Going For a Song as Thenue Salutes its Seniors
Last updated: 9.27am, Thursday 3rd November 2016
The Association, this week, held our first-ever event designed specifically for our older tenants.
The Association staged the occasion entitled “Live Your Life and Forget Your Age – Eat Exercise and Laugh” as we develop our older peoples’ strategy which will be announced soon.
The thinking behind it was to achieve an even deeper engagement with the people Thenue serves who are in later life and to understand what matters most to them.
It took the form of a stylish afternoon tea with cake stands brimming with sandwiches and mouth-watering delicacies but also offered an informative message – delivering guidance and help for older people.
This included health and wellbeing advice, healthy cooking and even “chair aerobics” to keep older people young at heart.
It was rounded off with a rousing communal singing event thanks to a visit by “Glasgow Piano City” – which aims to encourage appreciation of pianos in Glasgow and beyond – with volunteer pianist Alan Kenny rattling out much-loved tunes on a hand-decorated upright piano.
Our Chief executive Charles Turner said: “This was an important occasion for Thenue and for our older tenants. It gave us the opportunity to engage with those we serve who are in later life and gain a deeper understanding of their needs.”
Housing Support Manager Paola Doyle added: “We are developing our older peoples’ strategy and such information is vital if we are to ensure it meets their needs. We aim to ensure older people are able to continue living in their homes where possible and if they so wish. We have gathered a significant amount of information from this event which is very useful to us but there was a fun element to it as well.
“We hope everyone who came along enjoyed their afternoon tea and the companionship the occasion offered.”
Our Events Organiser Carol Lingard who organised it with the support of colleagues added: “We were very pleased with the response to this event when we wrote to all of our older tenants.
“We wanted them to have a fun day out, a delicious afternoon tea and to offer them the opportunity to learn more about the kind of help which is available to older people. We hope those who came along found it worthwhile.”
One tenant Alice Gallacher from Bridgeton who was a remarkable 94 years young on Wednesday said: “It was marvellous. I don’t know when I last drank so much tea. All of us had a great time and the community singing was the icing on the cake. Everyone at Thenue worked so hard to give us a day to remember.”