10:00 a.m.
The energy level in the Town Square at The Village of Taunton Mills is at the highest level as athletes and support teams from the nine eastern Schlegel Villages arrive for the second Schlegel Olympics event. Smiles are wide and cheers are practically deafening as each team arrives, waving their Village flags. Senior Vice President of Operations, Rose Lamb is among the first to greet each team – she’s been a part of these events since they began in 2010, and says they are the epitome of the organization’s culture and values.
“You can do anything, no matter what age you are,” Rose says, considering what she loves about seeing the event kick off. “I’m thrilled to have our Olympics happening when the main Olympics are on, and I think seeing the residents that have been so persistent is so aligned with our values, from the team perspective, as well as the residents. They can do hard things, they can train, they are celebrating each other – it is really our values coming alive!”
10:25
Julio Valdez stands with a broad smile upon his face as the last two teams enter the Village to wild cheers; he is part of the team from Home Medical Equipment, and he supports residents from most of the eastern Villages to ensure their mobility devices are in top condition.
He’s blown away by the atmosphere as the games are about to open.
“I love this,” Julio says. “I know pretty much everybody here and you can see the excitement among all the people – I saw Helen from Erin Meadows and she was crying she was so happy. It was amazing.”
He works with several other organizations and says he’s never seen anything like the energy in the Town Square this morning at Taunton Mills.
“I have no words in my mouth to describe how happy I am to be part of this right now.”
10:40
Like Rose, Noella Black has been to all Olympics since the first humble event was held in 2010. As the general manager at Taunton Mills, she welcomes athletes and guests during the opening ceremonies and describes how that first event felt.
“We weren’t sure how it was going to go,” she recalls, “but we quickly realized how our residents were competitive, not to mention each Village team. Something that started in a simple, fun event, has turned into months of practice and tryouts in each Village to find the elite athletes to represent their Villages today.”
It’s an event her Village is proud to host.
11:05
Chuck from the Village of Taunton Mills and Alex from Humber Heights are the first competitors to square off in the sprint, where athletes push themselves upon the Nu-Step machines for the highest number of steps in a 90-second span.
Chuck has been training for months, while Alex, at 90-years-old, was a last-minute addition.
His niece Lisa and her husband Andrew have come to cheer him on.
“I’m pretty overwhelmed,” Lisa says as she watches her uncle warm-up. “I think this is amazing. We picked Schlegel Villages because they care and as far as a holistic approach, we wanted him to live the best life he can.”
11:15
Chuck and Alex are both capturing their breath after impressive performances. Chuck says he beat his personal best at 250 steps, and he hopes it’s enough to move onto the next round.
“This is kind of like the regular Olympics,” he says. “We’re getting the crowd into it, bringing people together – there’s no separation, everybody’s together and working together.”
Amélie Larochelle is the Program for Active Living Coordinator at Taunton Mills supporting Chuck and all the residents at Taunton Mills, many of whom have been inspired to become more active during the lead up to these events. Her emotion clearly beams as she reflects on Chuck’s first performance.
“I’m so proud of him,” she says. “He was amazing today and I know he pushed really hard.”
11:45
Ellie and her friend Brenda from Coleman Care Centre sit together at the end of the Slalom event. Even though Ellie didn’t place in the top four, Brenda is still proud of her friend and the medal she wears around her neck. She shakes her pop-poms and her eyes well with emotion as she talks about her friend.
“It makes me feel so good, right from the heart,” she says.
Each grabs the hand of the other, and Caleb Prince, the care partner who’s come to support them smiles.
“This feels fantastic,” he says. “It’s a super fun thing for everyone to come together, compete a little bit and such have fun!”
11:55
“I got this, I’m a hockey ref,” says Bob from The Village of Humber Heights, just before the finals kick off in the Sprint event. Across from him sits Chuck from Taunton Mills. “I eat sprints for breakfast!” Chuck says.
Ninety second later, Bob comes out with the gold medal and Chuck with silver; this end of Main Street erupts in applause fit to match any venue in Paris.
12:25
Melody from Erin Mills Lodge, Schlegel Village’s small Long-Term Care home in Mississauga is helped down Main Street in her wheelchair. The people lining the walls on either side cheer as if she’s the lone participant in a parade of champions.
She has the gold medal from the Olympic shooting event hanging around her neck.
“This place is beautiful,” she says. “I’d come back here any time. This is so much better than I thought it would be. This was a lot of fun and the people here are all amazing, and that’s what I like about this.
2:20
Anna from Taunton Mills finishes her routine on the parallel bars, the only event scored on a points system by a panel of judges. The hometown fans have exploded in applause and her coach Amélie breaks down in tears as they hug.
It’s clear how much practice and effort has gone into these routines.
“It’s all her,” Anna says, looking over to Amélie. “She believed in me, what I wanted to create.”
Anna says her great granddaughter is in gymnastics and she wanted to perform for her. Anna also did gymnastics in her younger days, and it felt good to perform for an audience again.
In the crowd is her daughter, granddaughters-in-law and some of her great grandchildren.
“This is a very nice community,” says one of Anna’s loved ones, Lisa. “We’re very proud of Great Oma.”
Anna would eventually earn the silver medal for her performance, while Violetta from The Village of Erin Meadows was honoured to receive the gold.
She’s beaming as she hugs one of her supporters and friends. “This was so much fun being in this village, listening to music and just being with all of these wonderful people,” Violetta says.
3:00
As the closing ceremonies wrap, there is nothing but cheers and smiles as the Villages part, hugging new friends and beaming with pride, knowing that every Village earned a medal. More importantly, a spotlight shone brightly upon the fact that no matter a person’s age, a competitive spirit and love of fellowship can burn as hot as ever.
This is what #ElderWisdom and the Schlegel Olympics is all about.
