On June 29th, 2022, Chateau St. Michaels held an exciting event for its residents when the Western-Canada Senior Home Tour brought in singer and guitarist Brent Meidinger.
The Activities Coordinator, Krista Bakken received high praises from the residents for providing them with this exciting event, as well as always planning fun and special activities.
Bernice Panko, a resident of Chateau St. Michaels said, she was very happy at the Chateau. “I chose this [place] myself because I worked in the healthcare field all my working life and I had been in and out of all the care homes and I knew this one was the best. I love the yard; we can go walk and play games out there and the staff is exceptional."
Brent Meidinger, a musician from Stratford, Ontario, started performing with his parents at the age of five, often going with his mom to perform at senior homes. He learned to play the guitar when he was eleven and joined many bands during his high school experience. After high school, Brent went on to university to become a teacher and taught for 6 years, using his summer break to busk at festivals. That is when he realized that at a lot of the people that he was playing for happened to be older folks so he came up with the idea of touring Western Canada providing entertainment in seniors’ homes.
"To all the homes that have booked me for the tour, I'm thankful for that. When I am reaching out to homes, obviously they don't know me. I send a link to my music and a press package and all that, but it is a bit of an unknown booking someone out of province. So, thanks to all the homes that have booked me and given me a chance to perform for the residents and thanks to the residents who have listened," said Meidinger.
Over the course of 31 days, Meidinger will be providing entertainment in fifty different shows, playing music from the 50s and 60s in a variety of different genres. He hopes the songs will remind the residents of when they were younger.
“I recently dove back into some music I listened to when I was a teenager, and it was such a neat experience because I realized even after all these years, I still love those songs…,” he said. “…I really like the fact that I can possibly help initiate that same type of experience for seniors who, in many cases, haven't heard some of the songs I perform since they were youths.”
To hear some of Brent Meidinger’s music you can visit www.soundcloud.com/brentmeidinger
The next big event coming up will be Carnival Day [at the Chateau] on August 6th, from 10 A.M to 3 P.M. The last Carnival Day at the Chateau was held two years ago and the residents loved it. This year, resident’s families are encouraged to come and share in the fun with planned activities including games, a barbeque, and music from the Band City Band.
To learn more about Carnival Day you can email Krista Bakken at activities@chateaustmichaels.com
