Operation Santa Claus: Elderly enjoy a rare outing at Jumbo Kingdom seafood restaurant in Aberdeen
About 50 elderly citizens enjoyed a Christmas party hosted by entertainment and property firm Melco
Dozens of elderly people who rarely leave their local neighbourhoods because they live alone or use wheelchairs enjoyed a rare outing, exploring different parts of the city with volunteers from property firm Melco Group.
About fifty elderly people from the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel travelled from Tuen Mun to the Jumbo Kingdom seafood restaurant in Aberdeen last Saturday to attend a Christmas party hosted by Melco.
For many of the attendees, it was their first visit to the iconic floating restaurant as most lived by themselves or had limited mobility.
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“I’m so happy as everyone can gather together to have fun,” said Fok Yu, a 92-year-old grandmother who was the oldest participant at the event.
While she looked healthy and smart despite her old age, Fok spent most of her time at home and only met other friends once a week in the elderly centre.
“I have never thought of coming to the South District,” said Chen Liyuan, who came with her 65-year-old husband Au King-chun, who uses a wheelchair.
For Au, travelling had been a challenge ever since he suffered a stroke 10 years ago and now relied on the wheelchair to move around. He also suffered from incontinence.
Chen said her husband ventured outside their home just once or twice a month.
“I enjoyed the car ride - all the way from Tuen Mun to Sham Wan - the most,” Au said, adding that he leaves his district of Tuen Mun just once a year.
The dishes on offer at the party were specially prepared for elderly people who may have weaker teeth and digestive systems.
Young dyslexic members of the Hong Kong Phab (Physically Handicapped and Able-Bodied) Association joined volunteers from Melco and the church to do exercises and play games with the attendees.
To make physical exercise more interesting and easy for the elderly, volunteers demonstrated a set of 10 hand exercise moves, which stimulate acupressure points.
Filling up the room with laughter, everyone left the event with a gift pack of oatmeal, milk and lotion.
After the exercises, volunteers hosted a quiz with the elderly guessing pop stars from the 1960s to the 1980s from pixelated photos.
This is the second year that Melco has supported Operation Santa Claus, a fundraising campaign jointly organised by the South China Morning Post and RTHK.
The company partnered with the Christian organisation and pledged HK$150,000 for this year’s campaign.
Lawrence Ho Yau-lung, Melco’s chief executive and chairman, said he hoped to engage young volunteers to spread love to people in need during the festive season.
Chimmy Leung Ching-man, associate director of corporate communications in Melco, said it was a triple-win situation to engage volunteers from the company and the Phab Association to bring joy and health to elderly who seldom went out.
“We aim to inspire hope and happiness in the community we serve,” said Leung.
