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Eldercare commemorates the ANZACs

Eldercare residents and staff have marked ANZAC Day this week with events held across the organisation.

ANZAC Day services were held at several residential aged care sites and included the unveiling of a commemorative banner at Eldercare Cottage Grove in Woodcroft which features hand knitted poppies made by residents.

Cottage Grove Lifestyle Coordinator Sue Hakof said the ANZAC day banner was created to ‘value and honour’ the contribution servicemen and women have made so Australians can live in peace today.

“War is a vivid memory of experience in the lives of our residents and we have two veterans living at Cottage Grove,” said Sue.

“By making the banner, we wanted to provide residents with a sacred space they could visit for reflection – where the pain, suffering and loss could be acknowledged by all those who were, and continue to be, affected by war.

“This artwork also provides an opportunity for residents to tell their story, to express it as part of their own story, and to hand on their legacy to future generations in a meaningful way.”

Cottage Grove resident and knitter Rita Hurrell said the most amazing part about creating the banner was how ‘little contributions were brought together to become something bigger’.

“I knitted 50 poppies for the banner and, when I saw it for the first time, I was amazed – I could see the part that I’d done and it looked really lovely,” said Rita.

“On ANZAC Day I remember my brother who passed away during the war in Papua New Guinea and my late husband who was in the Army but managed to make it back.”

Rita said Cottage Grove volunteer Denise Farnden played a large part in helping make the knitted poppies.

“I have Denise to thank for her help and her expertise,” said Rita.

“Denise meets with the knitting group each week and, when we came together to knit the poppies for the ANZACs, I felt a sense of camaraderie.”

Signwriter John Morris also volunteered his time to assist the Cottage Grove Lifestyle team create the ANZAC Day commemorative banner for residents.

Image: Cottage Grove’s commemorative ANZAC Day artwork.

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