Aviva Valparaiso hosted veterans from throughout the community to honor their service with a complimentary breakfast and program. The event took place the morning of Friday, November 8.
Tricia Catlin, director of sales at Aviva Valparaiso, led the program for the veterans. She was excited to be able to honor the veterans of the city, including residents and non-residents of Aviva Valparaiso.
“This is a way for us to appreciate our residents and those within the community,” Catlin said. “We want to make sure we can make our residents feel special here.”
Catlin and the Aviva Valparaiso team understand the significance of bringing seniors together to celebrate whenever the opportunity presents itself, especially for those who fought for this country.
”I’ve been in the senior industry for many years,” Catlin said. “It’s very important for us to make these events a tradition. You can tell how important gatherings like this are to our veterans. Our activity program does a good job at finding out what people want to do in the building and outside, so we try our best to bring everything together.”
The preparation for this event dates back more than one month, when Aviva Valparaiso shared the details with the entire community to bring in as many veterans as possible. The organization strives to bring events that have a different theme to their campus for the residents. Some of the most recent ones include a car show and a pumpkin decorating contest.
The team at Aviva Valparaiso felt this breakfast provided an opportunity for the attendees to converse about their personal experiences as a veteran.
“Our group did a great job at pitching in and helping out every veteran,” Catlin said. “I enjoy talking with the veterans, and it’s nice for them to share stories with one another. Many of them are wearing their hats, and that often starts those conversations. They can talk all day long with their peers, and it’s great for them to have that opportunity.”
One veteran in attendance for the breakfast was John Simons. He cherishes every chance he gets to link up with friends and other local veterans.
“I think this was a great way to spend the morning,” Simons said. “Aviva Valparaiso has done a nice job of making all of the veterans feel special and provided some nice food as well. We don’t always get opportunities to spend time together, so these events are great.”
Simons had a great time at the event. He considers the veterans to be the foundation of what the United States is all about, and he’s grateful any time the community takes time to recognize him and his peers.
“The Pledge of Allegiance and listening to the different veteran songs were probably my favorite parts of the breakfast,” Simons said. “It’s great to recognize the veterans because that’s how our country was founded. Without the veterans, our country wouldn’t last.”
Aviva Valparaiso was pleased with the amount of veterans who showed up. Its team is hopeful to continue honoring them with future events.
“There’s nothing quite like the camaraderie of an event like this one,” Catlin said. “It’s great for our residents to network with people in other parts of the community. We’re happy to put this breakfast together and hope to do many more down the line..”
For more information on Aviva Valparaiso, you can visit its website.