MUSIC was the food of love, life and happiness at Estia Health Tea Gardens, as the resident ‘Wing 3 Choir’ gave their premiere performance on Thursday, 5 October.

The choir is composed of Estia residents and staff who come from Wing 3, hence the name, and have spent a lot of time together over the last few months.

Advertise with News of The Area today.
It’s worth it for your business.
Message us.
Phone us – (02) 4981 8882.
Email us – media@newsofthearea.com.au

Their first real audience was a room hosting dozens of fellow residents, none of whom hesitated joining in on a medley of timeless, sentimental favourites including ‘You Are My Sunshine’ and ‘Home Among the Gum Trees’ – the latter accompanied by dance moves from regular volunteer Pat Burnett.

“We’ve been going as a semi-organised choir for the last three months, making our own fun – Debbie K even made us the shirts,” Leah Saunders, ‘Wing 3 Choir’ facilitator and part-time vocalist, told NOTA.

“They sing together every lunchtime, up to sixteen residents plus staff – music really is the best medicine, and it makes it a fun workplace, too.

“There’s always someone singing in Wing 3 – we’ve even found that some residents who don’t often talk in common areas like to sing in their rooms, so this gives many a way to join in,” Ms Saunders added.

The grand finale was the Macarena, and several singers showed off their triple-threat dance moves.

Singing together is a pastime as old as humanity itself, often employed as much to make work and routine tasks more endurable as it was to entertain and just share the moment.

However, in recent times it has become somewhat of a lost artform, as younger generations recede into their ‘black mirrors’, focusing too much on faceless interactions, than enjoying the time and space around them ‘in the now’.

The staff and residents at Estia, nonetheless, know the value of a good tune, even if some of them cannot carry it.

By Thomas O’KEEFE