Bolton Clarke Galleon Gardens Goes Ghoulish for Halloween

Residents at Bolton Clarke’s Galleon Gardens aged care community, Currumbin Waters, have proven that Halloween is not just for the kids – the Gold Coast seniors got well into the spooky spirit for their annual celebrations last week. 

Big Top Circus was the theme of this year’s Halloween Party which featured sideshow alley style games, bobbing for donuts, performances by clowns, a pumpkin patch photo booth and a morning tea of hot dogs, popcorn and plenty of Halloween-themed treats.

Diversional Therapist Gwen Bonney, who is originally from California, said celebrating holidays from the USA with residents was one way of providing opportunities to try new things.

“Any excuse to dress up and have some fun is good,” she said. “Our Halloween days are not spooky at all - they are about having a good time and socialising with friends.”

“We always invite our neighbouring Banora Point sites, Bolton Clarke Winders and Bolton Clarke Darlington along as well; the residents enjoy the opportunity to meet new people and make friends – plus it’s an excellent day out.”

Residents embraced the spirit of the day, dressing up in a variety of costumes including clowns, witches, jesters and mimes and coming up with creative ideas. Resident Keith Kerr was particularly proud of his interpretation of the Grateful Dead, which included a black shirt and trousers, face makeup and a sign around his neck saying “Thankyou”.

“I did it to give everyone a bit of a giggle, and I’m happy to say it has worked. The staff are really wonderful here and have gone to a tremendous amount of effort to put on a special day for us,” Keith said.

“They even have a coin toss game where you can win whole blocks of chocolate - I am just trying to figure out how I can rig that one for myself.”  

The celebrations ended with a grand finale in which staff and residents came together to dance the Time Warp, with all agreeing they look forward to doing Halloween again!

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