Care home residents in Christchurch can enjoy a drink from their own fully-stocked bar after the Wellbeing Manager completed a fundraising sponsored silence to finance the new feature.
Kim Butters, Wellbeing Manager of Fairmile Grange, and Mike Lyons, Managing Director of Encore Care Homes, cut the ribbon to officially open the bar, called The Merry Fairmilers, which comprises of a range of beers, wines, spirits, mixers and soft drinks, complete with bar mats and scampi fries. The care home residents enjoyed a party on National Prosecco Day to celebrate the special occasion with balloons, cakes, a buffet, and drinks provided by the new bar.
To raise money to pay for the bar and the all-important supply of alcohol, Kim took on a tough personal challenge which involved not saying a word for a whole day. Kim was supported in the challenge by her colleague, Andrea Davey, Wellbeing Assistant, who had to speak on behalf of Kim during the silence. In total, the Wellbeing team raised £500 to fund the bar which is free for all of the residents to use on a day-to-day basis, as well as for birthday parties, wedding anniversaries and special events.
Kim said: “It was a tough challenge but I felt that I needed to do something out of my comfort zone for a day, so I stayed quiet. It was more difficult than I thought it would be, particularly when we’re doing fun activities and dancing to music, but it was all for a worthy cause.
“Encore’s care home in Fareham, Hamble Heights, has a bar and I thought that our residents deserved one too. We’ve already had a few parties for birthdays and some new residents moving in, so the bar has been put to good use.”
It came in response to the care home residents light-heartedly telling her that she needs to stop singing around the home, and instead they told her that for one day, she could only communicate via a chalkboard. Money was donated by Kim’s colleagues, the care home residents, and their families and friends.
Mike Lyons, Managing Director of Encore Care Homes, said: “The new bar is a wonderful addition to the facilities that we offer at Fairmile Grange, and we could see from the smile on the residents’ faces how much they appreciate being able to enjoy a drink with their friends. It’s nice to have such a personal touch in the care home, which was funded by kind donations to Kim’s sponsored silence. The bar is a true testament to the work of Kim and Andrea who are real live wires and we are lucky to have them as part of our team.”
The Encore team is now able to welcome family members and their loved ones to have a covid-safe viewing of the purpose-built facilities available, following the lifting of government restrictions. Full PPE and rapid flow testing are in place for the safety of the care home residents, the team, and visitors.
