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Lanark Heights hosts week of activities for Residents' Council Week
Gardening, workshops and Engagement Day brought residents and families together
10/8/2025
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Deron Hamel
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The Lanark Heights life enrichment team organized an engaging seven days of programming for Residents' Council Week that included activities such as gardening, sensory sessions, group discussions, workshops and a special Long-Term Care Engagement Day.
Karla Verdesoto, Lanark Heights' life enrichment manager, says the Kitchener long-term care community embraced autumn with a sunflower theme, “which brought warmth and colour to all the programs” throughout the week of Sept. 15 to 21.
For Long-Term Care Engagement Day, which proved to be the highlight of the week, there was an awards-style celebration during a happy hour event, with family members invited to join. Residents, as well as family members, received certificates in recognition of their support of the residents' council.
“We raised a glass with some delicious sangria and shared joyful moments together,” Karla tells S&R Today.
Another highlight was the Wall of Wisdom, which Karla describes as “a beautiful display featuring messages from our residents to future generations, paired with personal photographs from earlier times in their lives.”
“It was a powerful reminder of the wisdom and experience that lives within our home,” she says.
During the week, residents also got to enjoy a fresh salad made entirely from ingredients grown in Lanark Heights' garden, which, Karla notes, were “lovingly cultivated by our residents themselves.”
In all, Karla says Residents' Council Week was a celebration of connection, gratitude and the contributions of residents to Lanark Heights.
“Their ideas, spirit and support continue to inspire us every day,” she says.
Residents' councils are required in all Ontario long-term care homes. Made up of residents, the councils advocate for their peers and provide input on decisions that affect life in the home.
Residents' Council Week is organized each year by the Ontario Association of Residents' Councils (OARC). The week aims to raise awareness about the important role residents' councils play in long-term care homes.
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