A long life is worth celebrating.
The 15th-annual Seniors’ Lunch Party took place in Richmond on Saturday, with 500 seniors gathering to enjoy a free dim sum lunch in a seafood restaurant.
The event was hosted by the Richmond Chinese Community Society (RCCS) to “celebrate a long and healthy life” for older residents.
MP Alice Wong, MLAs Linda Reid and John Yap, and city councillors Bill McNulty and Derek Dang also took part in the lunch.
Seniors dined on dim sum and watched a variety of performances ranging from tai chi, choral singing and dancing, and participated in “lucky draws” for prizes.
The 20 most-senior people at the party, who were age 90 to 103, received red packages containing $20 to $100, while all attendees received a gift bag containing a selection of food and snacks.
“We hope this event can provide an opportunity for senior people to network and communicate with each other,” said RCCS Executive Director Henry Beh.
“We encourage our members to bring seniors they know to this event, especially those isolated and live alone,” said Beh.
Xiang Li, 90, has attended the seniors’ lunch for many years.
He said the event “is very caring and warming for senior people, I feel very happy and at ease here.”
Sonja Hill was attending for the first time: “I’m so glad I’m here. I have made many friends at the table. I’m so pleased they are doing this for the seniors of all the ethnic groups.”
