New wing opens at Kintyre Lodge
The passion, drive and will
Kintyre Lodge Aged Care residence sets an industry standard of comfort and 24-hour peace of mind which residents and their families naturally expect, but it’s also the little things - the effort to go above and beyond – which sets Kintyre Lodge apart.
As we celebrate the opening of our 20-room Browne Wing - which also marks the completion of the residence 81-bed build - it’s the response to the Wing’s new garden which is so heart-warming to see.
“The garden is another space where our recreation activity officer Kay can bring residents to enjoy gardening activities including watering, to stimulate the sense of smell and touch of the flowers and plants, or to just sit and socialise too,” Kintyre Living Customer Liaison Manager Danielle Chapman said.
“It’s an inclusive space which all residents are free to enjoy, not just those living in Browne Wing but all wings plus residents from the Memory Care wing. It offers everyone another inviting space to share, which is also safe and accessible for wheelchairs and walkers.”
The easy to access garden beds include herbs and succulents.
Herbs in the herb garden have been specifically chosen by Kintyre Lodge chef Matt, and in the loving care of residents will be grown and harvested before he expertly includes them in their meals.
“Matt has asked for very specific herbs. Everyone loves the amazing, freshly prepared food here,” Mrs Chapman said.
The centrepiece of the Browne Wing garden is a large, circular, decorative arbour.
“The plan for this beautiful arbour is to have climbing plants trained all over it, so it will create a shaded sanctuary under the greenery where residents can sit and relax.”
These simple yet well considered touches to the Kintyre Lodge environment all work toward creating liveable, stimulating and inviting community spaces.
Kintyre Living village resident and keen gardener Gary Huggins has generously donated to the Browne Wing, some of the many succulents from his village home’s garden.
“He’s donated some of his amazing succulents as well as planted them. He’s done a lot of the planning and informing of what plants would be best to grow here in the Browne Wing garden,” Mrs Chapman said.
“This is a second garden and residents now have both areas to use and share their skills and have a bit of a potter. Some residents like to just come here and enjoy the quiet,” Mrs Chapman said. Kintyre Lodge is an 81-bed residential aged care facility is surrounded by the retirement homes of the Kintyre Living Retirement Village.
The Lodge caters for all levels of care including high and low residential respite and permanent care, and a dedicated Memory Care Wing specialising in caring for residents with Dementia or Alzheimer’s.
The new Browne Wing garden compliments a host of fun, stimulating environments and activities found throughout.
Seeing these three qualities, especially in the young adults Mark Penman trains at Dubbo Athletics Club is something he finds rewarding. While he’s now officially on the books, it’s the many years of volunteering beforehand that got him hooked and interested in developing his skills as an athletics’ coach.
Like many parents, Mark gave selfless volunteer hours through training night set-ups, event and club organisation, running of competitions, supporting at away meets, and more.
“My children started competing in athletics right from the youngest age group, so it was something that first of all I’d just go down and help with the set-up of the gear. Then as they progressed and enjoyed their running, I slowly started coming in a bit more with the coaching side of things, gradually building up to having a fairsized squad.
“I’ve been a committee member for the last few years, and when the club goes to state or regional carnivals, I’m generally the club captain.”
Mark knows that without volunteers Dubbo Athletics Club, or any junior sporting club wouldn’t survive.
“I think, most other organisations could probably agree, everyone’s lives seem to be so busy that it’s really hard to have people commit time to volunteering roles, but to keep operating, especially junior sporting clubs, that’s what it relies on, the volunteers.
“Most people who do come down and volunteer find it really rewarding, hence why there’s still a number of committee members - even though they’ve been around for years and even though their kids have grown up and no longer compete in the club - because it is something very rewarding.
“There’s some fantastic guys there that put in so much time and effort. Cameron Porteus is one that jumps to mind. He no longer has any children that compete in athletics, but it’s something he’s been involved in for such a long time, he still continues to come down to set up everything at a normal Friday night meet or any carnivals Dubbo holds,” Mark said.
“I know that a lot of people are hesitant to commit some time to volunteering, because we’re all so busy but I find it a real positive experience. I can have so much going on in my mind in a workday, then going down to help coach a group of an afternoon, I can totally separate myself from work and it’s a real positive outlet where you can get involved in the community. It’s certainly something I’d encourage others to have a go at - any volunteering.”
When Mark started out, he didn’t know his volunteering hours would lead to a paid role.
“By starting off volunteering and trying to learn as much as I possibly can I now have the opportunity to give the kids good level coaching and be able to show them the right technique and skills.
“It is something I did a fair bit of homework and research for and have been lucky enough to have a fair few state level mentors and being able to learn off those guys for a number of years so that’s allowed me to get where I am coaching.
““The kids are all going great. It’s great being around the young adults that train because they’re so committed and dedicated, I think I get a lot out of actually being around the guys; that’ve got the passion, and the drive and the will. I certainly love being around that culture.”
DUBBO has done something new – the city has hosted, for the first time in the vast Western Region, a five-day Police Bicycle Patrol Operators Course, which is normally run at Goulburn’s police academy.
So, get set to see ever more police on pushbikes, with 18 officers ranging from Dubbo, Gilgandra, Yeoval, Wellington, Mudgee and beyond attending the course.
Superintendent Peter Mckenna was acting region commander at the time and said it comes as a welcomed addition to training capabilities already offered in this region.
“It’s fantastic to see the decentralisation of these courses; the amount of shifts and hours it saves our staff from travelling significant distances in the past when the course can be held in Western Region is a significant step forward,” he said.
“It’s both a great opportunity for our staff to do a different style of policing, and another resource which our commands have – the overwhelmingly positive feedback from communities when they see police on bikes in and around CBDS speaks for itself.
“It acts as a significant deterrent to antisocial behaviour, and surprisingly they’re able to often make arrests by being able to access places often difficult to police.”