Dressed in a striking red top, Marge Gallatin sips tea from a china cup imprinted with flowers. Next to her is Gerry Kruse, also immaculately attired.
The afternoon Christmas tea party is always a popular event in Hillcrest Lodge’s social calendar, providing a chance for residents to get together, chat, drink tea and enjoy an irresistible selection of fruit and chocolate goodies.
“It’s a nice place to be,” says Marge, who has been at the Lodge for three years.
The Dec. 18 get-together also had another purpose: it saw donations handed out to local community groups thanks to money raised by Hillcrest’s bottle drive.
It is proof of the value of recycling. Seniors collect bottles, bag them and deposit them in recycling containers before they are taken to the bottle depot. The kitchen contributes by collecting milk containers.
Speaking at the tea party, Hillcrest activities manager Shelley Oswald said $2,400 was raised.
She went on to present $200 cheques to the Barrhead and District Scholarship 4H Fund and the library’s Books for Babes program. Receiving the donations was Grace Huisman.
Heidi Adams then accepted a $200 cheque on behalf of the Barrhead Ministerial Association, and the next recipient of a $200 cheque was the Barrhead Historical Society, represented by president Anna Churchill and treasurer Lena Wierenga.
A $200 cheque was also presented to Shannon Carlson, president of the Barrhead and District Agrena Society. The money will go towards the swimming pool project.
Other donations went to Dale Clark, on behalf of Drama for Children, and Children’s World Child Care Society.
Hillcrest this year also raised $520 for Barrhead Food Bank and the FCSS Hot Lunch Program.
Barrhead FCSS community development and volunteer coordinator, Ros Rudd, received a $300 cheque for the Food Bank and $220 for the lunch program.
For Lodge residents like Marge Gallatin and Gerry Kruse the presentations were a fitting climax to another Christmas Tea.
