Melbourne Cup day saw Yirra Mia transcended into the place to be for this year's cup celebrations. With the race shown live on the screen and a fashions on the field competition that even fabulous Flemington would be proud to host, nothing was left to chance as all the stops were pulled out to ensure the day was a stylish celebration that had to be seen to be believed.
The day began with a morning tea and the sale of the sweepstakes which were a great success as everybody was keen to get in the action of trying to draw the eventual winner. The door prize too was highly sought after as it was an entry into the highest priced sweepstake ahead of the race! Once all the official selling of the sweeps was over attention was then turned to the special guest for the day who made an appearance before the main race . Clients and staff were thrilled to meet 'Rosie the Pony' as she paraded around for half an hour bringing much joy and delight to everyone who had the pleasure of meeting her. This set the tone for the client fashions on the field to take place in what was a fine display of elegance and colour!
Everybody then gathered and found their spot in the room to watch the great race from and what a delight it was to see an Australian bred horse in Vow and Declare get over the line in a tight and action packed finish to the race! With the race run and won it was time to enjoy a wonderful two-course lunch put on by our centre cook and kitchen volunteer. Roast beef and vegetables were the order of the day followed by a mouth-watering fruit pavlova for dessert. Many thanks to Paul and the team in the kitchen for the wonderful lunch that was enjoyed by all! Everyone was given time to settle from lunch as a much anticipated game of Melbourne Cup bingo was rolled out. Bingo numbers were allocated to the horse names of previous Melbourne Cup winners and the room fell silent for the only time throughout the day as everybody concentrated hard to complete the 'Racetrack' on the bingo card.
Of course it wouldn't be cup day if Daryl Braithwaite's song 'Horses' wasn't played around the room, with some staff seizing the opportunity to take to the dancefloor to sing and dance their way through it much to the delight of the clients in attendance! This brought us to our final display of the day....
The staff fashions on the field were nothing short of entertaining throughout, with a horse and rider ensemble shown off by Manager Belinda, and Aleesha in attendance as the resident jockey like last year... there was plenty of horsing around, enhanced by the gorgeous array of fashionable attire from all staff! The day was then complete with the presentations for best dressed, best fascinator and most creative! Many people left with prizes but most importantly everyone left with a smile and a desire to be back for more next year!
By: Aleesha Williams