Flying their flag during Cultural Awareness Week at St. Luke’s Home
Friday 16th April hosted the closing ceremony of Cultural Awareness Week at St. Luke’s Home. The Lord Mayor of Cork Cllr. Dara Murphy and Lady Mayoress Tanya Murphy joined the residents and staff of St. Luke’s Home for a display of cultural ancestry, history, kinship, religion, language, music and art. St. Luke’s Home was a haven of cultural splendour as all the residents and staff made their way from the gates of St. Luke’s Home into the conservatory where they were met by all the residents, and their families, of St. Luke’s Home.
Each day throughout Cultural Awareness Week saw traditions and information about each culture and nationality highlighted through music, song, dance and informative interaction with staff wearing their native dress.
The week was opened by Bishop Paul Colton on Monday 12th April, where the staff of African origin hosted a variety of performances from the African Countries.
Tuesday played host to the cultural awe of the European Countries, when staff members Angela Hornibrook (from Lithuania) and Ulrika Lidstrom (from Sweden) showed the residents of St. Luke’s Home why they were proud to be European.
Wednesday hosted performances and green brilliance from all the Irish staff members at St. Luke’s Home and in particular by Fiona Coughlan, HR Officer of St. Luke’s Home who brought her daughter Emma along for the day wearing green, white and Gold. Thursday welcomed the natives of the Indian countries as well as the Philippines in their cultural attire to come along and represent their home countries. Marte Hierco, from the Philippines, who has been a long term member of staff at St. Luke’s Home told us that ‘There are as many Philippine natives working at St. Luke’s Home as there are Irish and it is a priviledge to work in an environment that demonstrates such diversity’.
Shortly after the parade from the gates of St. Luke’s Home into the conservatory on Friday, several staff members provided a demonstration of their native dance traditions and many of the residents of St. Luke’s also took to the Micophone to sing a song, for the Lord Mayor of Cork Cllr. Dara Murphy and Lady Mayoress Tanya Murphy, which reminded them of their heritage. The Circus Act from Cork’s Institute of Technology, who had volunteered at St. Luke’s Home for the duration of Cultural Awareness week, provided all the residents and staff of St. Luke’s Home with a display of tricks and antics. A special Thank you was made to them by David O’Brien, Director of Finance and Administration at the closing ceremony.
Cultural Awareness week 2009 was initiated by Eugene Browne, Resident Advocate of St. Luke’s Home, who told us that ‘After such a powerful and informative Cultural Awareness week last year displayed at St. Luke’s Home, we are delighted that the second year of the event was so successful and fun for all. We wanted to make every effort to ensure that the residents and their families received a powerful display of music, tradition and ethnic energy which can only be witnessed amongst residents and friends at St. Luke’s Home.’
St. Luke’s is a 120-bed state-of-the-art facility and Day Care Centre for the elderly and, working in conjunction with the HSE, has an occupancy rate of 99%, and a staffing level of approximately 230 providing 24hour care cover, 7 days weekly. Split into four sections of 30bed self-contained areas, each section has its own nurses’ station, catering area etc., and the home also has a dedicated Dementia unit.
All the staff members of St. Luke’s Home, Mahon fly their flag to highlight Cultural Awareness Week which took place at St. Luke’s Home last week.
