Walter Thomasson from St Vincent De Paul.
Tonight, we heard from Walter a resident of the Dempsey Place St Vincent De Paul housing facility who has an ambitious plan to duplicate a project he previously implemented in an aged care facility in Bateman's Bay. Having grown up with a love of cinema, theatre and stage performances Walter believes the arts are a wonderful form to help the elderly, dementia patients and the lonely to be entertained, socialise, recover and enjoy life. Walter established a "movie theatre" in the aged care home and described how the positive influence it had on individuals - limited for social interaction the screening of movies of all types - comedy, westerns, musicals become a popular outlet for social interaction and struck a chord with residents to get out of there room and be more active.
The presentation included a YouTube clip showing the benefits of the project which earned Walter a Paul Harris from the Batemans Bay Rotary Club - having moved to Albury, Walter can see the need to have a similar "movie theatre" at the Dempsey Place facility.
Some residents simply stay in their rooms, some are struggling with health issues, some are lonely and not motivated to do anything - the idea to have regular screenings will hopefully have huge benefits to all the residents in a variety of ways.
Walter is hoping to gain financial support through our Foundation grants and from what he has shown to us tonight the movie theatre concept has lots of benefits for a relatively low cost. To make the experience even more enjoyable Walter plans to include a popcorn machine and hold special feature events for the Oscar's or stage productions.
To finish the presentation Walter slipped into his movie usher outfit complete with small cap which truly illustrated his passion for this project and the desire to make the lives of those in Dempsey Place that little bit more enjoyable.
