ESTEVAN - The autumn weather has come and gone so quickly and now we are dealing with the ice and snow that comes just before winter begins.
Seniors prefer the autumn leaves falling outside the window instead of listening to the wind swirl the snow into drifts. Thankfully we have a warm and comfortable home at Creighton Lodge to help make the winters easier to get through.
Since our last column, we celebrated quite a few birthdays; Louise Fleck, Jeri Smith, Denyse Hygard, Sylvia Oszust, Sarah Harder, Irma Lesiuk, Jean Broadhead, Raymond Mack, Shirley Peters, Rosalia McClement, John McKelkie, Lila Forseth, Al Piche, Una Seymour, Joyce Beggs, Ted Fai and Minnie Fleck.
Marie Bill also celebrated her 100th birthday with us on Aug. 15, but sadly she passed away on Sept. 22. We were all deeply saddened to say good bye to Marie. Our condolences to her family as she was a beautiful person who we were so fortunate to call a friend.
Val Granberg moved out to her new home on Sept. 15, but her daughter Cindy brought her back a few days later to enjoy a final dinner and farewell party. It was so great to have the opportunity to wish Val the best in her new home and to give her a hug good bye. We miss you Val and can’t wait to see you again soon.
We welcomed two new residents. Doug Storey moved in on Oct. 1. He has been enjoying the meals and settling in quite nicely. We are enjoying getting to know Doug; we like him because he lets us all talk while he listens.
Una Seymour moved in on Oct. 15 and she has the sweetest smile. Una has been busy with all of the activities around the lodge. Her family has been helping her decorate and her suite looks great.
We have been alternating between KFC and Tower Pizza for our resident social nights. The residents love the chicken meals but equally love the Hawaiian pizzas from the Tower Café. Lately our new favourite has been the mesquite chicken ranch pizza.
Thank you to Margaret Mack, Jean Delorme, Marge Heidinger and Doreen Hagen for volunteering to serve the meal. These ladies have been faithful volunteers at Creighton Lodge for many years and we appreciate all their dedication.
Thank you to our musical groups who came to entertain us this fall. The Olsons, Del and Kelly, Homespun Harmonies and Laurie Fornwald. We are always looking for people who like to entertain. If you are interested in singing, playing an instrument, juggling or even just playing cards, please come on over to the lodge and we would love to meet you.
Thank you to Joy Beahm, who came each Monday this fall and gave us all manicures. We enjoy your company Joy and appreciate how pretty you make our hands look.
Norma Blackburn and Melodye Pierson served us our cocktails at our social hour. This is an event that happens twice a month, which gives us time to relax, eat a salty treat, drink our favourite spirit and visit with our friends. Norma and Melodye know everyone’s favourites and we enjoy seeing their smile while they are with us.
Thank you to Bev Holinaty for being our weekly Bingo caller. Irene Dyer also helps at Bingo to check the cards of the lucky winners and help hand out our prizes. Bingo is our favourite event and we are so blessed to be able to play it each week with the help of our volunteer ladies.
The library came and brought our books that we wanted to check out to read, then they came to read to us for our reading and reminiscing hour. We enjoy the outreach services that the library has for us.
On Oct. 31, we had a Halloween party. It was so great to see all the residents dressed up in their Halloween costumes. Rosalia McClement won the best-dressed prize. She was dressed as a chef and even had her own oven to push in front of her. We gave out 12 prizes in total and wish we had 12 more because that is how great our residents looked in their costumes.
We are moving into the Christmas season and can’t wait to see all our family and friends. Christmas gifts are great, but the gift of a phone call, a visit or a hug to most of us is far more precious than a store-bought gift.
