Press
St. Anthony’s residents go for gold at Paralympics event
02.09.2021
St. Anthony’s care home has celebrated the start of the Paralympic Games with a special sports day.
St Anthony’s Care Home, part of Valorum Care Group, organised a series of heats in its sensory garden as athletes began competing in the Games in Tokyo.
Staff worked with residents to make medals in art and craft sessions and built an agility course for the contest.
Residents were joined by volunteers and staff to compete in knockout heats, before enjoying a medal ceremony for the winners.
An egg and spoon relay race was also held, alongside a 100m dash which saw athletes compete for the ‘Valorum Torch’. The prize was won by Andrew Richards (Resident) and Nicky Bannister (Staff)
St Anthony’s is a nursing home to the southwest of Wolverhampton which supports up to 34 adults who need nursing care due to a physical disability or neurological condition.
Residents have a range of needs resulting from physical disabilities and neurological conditions including spinal cord injuries, acquired brain injuries, stroke, cerebral palsy, Huntington’s disease, motor neurone disease, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, Parkinson’s disease, spina bifida and hydrocephalus.
Zoe Doughty, Activities Worker at St Anthony’s who organised the event along with Melissa Baker team leader, said: “All the residents we support at St Anthony’s really had fun at our sports day for the Paralympics.
“It was all the more special as it was the first time that staff, residents and volunteers had got together for such a long time because of the pandemic.
“One of the volunteers said it was an emotional reminder that being with the staff and residents at St Anthony’s is such a big part of her life. It was obvious how much the volunteers have missed being here and the joy they get from the experience.
“It’s really important to us at St Anthony’s to offer people a range of fun activities and to be fully inclusive across the board. That we have such a wide cross section of people volunteering at St Anthony’s is very humbling.
“As well as looking after people and taking care of their essential needs – we also want to make sure people can experience activities which make life enjoyable and rewarding. And the sports day did exactly that.
“We’re enjoying watching as much of the Paralympic Games as possible and everyone is really taking inspiration from the brilliant athletes competing in the Games in Tokyo.”