Elders enjoy island getaway on their day |02 October 2020
History reminds us of our own serendipity with ageing. In 1950, the life expectancy for the average westerner was 63 years; now, it is more than 80. On October 1, we celebrated longevity with International Day of Older Persons, established 30 years ago by the United Nations.
Fittingly, this year's theme for the day is ‘Pandemics: Do they change how we address age and ageing?’
To mark this year’s International Day of Older Persons, the National Council for the Elderly which falls under the Ministry of Family Affairs, organised a getaway to Silhouette island for 70 elderly people across the nine retirement homes in the country. They were accompanied on their trip by the Family Affairs Minister Mitcy Larue and her delegation.
The trip was a one night stay at Hilton Seychelles Labriz Resort & Spa, where they were pampered by the hotel. It was provided through a reduced package offered by Hilton and paid for by the National Council for the Elderly.
Andre Borg, general manager of Hilton Seychelles Labriz Resort & Spa on Silhouette Island, noted that the Hilton Seychelles Labriz sales team visited the National Council for the Elderly on one of their local sales calls.
“When discussing potential collaborations it was mentioned that they were planning to organise a small retreat for a group of elderly people and we thought it would be a great opportunity for them to experience the resort and feel like they were going abroad for a holiday. With the implementation of Hilton Clean Stay we could also not think of a safer space to accommodate them in the current situation,” said Mr Borg.
He added that often we find that the elderly are not often spoilt, and as Hilton thrives on giving back to the community, we found it quite fitting in having this opportunity to give the elderly a chance to be pampered.
The Hilton Seychelles Labriz team organised beach activities that the elderly can enjoy as it has been able to tailor to suite their age group and health restrictions.
Other activities include a traditional moutya bonfire night.
“As we all know this event brings everyone together, old and young and we are also putting together a gentle hike, walk so that they can also enjoy more the outdoors and fresh air. All of these activities have been organised in a way that is in line with current health regulations. We have to remember that many of them don’t often get the chance to move around and for them coming to Silhouette not only is a treat but it allows us, the team to take of them on a hospitality level,” Mr Borg added.
He also mentioned that based on the success of the current retreat the Hilton group enjoys partaking on community responsibilities and so partnering with the Ministry of Family Affairs it is definitely something they look forward to and create a strong partnership.
Vincent Germain, director of elderly homes, said that the day was a complete success and the residence really enjoyed their day spent on the island. He noted that staff and elders were able to enjoy a list of activities planned by the Hilton hotel.
He also wished all elderly people a happy day and noted that we are reaping the hard work that the elders have done and we should all treat them with respect especially on their special day.
The accompanying photos show some highlights of the elders’ island getaway.
Christophe Zialor
