When Solihull grandmother, Joan Senior, had to miss her grandson’s wedding, The Royal Star & Garter Homes came to the rescue.

 

Joan, a resident at The Royal Star & Garter Home in Solihull, was delighted to receive an invitation to her grandson Alex Penn’s wedding to his fiancée, Ali. When the big day arrived however, Joan was unwell and had to miss a milestone in her life, the wedding of her treasured grandson. So Joan’s family and care staff at the Home decided to recreate the wedding especially for Joan.

 

No detail was spared to recreate the magical day. The family wanted all the residents to be invited, so each resident was sent a special wedding invitation card and, on Saturday 15 November, Alex and Ali arrived at the balloon-bedecked Solihull Home.

 

Heather, Joan’s daughter, explained: “What a fabulous time we all had doing the wedding all over again in a really relaxed atmosphere. With the help of Sue and everyone at The Royal Star & Garter Homes, we made it as authentic as we could, with all the trimmings of the original wedding including the car, the service, the champagne and buffet, flowers and cake. Not only did my mum love it, but the bride’s grandparents were also able to attend as they hadn’t been well enough on the day, so both families really benefitted from the re-run. Looking round on the day at all the residents’ faces made the effort worthwhile.”

 

Bridegroom Alex commented: “We had felt so sad that Gran couldn’t come to our wedding but we knew that it would be too stressful for her and outside of her comfort zone. This re-run gave us the opportunity to bring our wedding to her. We had great fun – I really enjoyed the afternoon!”

 

It was a wonderful event for all of the residents and staff at the Home to share. Annette Stockham, the Homes’ Activities & Welfare Manager, said: “Joan’s face was glowing with delight. A really positive day for a lovely lady living with dementia but making the most of this occasion with family and friends and her beloved grandson. Weddings bring back lots of memories and emotions for the residents, and there were tears as well as lots of smiles and hugs.”

 

Everyone at The Royal Star & Garter Homes would like to wish Alex and Ali every happiness in their future lives together.