Care home staff have brought the Christmas market to its residents to spread festive cheer with a guest appearance from some reindeer.
Residents at Cramond Residence began the festive celebrations with a mini Christmas market, light switch on and reindeer visit.
The home laid on stalls with a spread of mince pies and hot beverages, extending invitations outward to the local community and to family and friends of residents, with £501.25 raised for Alzheimer’s Scotland.
Dorothy McDermott, resident at Cramond Residence was tasked with switching on the Christmas lights as part of the event.
Dorothy said: “The market and celebrations have really got everyone into the festive spirit – we even had a surprise visit from some reindeers.
“It was a really enjoyable afternoon which felt even more special due to the lack of celebrations last year as a result of the pandemic restrictions.”
As part of the market, residents and the wider community were treated to a surprise visit from Santa, who was on hand to hand out candy canes and meet and greet attendees.
Head of Maintenance, Billy Early was given the job of constructing the stalls and arranging the logistics of the special event – which attracted more than 150 guests from the surrounding area.
Billy said: “The past few weeks have been a change to my normal day-to-day tasks but it’s been really nice to work on a project which means a lot to everyone at the home.
“The atmosphere around the home in the lead up to the event has been really positive and it’s nice to see everyone come together.”
The stalls will remain up for the remainder of December with various other events planned throughout the month, including a residents Christmas party.
Christian Daraio, Client Liaison Manager at Cramond Residence, said: “This year the team at Cramond Residence has been really keen to put on a host of celebrations involving the community as everyone missed out last year.
“It’s a delight to be back hosting events like the Christmas market and light switch where we can have members of the public back interacting with our residents in accordance with current Covid-19 guidelines. We love being part of the community so it is always nice to give something back.
“As Christmas is focused on kindness and giving, we also made the decision to raise funds for Alzheimer’s Scotland as it is a charity close to many at the home”.
To find out more, call 0131 341 4037 or visit https://cramondresidence.co.uk/
