“A car pulled up and a lady got out and handed us these bunches of flowers, and it just had a sign attached saying ‘to all the frontline staff, from Avonlea Flowers’," Shepparton Villages care manager Gabrielle Bush said.
“They were six of the most lovely, beautiful bunches of flowers, and then she basically just said thanks and drove away.
“It truly almost made me cry, it was so good.”
Maculata Place — one of four residential care homes provided by Shepparton Villages — has been cut off from Shepparton for months at a time due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions and a scare earlier in the pandemic.
“We had COVID-19 here and it's coming round to that anniversary, so it was really nice to receive this,” Ms Bush said.
“It took your breath away — it was like, ‘wow, someone knows we're here'.”
Ms Bush said the isolation had been tough on residents as well as staff.
“We're cut off, very much, so we've put bunches in the foyer and they smell beautiful, we've got three upstairs and three downstairs,” she said.
The handwritten sign is displayed with pride in the kitchen area, reading:
To the wonderful frontline workers,with compliments and thanks.From Avonlea Flowers
“You can see residents come up reading the note and going ‘that's really nice, that's great’," Ms Bush said.
“We've had a lot of comments.”
The delivery has given everyone a much-needed boost, as staff are still working under challenging conditions and with strict health guidelines in place.
“We appreciate it and thank you,” Ms Bush said.
“We're trying our best, and hopefully soon things will be open for business as usual and the worst will be over.
“Most of our residents and majority of staff are vaccinated, which we hope will give us a chance to open the doors.”
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