Tom Henihan
Express Staff
The Manoir du Lac Family Lunch Box Social on September 10, is an innovative way of engaging residents in a creative project, bringing family and friends of Manoir residents together to share lunch and raise money for recreational events throughout the year.
“Most of the time the families are far away and it is hard for them to get together,” says Manoir du Lac Recreation Therapist, Victoria Patrick.
“So, we do this annually to bring family and friends together to dine with the residents. It is also our only way of raising funds for our recreation throughout the year. It goes towards getting pop, ice cream and on occasion balloons and other items.
The lunch boxes are unique, as a resident, with the assistance of staff members, individually decorates each one.
“I put names of the residents in a hat and I get the staff to pick a name and the staff member will make a box with that resident,” says Patrick. “They have already done some,” she adds, pointing to a couple of examples on display in the cafeteria.”
Every Wednesday, up to the event staff and residents will work on making the boxes which vary in design with musical motifs, as well as floral, cowboy, and so on.
Just prior to the event, the kitchen staff put a different kind of lunch in each box.
An auctioneer will come to the Manoir on September 10, at lunchtime, approximately 11.30 am, and those present can bid on the boxes they find attractive without knowing the kind of lunch the box contains.
The lunch boxes are placed on the table in front of the residents who made them and the successful bidders will have an opportunity to enjoy lunch with the resident who created the box.