All shook up – Poole care home makes wishes come true

A local care home has been busy helping residents complete their life long wishes.

The team at Care UK’s The Potteries, on York Road, have been working hard to complete two resident wishes including an Elvis show and a very special tea dance. 

The care home team have a ‘Wishing Tree’ initiative, which allows residents to suggest ideas for new hobbies they’d like to try, places they’d like to visit or even activities linked to past careers. This encourages residents to live fulfilling lives – from skiing to a fish and chip supper, no wish is too big or small.

 

Resident Jean Samson aged 89 had always loved Elvis and remembers listening to his music in the 1950s when Elvis released his first song. She would dance and sing with all her friends.

When the team heard about Jean’s love for the singer, they couldn’t wait to surprise her with an Elvis themed show, ‘The Elvis Years’, at the Poole Lighthouse. 

Jean said: “Elvis is very handsome, and she loved the show, and her favourite bit was the dance moves. Jean thanked us for making her wish come true.”

The team didn’t stop there, Eileen Sutcliffe, aged 88, had fond memories with her husband as they regularly enjoyed going to dances and learning the Waltz together in Bournemouth. Eileen is Irish and also loved Irish dancing. 

Eileen wished that she could go dancing again, and relieve the happy memories, so the team organised for her to attend a special tea dance at Broadstone Memorial Hall with friends from the home.

 

Eileen commented on her experience: “Thank you for a lovely day and my happy place is to dance.”

Zita Turner, Home Manager at The Potteries, added: “Our Wishing Tree initiative is very popular, and it’s incredibly rewarding to make residents dreams become a reality. We were so pleased to help not just one resident’s wish come true but two.

“Here at The Potteries, we are always encouraging residents to reminisce and share happy memories. Jean and Eileen both speak very fondly of their memories listening to Elvis or dancing in Bournemouth in younger years.

“It was great to see Jean and Eileen’s joy at being surrounded by things they love once again – the smile on their faces said it all. It was a lovely day for both residents, and we are delighted we were able to make their wishes come true!” 

To find out more information about The Potteries, please contact Customer Relations Manager, Caroline Hearne, on 01202 069 835 or email caroline.hearne@careuk.com 

For more general information, please visit: careuk.com/the-potteries