RESIDENTS, staff and trustees of Wokingham Almshouses enjoyed celebrating Christmas together.
The Residents’ Lounge was buzzing with conversation and laughter as the community gathered for a traditional Christmas meal.
Long term resident Roy thanked the trustees and staff on behalf of all the Westende Almshouses community.
“The meal was tremendous,” he said.
“They’re so good here, they do everything for us, and I love to be able to joke and have a laugh with them.
“They always put on a good Christmas lunch, and it’s great to get everyone together.”
Chair of WUC trustees David Auger said he was delighted to see so many at the lunch, and officially welcomed the almshouses’ most recent residents, including Jean who had only settled in the previous week.
“The trustees are committed to maintaining Westende,” he said, “And it has improved a lot over the years thanks to a rolling programme to modernise the flats.”
There was plenty of applause, too, for Westende manager Linda Rowe, grants administrator Susanna Jennings, household support grants administrator Michelle McCane-Whitney, and charity manager Amy Garstang, for their work during the year, and also for Tanya Nunn from family-run caterers, A Bit of A Do, who provided the lunch.
Tanya said, “We love coming here to provide a Christmas meal.
“We’ve done it for a few years now, and they’re a really fun bunch.”
Westende Almshouses is run by Wokingham United Charities, one of Wokingham’s oldest charitable organisations.
The charity is committed to providing its affordable accommodation, which consists of 27 self-contained flats, and also manages a substantial Relief in Need fund that delivers grant funding for local charities and individuals.
For more information, visit: wokinghamunitedcharities.org.uk, and abitofadocaterers.co.uk