Woking care home residents share their advice this Valentine’s Day

Love was in the air at a Woking care home when residents shared their advice for young couples for Valentine’s Day.

Date night was in full swing at Care UK’s Greenview Hall, on Streets Heath, when the team encouraged residents to reminisce about their early days as couples during a very special Valentine’s Day celebration.

Everyone was dressed to impress for a romantic three-course meal. The home’s General Manager, Meera, and Deputy Manager, Owen, hosted the special event and welcomed the couples in with a glass of bubbly.

Everyone was filled with excitement as they were led to their tables, which were scattered with rose petals, there was a red heart-shaped balloon for each couple and soft music playing in the background.

The Head Chef, Ajay, and his team at Greenview Hall created a menu especially for the occasion, with tomato soup to start, followed by grilled salmon on a bed of mashed potatoes and vegetables, and the meal was finished off with a box of Valentine’s chocolates.

One of the couples enjoying the celebration, John and Thelma Newing, aged 87 and 88, shared their secret to a long and happy marriage. Thelma said: “We never had an argument because we always respected each other’s opinion.”

They met at age of just 11 at a local dance class. John was already very close to Thelma’s family as he was friends with her brother. As the years passed, they spent more time together, and their friendship turned into love.

The couple married in 1966, they had an intimate wedding at Stanmore Church with only a few family members and friends. They have one son, Neil and two grandchildren. John and Thelma loved to travel and have gone on many cruises together, with the most memorable trip being to South Africa.

Yorath and Alba Trebble, aged 86 and 84, also enjoyed sharing their memories at the special dinner. Alba’s secret, after 65 years of marriage, is: “Always being there for each other when needed most.”

Alba recalls the first time they met: “I saw a young handsome man looking at me while I was on the dance floor, it was love at first sight.’  

The pair married in 1959 and they have two children Sally and Tim, as well as four grandchildren. One of their favourite things to do as a couple was travel to France in their own car.  

Meera Govindapillai, General Manager at Greenview Hall, said: “It was wonderful to host a romantic afternoon for the wonderful couples we have here at Greenview Hall. It was a great opportunity to encourage residents to reminisce and share their words of wisdom.

“We understand the importance of helping residents to live fulfilling lives, and Valentine’s Day called for a very special celebration. We enjoyed decorating the home and preparing a special meal for John and Thelma, and Alba and Yorath.

“Love is truly in the air, and I’d like to thank the happy couples for sharing their stories and their wise words – we could all learn a lot from them!”

Designed to enable residents to live active and fulfilled lives, while also promoting independence, Greenview Hall, incorporates space for hobby and leisure activities. The home provides full-time residential care, nursing care, dementia care and respite care. The layout of the building is configured into a series of individual suites, each having a dedicated lounge/dining room to help facilitate the creation of close-knit communities.