cha Cha.
“There were also dances to traditional music and those from the Swinging Sixties such as The Twist and Jiving to Rock Around the Clock.

“Needless to say Phyllis was beaming from ear to ear.

“She immersed herself in the music and perfectly executed the steps of all her favourite dances. It was wonderful to watch.”

[caption id="attachment_5721" align="alignnone" width="768"] The Aldbury resident Joyce Holden dances with a gentleman at the event[/caption]

Phyllis was also captivated by the feet of professional dancers Hazel and Dorothy from Shall we Dance.
She said: “That used to be me. I used to have many dancing shoes that glittered. I’ve had a fabulous time.”
Other residents Joyce Holden and Jean Hands also danced throughout the afternoon.

Jean said: “I haven’t danced since my husband passed away 10 years ago. I’m having a lovely afternoon.”

Residents Gwen Hunte and Pip Smith also had fun being guided around the dancefloor by members of the companionship team.

Sue added: “In between the dances we were taught moves that can be carried out sitting down, such as the Hand Jive and YMCA.

“We also had a singalong to some of our favourite songs including When I’m 64 and When You’re Smiling.

“And halfway through we all had a well-earned break with delicious homemade cakes baked by Hazel before finishing off the afternoon waving pretty scarfs whilst singing We Are Sailing.

“As well as helping Phyllis to realise a much-treasured wish, the dance was a really a lovely way to unite us all as a group and we hope to make this a regular Aldbury outing.”

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