Chi Upsilon Omega Shares the Christmas Spirit as Santas for Seniors
Tallahassee -The Community Room at Miracle Village Independent Living Facility was filled to capacity Saturday morning, Dec. 19 as the residents eagerly awaited the start of Santas for Seniors, an event hosted by Chi Upsilon Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Once the members of the Chi Upsilon Omega Chapter arrived to the facility, they put their commitment to community service into action and engaged the residents with arts and crafts, music, gift giving, and some intense and very competitive rounds of bingo.
Santas for Seniors was hosted open-heartedly to provide the residents of Miracle Village with holiday cheer and to provide them with household items, toiletries and other necessities. The event opened up with a lively game of bingo, followed by ornament decorating, raffle giveaways, sing-a-long Christmas carols, some more bingo, and gift presentations. A few residents of Miracle Village even showcased their talents by singing some of their favorite Christmas tunes. “It was a good opportunity for the chapter to come together with seniors in our community,” said Marilyn Henderson Hudson, incoming president of the chapter. “It was an opportunity for us to get to know them, do some quality activities with them, and also to let them know that we haven’t forgotten about them,” Hudson said.
Miracle Village resident, Thelma George Johnson expressed her enjoyment and gratitude for the event. “Today was wonderful, everyone was excited…I feel very good for the AKAs to take the time to come out and do this for us. They just joined in with us like they were our children and assisted us with anything we needed,” said Johnson. Resident, Winnie Bell Guyton, also had something to say about the Santas for Seniors event. “We’ve never had this event before here at Miracle Village, and I’m thankful to the AKAs for sharing with us…it’s a good start to the holidays,” said Guyton. Both residents agreed that their favorite part of the morning was playing bingo. When asked about her success during the bingo games, Johnson, who is an avid bingo player replied, “Oh, I only won five times today!”
Often referred to as the residents’ mom although she is much younger, Residential Manager Earthale’ Vickers appreciated the moments shared between the residents and the members of the Chi Upsilon Omega Chapter. “Oh my! This event brought a sense of holiday spirit, love, joy and youthfulness…the residents love interacting with younger people,” said Vickers. “We’re one big family here, and it feels good when people come to spend time with the residents.”
The members of Chi Upsilon Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated experienced holiday joy themselves as they interacted with the residents through singing, sharing hugs, and the exchanging of smiles. The chapter plans to continue their outreach to Miracle Village Independent Living, Incorporated as it correlates with the sorority’s Family Strengthening Target.
