Nov 06, 2023

Teen’s flower charity brightens the lives of aged care residents

Untitled design - 2023-11-06T110715.357
The 15-year-old hopes to inspire other young people to give back to the community. [Source: Facebook]

This grade 9 student has jumped on a clever opportunity to bring joy and happiness to those living in residential aged care with bunches of blooms.

Xander Wallace, 15, is a Sydney High School student whose grandparents have recently moved into aged care. This move sparked the inspiration for his flower initiative as part of a voluntary Bronze Service Learning Award through his school, where students receive recognition for completing some form of community service. 

Xander came up with the idea of salvaging flowers destined for the rubbish bin from supermarkets and convenience stores that would otherwise be thrown out.  

With the help of his sister Amélie, the siblings spend hours a week arranging the flowers into bouquets before taking them to his local aged care facilities – to the delight of residents and staff.

Watch how Xander goes about curating blooms for local aged care residents! [Source: Facebook]

https://fb.watch/o7Xk3Q8d5O/

“We wanted to do something that would brighten their day and say thanks to the loving aged care community and the staff there, [who] were all very nice,” Xander told Today.

Amélie added, “It’s really beautiful to see how just a bunch of flowers can make people happy.”

Now partnered with major supermarket Woolworths and other grocery stores, Xander set up a Facebook charity page called Elderflowers and uploads videos and photos of their work with hopes to inspire other young people to start something similar and make a difference in aged care. 

“We’ve had some of our friends help out in the past and that was always very nice. We want other people to learn how they can do this so they can start up in their own communities because I think it’s a great way to give back,” said Xander. 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Government Stats on Aged Care Provision: What Do The Numbers Say?

Statistics now available from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare paint an interesting picture about aged care services. Statistics on aged care for 2016 indicate that the number of aged care places is increasing, with 1.4 times as many places over the last ten years from 2006 to 2016. As an Aged Care Placement Consultant these stats simply... Read More

Getting urgent medicines in floods a life or death challenge

I’m writing this from the flooded far north coast of New South Wales, where all around me people are contending with the awful and unexpected consequences of a catastrophic flood. Read More

“Emotional loneliness”: Should residents’ pets be allowed in all aged care homes?

It’s widely acknowledged that pets are good for older people. While there are aged care homes that do accept pets, others have tight restrictions on the types of pets allowed, leaving older people being forced to make heartbreaking decisions when they move into a residence. Do you think pets should be allowed in all aged care homes? Read More
Advertisement