Top 4 Social Events of 2020
1. Egypt Day with the Nile River
Members at The Stratford hosted an Egypt Signature Experience. Our Members had a day full of the Egyptian culture. Wellness Director, Christina took Members through a hands-on experience as to what it was like to “Walk like an Egyptian”! First, we learned how to make mud bricks and then made bricks with modeling clay! We watched the film, Quest for the Lost Pharaoh, a documentary on finding the tomb of a pharaoh that is not known to the world. Hieroglyphics were an iconic part of the culture in Egypt. Members wanted to take a shot at creating their messages with decoupage using Hieroglyphic Symbols. To end our time in Egypt, we enjoyed the Night on the Nile dinner! Our Dining Services team prepared a phenomenal meal which included Sundried Tomato Hummus, Couscous Salad, Lamb Stew with Rice, and Milk Pudding with Pistachio Crumble. Since the Nile River is so important to the country’s resources, we knew we had to incorporate it. While Members enjoyed their dinner, they were surrounded by the sounds of our real, running river that was set up throughout the dining room!
2. Grill Smoking 101
Every year, Members at The Stratford find themselves at The State Fair. Due to COVID-19, the State Fair was canceled. That was going to stop their team from bringing the experience to Members. Part of their State Fair Signature Experience was a Smoking 101 class that was put on by Social Director, Joe! He spent the first few months of 2020 learning the ins and outs of smoking and barbecuing meat. He wanted to put his skills to the test! He did an awesome cooking demonstration and talked about the basics of smoking, how to prep and smoke chicken, pork ribs, and pork belly burnt ends. He prepared a delicious smoked chicken to smoke all day to be served during our State Fair dinner. Chef Laura and Joe prepared a magnificent menu with the smoked chicken, watermelon salad, baked beans, potatoes, smoked sausage, and sweet cornbread!
3. Pie Eating Contest
Every year, Members at The Stratford find themselves at The State Fair. Due to COVID-19, the State Fair was canceled. That was going to stop their team from bringing the experience to Members. To end the week of festivities we hosted a pie-eating contest! We had three team members step up to the challenge of eating a whole blueberry pie! Our Dining Room Manager, Abel took home the trophy!
4. Trick or Treating
Here at The Stratford, our J.O.Y (Joining Older and Younger) Program partnerships are an important piece of our Member social lives. To ensure that we stayed safe and our friends from Primrose Preschool were able to trick-or-treat still, we set up safe stations to our Members to safely send candy sliding down the pipes and into bags!
