When Robert Mendham goes to visit his partner at Gloucester's Hillcrest Nursing Home, he can’t help but notice the beautiful flower garden on his way in.
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He was so impressed by the colourful display he mentioned it to diversional therapist, Kellie Young and that’s when he found out the plants were donated staff members.
For the past couple of years, Jodie Zimmerman and Gail Ellis have donated the plants for the garden water feature which sits proudly in the entrance of the nursing home.
This is just one of a long list of little things the Hillcrest staff do in their own time, just to make things a little bit brighter for the residents.
“I often see Jodie staying back after her shift watering the garden,” Kellie said.
Jodie also donates teddy bears as prizes for the games the residents play, and she and her husband Ron, who also works there, donate a $200 gift card at Christmas so Kellie can buy the residents for few nice things like luxury soaps and extra nice biscuits.
After traveling on a holiday, staff member Karen Mcglashan brought all the residents a souvenir, and, according to Kellie, Karen also goes above and beyond picking up things residents need when she isn’t working.
While not on shift, Caroline McKinley decorated a resident’s bedroom with beautiful butterflies for her 70th birthday.
Caroline Blamires’ children often come to visit the residents. So when her eldest daughter was taking part in the debutante ball earlier this year and some of the residents wanted to she her in her dress, she obliged.
“One of the residents even has a picture of this in her room,” Kellie said.
Kellie often brings her French Bulldog puppies by to spend time with the residents, a lead Megan Kauter followed by bringing in her baby goats for the residents to cuddle.
It’s little things like these that Kellie said makes Hillcrest such a wonderful place to work.
“I can honestly say this is one of the most positive and happy nursing homes I’ve worked in. We love our residents and they become like family.”