Students Made Valentine’s Day Special at United
“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.” – Charles Schultz, Peanuts cartoonist
For residents at United, Valentine’s was a special day with cards from students and residents, a special dinner and, of course, chocolate.
Students at St. Mary’s University Psychology Association and Student Legislative Council created Valentine’s cards for United residents. “We all need a little love and connection now more than ever, and this was a wonderful way to provide everyone with some joy and kindness without putting anyone at risk,” said Stephanie Bauer. “We wanted to show them they are not alone! We also attached special Valentine’s Day treats for each resident. For those unable to create a card, they emailed a personalized message, which was inscribed into one of our pre-made cards.”
Mandy Beswatherick, who lives at Fish Creek across the street from St. Mary’s University, said: “It was a very nice thing for the students at St. Mary’s to do. It was lovely and nice of them to be thinking of us.”
As well, grade 1 and 4 students at Douglasdale School worked on Valentine’s cards for residents of Garrison Green. Grade 4 teacher Sarah Kesler’s father, Nigel Way, lives there. “My class and another class have had a connection to Garrison Green for three years. A small group of residents have been to our school on several occasions and grade 1 classes visited Garrison two years ago.” The 119 cards the students made for Garrison Green was just the beginning. They connected with two other retirement communities and created more than 300 cards.
And not to be outdone, residents created their own cards in the art studios.
And then there was a special dinner prepared by chef Jayson Quimpo at his team at Fish Creek. “For dinner we served sous vide AAA Striploin steak and grilled tiger shrimps with sauce Béarnaise and accompanied with cherry tomato-parmesan crisp asparagus and whipped Yukon Gold potatoes. For dessert, chocolate Pot de Crème with sugar cookie and sea salt,” said Jayson. At Garrison Green, chef Kevin Stephenson and team served a 4 oz. marinated sirloin steak with a Nova Scotia crab cake topped with a roasted garlic aioli, accompanied by confit potatoes, steamed buttered broccoli and baby carrots. Dessert was a warm lava cake with raspberry coulis.
Photos by United Active Living, Sarah Kesler, Stephanie Bauer
Videos by Sherana Productions
Don’t hesitate to talk with one of our active living advisors about life in a United community. They can arrange for a tour once it’s convenient to do so. If you know a friend or family member who could benefit from living in a United community, send them a link to our website or blog, or arrange a future visit. We are happy to help!
To learn more about life at United’s Fish Creek community, watch this short video.
Or, to find out more about life at United’s Garrison Green, watch this short video.
