Residents and staff at Tallington Lodge Care Home near Stamford recently celebrated Diwali, the festival of lights, with a day full of celebrations. The festival is celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Muslims across the world and has been for over 2,500 years. The festival is a time for families to come together to celebrate and that is exactly how they celebrated in the Care Home. The invitation was extended to relatives of the residents who joined their loved ones in the afternoon when members of staff performed a traditional dance for everyone to enjoy, dressed in beautiful sarees. The Indian dance tradition is thousands of years old and plays an important part in Hindu Culture.
Residents spent time in the days leading up to the celebrations making Diwali diyas, (these are a type of lamp) to decorate the lounge. June, one of the residents, spent her time making a beautiful Diwali Rangoli, which is a form of folk art consisting of bright, colourful, and intricate designs. June selected all the elements of the design from her own books and enjoyed putting them all together so it could be displayed in the Home for all to enjoy.
For lunch, they were treated to home-made delicious curries and traditional sweet treats, which were all prepared and cooked on the day by Githin Paul, one of the Chefs from Fenchurch House, in Spalding. He wanted to make sure that the residents and staff could experience the full flavour of the celebrations by creating fantastic dishes, which they all thoroughly enjoyed as he is well known for his fabulous curries within the Country Court group.
Manju Panankavil Home Manager at Tallington Lodge commented “This was such a wonderful opportunity for residents and staff to get together and celebrate the festival. The residents were fascinated to learn all about different cultural traditions and seeing how involved some of the residents were, especially June in creating the Rangoli was heartwarming. It was wonderful to see the home filled with light, music, laughter and dancing”.
For more information about Tallington Lodge Care Home or to make an appointment to view the home please contact, Manju Panankavil, Home Manager on 01780 740 314 or email tallington@countrycourtcare.com.
